If deficit spending is the way out of an economic downturn, as leftist economists like Paul Krugman keep telling us, then one way to characterize President Obamas approach to reviving the ailing economy is killing it with kindness.
Another is tough lovenot the kind where you force hard choices and self-discipline, but the kind where you shoot the poor beast to put it out of its misery.
James Clyburn, House Majority Whip, recently crystallized the Democrats position on fiscal responsibility when he announced, Were not going to save our way out of this recession. Weve got to spend our way out of this recession, and I think most economists know that.
Here are some fun facts about Obamas proposed federal budgets over the next decade:
The projected deficit for Obamas 2010 budget is $1.6 trillion, which is 10% larger than the 2009 deficit, which was three times as big as the record 2008 deficit under President Bush.
The projected 2010 deficit is 10 times as large as the deficit for Bushs 2007 budget, the latter of which included funding for the troop surge that won the war in Iraq. Nearly matching our accomplishment in Iraq, the White House Travel Office has approved a trip for Obama to go to Cambridge, Massachusetts in November to get a Democratic dogcatcher elected in Harvard Square.
The projected 2010 deficit will render our national debt 13% bigger on the last day of this year than it is today. Projected 2010-11 deficits will cause the debt to swell 23% bigger than it is now. By 2020, the debt will be twice as big as it is today. read more »