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The Spectacle Blog

Some Bad Friday News From the CBO

By Joseph Lawler on 3.18.11 @ 4:44PM

The Congressional Budget Office released its analysis of the president's 2012 budget this afternoon, and its projections are even grimmer than the administration's. Using its own economic assumptions, the CBO projects that the president's budget would would lead to a 90 percent debt to GDP ratio in 2021, with deficits increasing through the last three years of the 10-year time frame to nearly 5 percent of GDP in 2021. The administration had projected the debt to be only about 80 percent of GDP by 2021, with deficits remaining closer to 3 percent of GDP.

A budget projected to result in a level of debt equal to 90 percent of GDP is more or less an unsustainable budget. The CBO's economic assumptions are not rosy as the administration's are, but the projections still hinge on the inclusion of a number of policies that aren't likely to happen, such as the cuts that Obamacare would make to Medicare. If, in between 2011 and 2021, the country went through another recession or was forced to rapidly increase defense spending, the level of debt could exceed the country's annual output quickly.

One aspect of the president's budget to keep in mind is that it includes the expiration of the Bush tax cuts for individuals making over $200,000 a year. In other words, the country's spending is unsustainable even if tax hikes on the wealthy are taken for granted.

View all comments (18) | Leave a comment

Oldefarte| 3.18.11 @ 5:08PM

The Democrats' YOUKNOWWHAT WITH A STOLEN CREDIT CARD mentality can't be disguised any more [no doubt their constituents, and other MORONS, are still gulping their Joneskoolade]!!!!!!!!

jharp| 3.18.11 @ 7:10PM

Wait just a doggone minute.

Everybody knows the CBO can't be trusted. They're the ones who said ObamaCare would reduce the deficit by $200 billion.

So what is it with you dumbasses? CBO is to be trusted only when you like their numbers?

God you people are stupid.

Junior Junior Harp| 3.18.11 @ 7:54PM

The Department of The Treasury:
The National Debt:

"At the close of business on Feb. 28, it stood at $14.195 trillion ($14,194,764,339,462.64), an increase of $63.713 billion ($63,713,283,451.80) in new debt that was accumulated during the shortest month of the year."

Gee Pop, You're An Economic Retard.

Allah You're Stupid.

jharp| 3.18.11 @ 8:32PM

So what is it Junior? Are the CBO numbers accurate or not?

Just as I knew. You've got nothing.

God you people are stupid.

Junior Junior Harp| 3.18.11 @ 8:58PM

Gosh Pop you're an Economic Buffoon.. They aren't contradicting each other.

One's A Current National Debt Number( as of the end of February) & the others are Projected Debt to Gross DomesticProduct Ratios.

Allah You're Stupid, Pop.

Mom says take out the garbage & jump in with it.

jharp| 3.18.11 @ 10:57PM

Take another bong hit you idiot.

And then try a grammar course.

God you people are stupid.

Junior Junior Harp| 3.18.11 @ 11:51PM

Hey Pop,If Ya Got No Economic Answer Then Shut Your Phoney Pseudo-intellect Pie Hole .

Allah You're One Dumb Ass.

Mom said to tell ya that your probation officer wants you to look for a job.

jharp| 3.19.11 @ 1:41AM

TAS donors should be proud. What an excellent use of other peoples money. Paying to publish your intellect.

God you people are stupid.

Junior Junior Harp| 3.19.11 @ 9:54AM

TAS allows Pop to come here & make a Complete Horse's Ass out of himself to prove that Obama was elected by Fifth Grade Drop Outs, like Pop.

Allah You're Stupid Pop.

Mom says that you'll need a sand blaster to get those pimples off your face.

Oldefarte| 3.20.11 @ 10:55AM

MORON, It's incorrect to use 'you people', since the word YOU infers the word PEOPLE. Go back to school and learn grammarical English!!!!

tlaw| 3.19.11 @ 10:15AM

The CBO does not attempt to verify that the data it is given is accurate but instead crunches the numbers it is given. Obama and the dems fed the CBO a bunch of bogus numbers and as you would expect they came up with an incorrect figure for the cost of Obamacare. In the case of Obama's 2012 budget they disagreed with the administration's evaluation of said budget. If the question is does the CBO always come up with the truth of political agendas. The answer is no simply because it can not evaluate the data it is given. If however the question is does the CBO come up with the correct answer to a math problem the answer is sure it does.
Just remember GIGO and KISS.

jharp| 3.19.11 @ 11:34AM

"The CBO does not attempt to verify that the data it is given is accurate but instead crunches the numbers it is given."

You are a f*cking idiot. The CBO verifies all of the numbers. That is the reason they exist. And in this case they cited Obama's data as flawed.

What do you think? That they only add subtract multiply and divide?

God you people are stupid.

Cousin Arlo Harp| 3.19.11 @ 2:24PM

"The Congressional Budget Office released its analysis of the president's 2012 budget this afternoon, and its projections are even grimmer than the administration's."

Allah, Obama Is An Economic Imbecile.

Oldefarte| 3.20.11 @ 11:01AM

The definition of VERIFY is to PROVE TO BE TRUE. How can the CBO/anyone PROVE NUMBERS that are FUTURISTIC PROJECTIONS? Can they pridict the future? Budgets etc use projections that may or may not prove accurate, depending upon futuristic events. If they predict governmental receipts will be $20 trillion in 2015, maybe same will actually become $15 trillion. AND YOU CALL OTHERS ''''STUPID''''??????????

Warrior| 3.19.11 @ 3:58PM

Nice bait and switch. You are willing to rely on the CBO when it produces false numbers on Obamacare. The reason the numbers are false can be based squarely on the double counting of the Medicare savings and the deliberate exclusion of the Medicare fix that everyone knows is necessary. Now you call people out for using the CBO. Which one is it for you? If you trust the CBO to be accurate, then the budget numbers should trouble you. If you believe it is garbage in a garbage out, then the Obamacare numbers are a ruse. Why don't you take a stand one side or the other. I will openly admit that the CBO numbers are wrong, the economic picture is worse than what they are predicting as they are using economic factors that may not be achievable.

Oldefarte| 3.20.11 @ 10:48AM

Any MORON would/should have enough common sense to know that this administrations' budget numbers is nothing short of inflated, welfaric red ink [and shouldn't therefore require the CBO, Aunt Lizzy etc to confirm same]. Of course, there will always be imbiciles who say GOLLY MAYBE WE OUGHT TO GIVE OUR MONEY TO FOREIGN DICTATORS/GOVERNMENTS, BUY HOUSES ETC FOR THE DISADVANTAGED AMONGST US, ETC, huh?????????????

Frederick| 3.18.11 @ 7:25PM

These are the types of things that strengthen the arguments of the people who claim Obama is trying to destroy the U.S., or probabaly more accurately, doesn't care if he destroys the country while he is force feeding his agenda.

The very best way to destroy a nation is to destroy its currency.

Question to ponder: Forget about the past, will Obama live the rest of his life in the U.S.? Hit and run?

G.M.| 3.19.11 @ 8:42PM

The question is why does congress pass two thousand page bills it hasn't read that absorbs the American health system into a federal fiefdom and why do we allow politicians to spend, spend, spend to insure their incumbency. It's an unnatural expectation and course to assume the economy will be able to absorb the constant compiling of debt or that workers can afford to tote federal water. It's time for term limits. People who don't or can't do the math shouldn't be in office for life.