This isn’t the headline that President Obama wanted heading into his State of the Union address as he promises to rein in budget deficits and makes a last ditch effort to boost public support for his health care legislation. But today, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that his signature domestic achievement to date — the economic stimulus package — cost more than the $787 billion it originally estimated. On page 113 of its Budget and Economic Outlook for 2010 to 2010, CBO tells us:

Looking ahead, it appears that ARRA will have larger effects in later years than originally estimated. All told, CBO now anticipates that the law will increase deficits by $862 billion between 2009 and 2019…

There’s a reason why just 15 percent of Americans think that Obamacare will reduce the deficit even in the more favorable polls cited by Democrats. Americans know that government programs often cost more than promised. In the wake of today’s announcement that not only has the last big legislation the Democrats passed failed to deliver the promised jobs but has cost more than anticipated, how will Obama argue that passing the Democratic health care bill will expand coverage and cut the deficit without rationing care?