US Federal Deficit/Debt Details

by Frank Roche
submitted by Dee Sams

2012 total federal government spending: $3.54 trillion 

2012 total federal government revenues: $2.45 trillion 

2012 federal budget deficit: $1.1 trillion 

2012 mandatory spending $2.24 trillion 

Mandatory spending plus net interest on the national debt equals 63% of total spending. Mandatory spending plus net interest on the national debt equals 91% of total government revenue.

The U.S. Treasury must borrow $4.2 billion per business day

In 1944 U.S. national debt reached $204.1 billion. It reached the $1 trillion mark in 1981. By 2008 U.S. national debt zoomed to $10 trillion. Only 3 years later, it reached $14.3 trillion. By April of 2013 total outstanding debt for the U.S. federal government reached $16.8 trillion. 

The U.S. Treasury collects approximately $180 billion a month; enough to pay nearly most of the important bills like:

$59 billion per month for Social Security.
$58 billion per month for National Defense.
$38 billion per month for Medicare.
$17 billion per month for Net Interest.After that, the U.S. Treasury will have approximately $8 billion to fill in critical holes. Even so, it will not be enough to fulfill all of the federal government’s financial contractual obligations. They will be short approximately $100 billion per month.

When will it be too much debt? $20 trillion, $30 trillion?  It will have to stop one day.  Whenever that day comes, it will be painful and disruptive.  The sooner that day arrives, the less disruptive it will be. 

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Hans
Hans
11 years ago

Living in a land without meaningful choice … Renee Elmers …

Frank Roche … not a constitutionalist or even advocate of laissez faire:

“If we didn’t have the Fed, we’d have to set up some form of body to help … manage the extremes of human behavior.” (video 3:15)

Unhappy with the question “Do you have any moral qualms about having a system that promises to seal from younger generations entering the workforce?” (video 10:00)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4vnPtSPpmA

Didn’t trust his rhetoric or judgment in 2010 … don’t have any reason to do so now.