The Deficit Speaks Volumes

As the U.S. budget deficit hits a record $374.2 billion, sane people have to ask: What the hell does this mean for our future? It means many things, but among the most important for voters to consider next fall is this, as described by Howard Dean:

Democratic presidential contender Howard Dean accused Republicans on Thursday of running up the federal budget deficit so they can undermine the fiscal underpinnings of Medicare and Social Security.

"I think their principal motivation is to undo the pillars of the New Deal, particularly Medicare and Social Security, by making the budget deficit so big that those programs can't be sustained," he said at a lunch with USA TODAY and the Gannett News Service.

Thank you, Howard Dean! It's about time someone stopped beating around the Bush, so to speak, and honestly confronted this issue. Republicans have been fighting for decades to slash holes in the "social safety net," but now they've finally found a way to get rid of it altogether. Don't believe it? The Bush administration is celebrating this record-setting deficit as great news:

Because the shortfall marked an improvement from a $455 billion projection the White House made in July, Bush administration officials cited it as evidence that their attempts to fortify the weak economy were working.

"Today's budget numbers reinforce the indications we have seen for some months now: that the economy is well on the path to recovery," Treasury Secretary John Snow said.

Perhaps this is why "maybe" now prevails in presidential surveys; or perhaps that story is right and those surveys are meaningless. We'll see next November, but check out this innovative way to have some effect on that outcome: End the Stupor Tuesday.

Posted October 20, 2003 06:02 PM |