U.S. Deficit Shrinking At Fastest Pace Since WWII

[nhboy (Premo)]

Link to original article.

"Believe it or not, the federal deficit has fallen faster over the past three years than it has in any such stretch since demobilization from World War II.

In fact, outside of that post-WWII era, the only time the deficit has fallen faster was when the economy relapsed in 1937, turning the Great Depression into a decade-long affair.

If U.S. history offers any guide, we are already testing the speed limits of a fiscal consolidation that doesn't risk backfiring. That's why the best way to address the fiscal cliff likely is to postpone it.

While long-term deficit reduction is important and deficits remain very large by historical standards, the reality is that the government already has its foot on the brakes.

In this sense, the "fiscal cliff" metaphor is especially poor. The government doesn't need to apply the brakes with more force to avoid disaster. Rather the "cliff" is an artificial one that has sprung up because the two parties are able to agree on so little.

Hopefully, they will agree, as they did at the end of 2010, to embrace their disagreement for a bit longer. That seems a reasonably likely outcome of negotiations because the most likely alternative to a punt is a compromise (expiration of the Bush tax cuts for the top and the payroll tax cut, along with modest spending cuts) that could still push the economy into recession.

Rather than applying additional fiscal restraint now, the government needs to make sure it sets the course for steady restraint once the economy emerges further from the deep employment hole that remains. In fact, a number of so-called deficit hawks are calling for short-term tax cuts to spur growth, rather than immediate austerity.

From fiscal 2009 to fiscal 2012, the deficit shrank 3.1 percentage points, from 10.1% to 7.0% of GDP.

That's just a bit faster than the 3.0 percentage point deficit improvement from 1995 to '98, but at that point, the economy had everything going for it.

Other occasions when the federal deficit contracted by much more than 1 percentage point a year have coincided with recession. Some examples include 1937, 1960 and 1969."

[Vince]

And if you believe that BS, I can sell you the Brooklyn Bridge at a good price.

The National Debt has now increased more during President Obama's three years and two months in office than it did during 8 years of the George W. Bush presidency.

National Debt has increased more under Obama than under Bush - Political Hotsheet - CBS News

Nonothing, is it really necessary to post this obamapropaganda?

[GURPS (Premo)]

Funny thing is, Progs take cradit for doing NOTHING


Programs have run their course and ended;

President Obama hasn't gotten much credit for reining in the deficit, probably because a big part of the deficit progress has come from the unwinding of extraordinary government supports that he helped put in place. Stimulus programs have come and mostly gone; the end of stimulus to states led them to enact Medicaid curbs; jobless benefits in recent months have fallen by 50% since early 2010 (due to both job gains and extended benefits being exhausted).
TARP and the bailouts of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac also make the deficit improvement look better, boosting the fiscal '09 deficit by about $200 billion more than in fiscal '12 (though the initial cost of TARP was overstated).


Still, military spending is now on the decline due to fewer troops in Iraq and Afghanistan; Medicare costs rose 3% last year vs. the average 7% growth in recent years; and after the last year's Budget Control Act, excluding the automatic cuts set to take effect in January, nondefense discretionary spending is already on a path to shrink to 2.7% of GDP, well below the 3.9% average, notes the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Read More At IBD: U.S. Deficit Shrinking At Fastest Pace Since WWII, Before Fiscal Cliff - Investors.com

Obama gets a Trophy for showing up. being present






I found this comment looking @ the Madcow Blog, that posted this same story in Oct:

Crackhead Awards

And they keep bringing up Ronald "Alzheimer's" Reagan as if he is some kind of superhero that saved the whole universe from utter destruction.

1. Reagan is responsible for 911 because he paid $3 billion to form Au Qaeda and the Taliban to fight the Soviets in Afghanistan, most of which was used to bomb embassies and build Madrases where Muslim clerics condemn the US (Charlie Wilson's War)
2. He committed treason by putting military in charge of civilian air traffic control after firing PATCO members when they went out on strike to protest the use of obsolete Word War II radar at US airports (violated Posse Comatatus)
3. Reagan started urban legends about welfare queens, job stealing Mexicans, and voodoo economic "magic money" that frees us of the burden to collect taxes to pay for government programs (like wars in Iraq and Afghanistan)
4. He kicked out Mexicans to "Save America for Americans", which reduced consumer demand enough to cause massive unemployment and a minor depression when they stopped spending money in the US after they were deported.
5. Reagan fixed the unemployment problem by expand the Cold War and hiring millions of new civil service workers.
6. He blew a massive hole in the federal budget that caused him to raise taxes AND simultaneously plunder the Social Security Trust Fund.

....
If this is your hero ........ then OMG!!!

12 votes
#1.2 - Fri Oct 12, 2012 7:04 PM EDT

and Progs claim R's are crazy

and this Moron claims it was Reagan that put mentally ill folks out in the cold - it was lawyers in the 70's suing for their release if they were not a danger to themselves or others

borninmemphis
You forget he cut funding for mental health facilities, that caused alot of mental patients to live on the street... ie: homeless people began a reality all across the nation.

9 votes
#1.3 - Fri Oct 12, 2012 7:48 PM EDT

[GURPS (Premo)]

Rick Ungar
THE TOKEN LEFTY


Who Is The Smallest Government Spender Since Eisenhower? Would You Believe It's Barack Obama?

[Vince]

Rick Ungar
THE TOKEN LEFTY


Who Is The Smallest Government Spender Since Eisenhower? Would You Believe It's Barack Obama?

Isn't that obamapropaganda wonderful. They can twist anything any way they want to twist it and the obamites will lap it up. And he can do/say anything he wants to in the next 4 years and no one, except people with common sense, will question it. These next years are going to be so much fun.

[GURPS (Premo)]

yep deficits have shrunk, not that Obama did anything - link Increased OIL Production or employment .... JOB miraculously dropped right before the election, I guess there is no need for that JOBS Act the Progs Needed

[ylexot]

Any deficit is a bad deficit.

[PsyOps (Premo)]

I went to the debt clock website and it does show the deficit declining. Not being a savvy economics buff, my question is - could this be due to the fact that a budget hasn't been passed in over 3 years and there is nothing to gauge spending on? As well, our spending is mostly based on borrowed money rather than actual received revenues. So, instead of it getting applied to the deficit, it gets applied to the debt, giving the illusion of the deficit going down. We WILL have to pay the piper eventually.

[tommyjo]

Originally Posted by PsyOps

I went to the debt clock website and it does show the deficit declining. Not being a savvy economics buff, my question is - could this be due to the fact that a budget hasn't been passed in over 3 years and there is nothing to gauge spending on? As well, our spending is mostly based on borrowed money rather than actual received revenues. So, instead of it getting applied to the deficit, it gets applied to the debt, giving the illusion of the deficit going down. We WILL have to pay the piper eventually.

Are you joking with this post?

You don't have any clue about the topic but you post an opinion????

You don't need to be "savvy". You need to buy a dictonary and look up the meaning of the word deficit. Next time, before you post and look like such a fool, take 10 seconds and do the most basic research.

A deficit occurs when you spend more than you earn. (Wow!! That is really technical, savvy stuff isn't it???!)

In order to meet the spending requirements, borrowing occurs. (Is your brain starting to sweat yet?)

When you add up all the deficits over time, and subtract and surpluses you get the total debt.

That's it. That's all there is to it. It takes the intellectual capacity of a 7 yr old to understand it.

[TNRabbit]

OP-- They're comparing that as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product.

Since spending has gone WAAAAAY up, it automatically makes the deficit go down by percentage.

Either you're an idiot, or a tool. After observing some of your other posts, I'm inclined to think "idiot"....