national debt

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S&P Drops US Credit Outlook to 'Negative'

They say there's 'material risk' that politicians won't fix fiscal problemsr

(Newser) - Standard & Poor’s reaffirmed America’s AAA credit rating today, but dropped its outlook to “negative,” saying there was “material risk” that US policy makers wouldn’t figure out how to handle the nation’s fiscal woes by 2013. “If an agreement is not reached...

Senate's ‘Gang of Six’ Tackles Deficit Head-On

Plan would require core compromises by Democrats and Republicans

(Newser) - The soaring national debt is making strange bedfellows in the Senate: A bipartisan "Gang of Six" has been secretly working for months, and now appears as the leading hope in negotiations, with both sides willing to sacrifice their sacred cows. For Democrats, that means deep cuts to Medicare and...

How Congress Can Fix Deficit—by Doing Nothing

The expiring Bush tax cuts provide a way: David Leonhardt

(Newser) - This deficit-cutting stuff doesn't always have to be complicated. David Leonhardt lays out a plausible way for lawmakers to make a big dent without lifting a finger. It's all about the Bush tax cuts, which are due to expire at the end of 2012. "They have created a way...

Ignore the Rhetoric: Debt Ceiling Will Be Raised

Lawmakers have no choice, and they know it: David Paul Kuhn

(Newser) - As the deadline approaches for Congress to decide whether to raise the debt ceiling, brace yourself for fevered debates about how the very fate of the nation is at stake. David Paul Kuhn offers a spoiler alert at Real Clear Politics : "Washington politics is unusually dysfunctional even by Washington...

Romesh Ratnesar: Pentagon Budget Must Shrink to Fix Deficit
Face It, Washington:
Defense Budget Must Shrink
OPINION
Apr 11, 2011 12:20 PM CDT

Face It, Washington: Defense Budget Must Shrink

Pentagon's policies 'outdated'; deficit's the biggest threat: Romesh Ratnesar

(Newser) - The latest budget compromise may have resulted in “sweeping” and “historic” cuts, as the White House, Congress, and the media have claimed—yet “not a solitary penny” was cut from defense spending. Instead, spending will break $700 billion in 2011, which happens to be a post-World War...

Marco Rubio: I Won't Vote to Raise the Debt Limit, Unless We Get Fundamental Reform
 Raising Debt Limit 
 Again Invites US Ruin 
marco rubio
Mar 30, 2011 12:18 PM CDT

Raising Debt Limit Again Invites US Ruin

Marco Rubio: We need a reform plan now, or the next generation is in trouble

(Newser) - Marco Rubio vows to vote against raising the debt limit in a few weeks—unless it's the last time and accompanied by comprehensive reform—and he casts the decision not as a wonky economic debate but as a "defining moment in American history." In his op-ed in the...

No. of Reps Who Donated to National Debt in 2010: 3

But even if they gave full salaries, they'd barely make a den

(Newser) - For a bunch of people so concerned with the growing national debt, the House of Representatives doesn't have a lot of members putting their money where their mouths are. The House has program that allows representatives to return a portion of their salaries toward debt reduction (the Senate doesn't even...

Worried About the National Debt? Donate to Cover It!

Thanks to a government program, you don't even have to leave your house

(Newser) - Losing sleep over news that the national deficit will hit $1.6 trillion this year? Well, why not make a donation to help cover some of it? Every little bit helps, after all—and, as Consumerist points out, the Treasury Department has a program that enables you to donate via...

Your Future Bill for the National Debt: $2,500 a Year

... actually, that'll just cover the interest

(Newser) - The next decade will see interest payments on the national debt quadruple, forcing every American to essentially pay more than $2,500 yearly, the Washington Post finds in a look at President Obama’s budget plan. That means that starting in 2014, net interest payments will exceed spending on all...

Obama to Budget Critics: Wow, You're Impatient

President also blasts Iran leaders as hypocrites in news conference

(Newser) - Two main themes are emerging from President Obama's news conference this afternoon—he called out Iran over its violent crackdown on protesters and said critics of his budget plan were way too "impatient":
  • On Iran: "I find it ironic that you've got the Iranian regime pretending to celebrate
...

Hey, Kids: Obama Just Screwed You Over

 Hey, Kids: 
 Obama Just 
 Screwed 
 You Over 
andrew sullivan
Feb 15, 2011 11:33 AM CST

Hey, Kids: Obama Just Screwed You Over

President isn't serious about debt crisis, writes Andrew Sullivan

(Newser) - President Obama’s new budget proposal is a cop-out, proposing no cuts whatsoever in entitlement or defense spending—and that makes him a hypocritical coward, writes Andrew Sullivan of the Atlantic . “He has betrayed those of us who took him to be a serious president,” Sullivan fumes. “...

Obama: Deficit to Hit $1.6T
 Obama: Deficit to Hit $1.6T 
Feb 14, 2011 7:53 AM CST

Obama: Deficit to Hit $1.6T

White House unveils $3.7T budget, plans to cut spending

(Newser) - The White House expects the national budget deficit to peak at $1.65 trillion this year, or roughly 10.9% of GDP—its highest level since World War II, the Wall Street Journal reports. That figure—which is significantly more pessimistic than the Congressional Budget Office’s $1.48 trillion...

CBO: Deficit to Hit Record $1.5T

Thanks to tax cut, unemployment extensions

(Newser) - New budget estimates released today predict the government's deficit will hit almost $1.5 trillion this year, a new record. The daunting numbers mean that the government will have to borrow 40 cents for every dollar it spends. The latest figures are up from previous estimates because of bipartisan legislation...

Republicans Can't Wait for Debt 'Blood Bath'
Republicans Can't Wait for Debt 'Blood Bath'
Paul Krugman
Nov 22, 2010 9:52 AM CST

Republicans Can't Wait for Debt 'Blood Bath'

One of our parties just doesn't care about 'making American governable'

(Newser) - Alan Simpson must be a serious moderate Republican—after all, President Obama appointed him to co-chair his debt commission. Well here’s what this moderate said Friday: “I can’t wait for the blood bath in April. … We’ve got guys who will not approve the debt limit...

China Drops US Credit Rating Ahead of G20

Obama faces a world divided, peeved by Fed moves

(Newser) - China’s top state-endorsed rating agency dropped the United States’ credit rating yesterday, warning that recent Fed moves, along with “serious defects in the United States' economic development and management model” were “fundamentally lowering the national solvency.” The report probably won’t have much impact on our...

Deficit Fights Loom for Lame Duck Congress

Spending bill, Bush tax cut decision will have to be made quickly

(Newser) - The federal deficit has played a huge role in the midterm elections, but it might become an even bigger issue right after them, when a lame duck Congress is forced to make immediate decisions about the expiring Bush tax cuts, and pass an overdue spending bill to keep the government...

Deficit Chickens Coming Home to Roost

...for both parties

(Newser) - The deficit rage we’re seeing ahead of the midterm elections is a “strange and wonderful thing, about the only thing that gives me hope that our country may yet escape ruin,” writes venture capitalist Bill Frezza for Real Clear Markets . Until now, elections have always hinged on...

Boomers, You've Got 19 Years to Redeem Yourselves

Fix this economic mess before you check out

(Newser) - Fair or not, baby boomers get a bad rap for being a self-indulgent bunch who pale in comparison to the Greatest Generation of their parents. Boomers need a legacy, writes Michael Kinsley in the Atlantic . "It ought to be patriotic. And it ought to be accomplished by the time...

When It Comes to Global Competitiveness, US Is ... 4th

Large deficits, bleak economic outlook to blame

(Newser) - Today is not a great day for US dominance : For the second year in a row we've taken a hit in the global competitiveness rankings, this time falling from second to fourth due largely to our government debt and weak economic outlook. In first place until two years ago, we've...

Budget Deficit Will Be $1.3T: CBO
Budget Deficit Will Be $1.3T: CBO
Aug 19, 2010 11:30 AM CDT

Budget Deficit Will Be $1.3T: CBO

But analysts expect it to improve soon

(Newser) - Congress' budget analysts are estimating that this year's federal deficit will exceed $1.3 trillion, slightly below last year's total but still a huge ocean of red ink. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said the enormous shortfall is a result of the still staggering economy, which has meant lower federal...

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