Checking-in on the Federal Debt
January 2008---Federal Debt= 9.1 Trillion
January 2009---Federal Debt= 10.1 Trillion
January 2010---Federal Debt= 12.2 Trillion
September 2009---US GDP=14.2 Trillion (3rd Qt 2009)
As noted in this story, the trend is troublesome. To quote David Walker (former Comptroller of the federal government. i.e. chief accountant):
"It's understandable to run deficits when you have a recession, a depression or unprecedented financial services and housing-type of challenges and crises that we've had. That's not what I'm concerned about. We will ultimately turn the economy around, but what we have to do is deal with the large known and growing structural deficits that are growing with the passage of time, and they're - are not long term anymore. They are within the horizon. They are going to hit our shores and we are not prepared."
By structural he means entitlement programs
"There's absolutely no question that taxes are going to have to go up. When you look at the promises that have been made for Medicare, for example, $38 trillion underfunded, Social Security $7.7 trillion underfunded, plus military and civilian pensions and retiree health care, to make the numbers work, you have to restructure those programs, constrain spending, and raise revenues."
January 2009---Federal Debt= 10.1 Trillion
January 2010---Federal Debt= 12.2 Trillion
September 2009---US GDP=14.2 Trillion (3rd Qt 2009)
As noted in this story, the trend is troublesome. To quote David Walker (former Comptroller of the federal government. i.e. chief accountant):
"It's understandable to run deficits when you have a recession, a depression or unprecedented financial services and housing-type of challenges and crises that we've had. That's not what I'm concerned about. We will ultimately turn the economy around, but what we have to do is deal with the large known and growing structural deficits that are growing with the passage of time, and they're - are not long term anymore. They are within the horizon. They are going to hit our shores and we are not prepared."
By structural he means entitlement programs
"There's absolutely no question that taxes are going to have to go up. When you look at the promises that have been made for Medicare, for example, $38 trillion underfunded, Social Security $7.7 trillion underfunded, plus military and civilian pensions and retiree health care, to make the numbers work, you have to restructure those programs, constrain spending, and raise revenues."