The issue is not the annual budget deficit. The far more serious issue that has long-term fiscal impact is the total accumulated national debt.
Reagan and the Bushs have increased the national debt at a far greater rate then recent Democrat presidents. You can blame Democratic-controlled Congress at the time, but the fact is the President submits the annual federal budget; Congress acts on it and often adds spending to benefit their districts or pet interest group, but the President has the final say and can veto any budget bill. (sorry about the size of the chart)
The current total national debt is over $8.5 TRILLION and growing exponentially if the full BUsh tax cuts are made permanent.
Quote:
Originally Posted by aceventura3
Question:
Can it be wise for a government to spend more than it collects ?
Answer:
Yes, when the return on the money spent is greater than the cost of borrowing.
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Currently,
the interest alone is over $400 BILLION/year...the third largest expenditure in the federal budget and
not a very good return on the money,particularly since over 20% of our national debt is owned by foreign governments and banks, with Japan, China, UK and OPEC leading the way.
Clinton and the Repub Congress demonstrated how you can have a responsible fiscal policy by drawing down the national debt with sensible and disciplined spending and without tax increases
I'll save my comments re: Bush's so-called Social Security reform for another time