The Monthly Treasury Report does not look pretty.
The US government ran a $214 billion budget deficit in August of 2018 compared with a $107.7 billion budget deficit in August 2017. The report shows a 30% rise in outlays.
Monthly Receipts vs. Outlays
Receipts by Source, Outlays by Function
Holiday Excuse
> Outlays for Military active duty and retirement, Veterans’ benefits, Supplementary Social Security Income, and Medicare payments to Health Maintenance Organizations and prescription drug plans accelerated into August, because September 1, 2018, the normal payment date, fell on a non-business day. Social Security benefits also accelerated into August since September 3, 2018, the normal payment date, fell on a holiday
Excuses or not, things are ugly. Deficits and the national debt both are up.
Gross Public Debt
Curiously, Trump proposed using tariffs to reduce the national debt. The idea is downright laughable.
For discussion of Trump’s plan and a look at why debt nearly always rises more than the deficit projects, please see Exploring Trump’s Claim of Using Tariffs to Pay Down $21 Trillion in Debt.
Mike “Mish” Shedlock
THE PROBLEM IS GOVT, SPECIFICALLY, FRAUD, CORRUPTION, AND MALINVESTMENT OF THE ESTABLISHMENT, WHICH IS LEADING TO THE BIGGEST PROBLEM OF ALL, THE LOSS OF CONFIDENCE.
Wait until the interest expense exceeds military spending by 2021. You will see govt taxing anything that moves to try to save their perks and power. Maybe, they will start taxing beards again.
With the rational ignorance of the Left, you know they will try to tax carbon if the Dems take control of CONgress. They will also try to ban guns to force their will on the masses, which is why we are headed for another Civil War. All because career politicians are incapable of looking in the mirror and admitting their mistakes or implementing real reforms, like Trump is attempting. Establishment hacks will fight reforms to their dying breath, which I’m sure the real patriots of this country have no problem with.
I buy the gov’t explanation. Maybe not 100%, but paying out in August what would normally be paid in September certainly contributed a large a part of the increase.
That’s the gov’t number (cooked)the real deficit prob double that once the scam accounting gimmicks are factored out,which means only one thing …..massive QE and wait for it…….NIRP!
Obama added more to the deficit than all other administrations combined and accounting for inflation.
And despite all that spending – the economy was anemic with growth never over 3%.
So is DJT on track to beat that dubious record or not?
This was debunked the last time you posted it. Not surprisingly, you weren’t paying attention because you’re determined to be one of the few remaining red/blue shills.
Obama (like nearly all modern politicians) sucks, but he’s not one of the four presidents who added more debt than all predecessors combined. The winners of that game are Wilson, Roosevelt, Reagan, and W Bush.
Trump won’t achieve this feat either, but he is on pace to add more debt than any other.
I know its hard being an obama apologist in these trying times.
Obama, despite calling a Bush unpatriotic with all his deficit spending and despite having a super-majority of democrats in the house and filibuster proof Senate – exploded the deficit. Without needing ONE republican vote (first two years).
No complaints from the fake legacy media. No complaints from Mish. And no complaints from apologists like you.
You should just own it. It is one of the few obama legacies that will haunt us for generations.
“By the time Obama leaves office in January, he’ll have nearly doubled the already massive national debt, adding nearly $10 trillion since 2009. Even more appalling, this figure means Obama will have added almost as much national debt as every other president and Congress before him—combined…
You’re backtracking. Now you’re saying “nearly doubled”, and you still have no answer to the four presidents who more than doubled any debt they inherited.
Obama sucks, and so do partisan shills like yourself. Brain dead red/blue teamers are a big part of how we got here.
You ain’t seen nothin’ yet.
Wait til the next recession hits.