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National Deficit

The national deficit is the amount of money owed by the United States federal government to creditors who hold U.S. Debt Instruments. As of September 2007, the total U.S. federal public debt was $5.6 trillion. This does not include the money owed by states, corporations, or individuals, nor does it include the money owed to Social Security beneficiaries in the future. If intragovernment debt obligations are included, the debt figure rises to roughly $9 trillion. If unfunded Medicaid, Social Security, etc. promises are added, this figure rises dramatically to a total of $59.1 Trillion. In 2005 the public debt was 64.7% of GDP According to the CIA's World Factbook, this meant that the U.S. public debt was the 35th largest in the world by percentage of GDP.

Michael Bloomberg on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Keep taxes low, give tax breaks to businesses to support economy
Description:	Economically, Bloomberg tends to be conservative, expressing a distaste of taxes stating, "Taxes are not good things, but if you want services, somebody's got to pay for them so they're a necessary evil." As mayor he did raise property taxes to fund budget projects, however in January 2007 he proposed cuts in property taxes by 5% and cuts in sales taxes including the elimination of taxes on clothing and footware. Bloomberg pointed to the Wall Street profits, and real estate market as evidence that the city's economy is booming and could handle a tax break. These policies reflect the perception of Bloomberg as a fiscal conservative. This fiscal conservativism also led him to eliminate the previous $6 Billion deficit when he assumed office. He balanced the budget of New York City by raising property taxes and making cuts to city agencies excluding the Police and Fire Departments. As a businessman, Bloomberg governs with a pro-business platform. He is in favor of providing tax breaks to big corporations for the good of the whole community. As mayor Bloomberg lobbied to the CEO of Goldman Sachs to establish their headquarters across from Ground zero by promising $1.65 billion in tax breaks. In regards to the deal Bloomberg stated, "This [New York City] is where the best want to live and work. So I told him [CEO of Goldman Sachs], 'We can help with minimizing taxes. Minimizing your rent. Improving security. But in the end, this is about people.'"
Citations:

1.	Bloomberg's Smart Spending (10/8/07) A new analysis of spending under Mayor Michael Bloomberg shows he's been on a stunning spending spree since taking office, with the city budget growing faster than under any other mayor for the past three decades. Good for him.
2.	The Mayor's Prudent Budget (10/8/07) The first look at New York City budgets almost always reveals horrifying, multi-billion-dollar gaps that by law have to be closed. During his first four years in office, Mayor Michael Bloomberg became very adept at telling New Yorkers why and how the city would do more with less. This year he faces a new dilemma. The city is floating in black ink, a surprise surplus of some $3.3 billion.
3.	Bloomberg's Smart Spending (10/8/07) A new analysis of spending under Mayor Michael Bloomberg shows he's been on a stunning spending spree since taking office, with the city budget growing faster than under any other mayor for the past three decades. Good for him.
4.	Mike Does Right (10/8/07) January 17, 2007 -- Mayor Mike will give New Yorkers a break today: a $1 billion tax cut.
5.	Mayor Plans Cut in Property Tax And End to Sales Tax on Clothes (10/15/07) As mayor he did raise property taxes to fund budget projects, however in January 2007 he proposed cuts in property taxes by 5% and cuts in sales taxes including the elimination of taxes on clothing and footware. Bloomberg pointed to the Wall Street profits, and real estate market as evidence that the city's economy is booming and could handle a tax break. These policies reflect the perception of Bloomberg as a fiscal conservative

Sam Brownback on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Supports line-item veto, independent reviews, proposed Commission Accountability and Review of Federal Agencies Act
Description:	Brownback supports structural reform like the line-item veto and an independent panel to review federal spending. Brownback's drafted the Commission on the Accountability and Review of Federal Agencies Act. If enacted, CARFA would establish a two-year, presidentially-appointed commission to review domestic discretionary spending programs and agencies, recommending elimination or reform where waste, fraud, and abuse are found. Upon completion of its work, the commission would report back to Congress with draft legislation to implement its recommendations. Congress would subsequently be required to vote either up-or-down on the recommendations, thus eliminating the protection so often afforded to the undeserving bureaucracy.
Citations:

Government Reform (10/8/07)
The hour has come to extend accountability and fiscal soundness throughout the federal government. With the economy growing, Congress should be poised to return to a balanced budget and the budget surpluses of the late 1990's - but our success will be largely contingent upon how effective we are at eliminating federal waste, fraud, and abuse, which defraud taxpayers, undermine the government, and put an overall strain on the economy.

Brownback Applauds Lowered Deficit Projection (10/8/07)
U.S. Senator Sam Brownback today applauded new tax revenue figures showing that the federal budget deficit will be approximately $127 billion less than projected.

Hillary Clinton on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	End abuse of no-bid contracts, cut 500,000 government contractors, eliminate corporate welfare
Description:	Hillary Clinton's plans include... * Ending abuse of no-bid government contracts and posting all contracts online. * Cutting 500,000 government contractors. * Publishing budgets for every government agency. * Implementing Results America Initiative to track government effectiveness. * Tracking and eliminating corporate welfare.
Citations:

1.	Comprehensive Government Reform (10/7/07) Hillary has proposed a comprehensive, 10-point plan to restore Americans' confidence in their government by increasing transparency and cutting waste and corruption.

John Cox on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Veto every Federal budget that is not balanced
Description:	John Cox will handle the deficit by.... * Veto every Federal budget that is not balanced. * Eliminate the Commerce and Education Departments * Seek Line-Item Veto * Seek Balanced Budget Amendments from Congress * Urge zero-based budgeting and sun setting to force a constant re-evaluation of government programs
Citations:

Government Spending (10/7/07)
As president, I will veto every Federal budget that is not balanced. Period. Government spending is out of control. Special interests make it very difficult for career politicians who depend on them for re-election to cut spending. I will eliminate the Commerce and Education Departments, I will seek Line-Item Veto and Balanced Budget Amendments from Congress, and urge zero-based budgeting and sun setting to force a constant re-evaluation of government programs.

John Edwards on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Do not make the deficit worse, but there are more important issues such as health care and global warming
Description:	"I am committed to not making the deficit worse. But I do not put deficit reduction on the same level with universal health care or the transformation we're going to need on global warming. I may disappoint you, and if deficit reduction is your thing, I may lose you on this. But you should know the truth." - John Edwards
Citations:

1.	Edwards: Universal Health Care Trumps Balanced Budget (10/8/07) Democratic presidential contender John Edwards says it is more important to invest in universal health care and lifting people out of poverty than to reduce the budget deficit.
2.	The Poverty Platform (10/8/07) Predistributionists consider budget deficits necessary in order to make large-scale social investments in health care and job retraining. John Edwards is a predistributionist.
3.	John Edwards and the Prevailing Winds (10/8/07) His campaign says he won't increase the deficit, but Edwards says reducing it is not his top priority. That's a contrast from the candidate of 2004, who promised to "get us back on the path to a balanced budget." Then, he said, "We have a moral responsibility not to leave trillions of debt to our children and our grandchildren."
4.	John Edwards: Union Man (10/15/07) "I am committed to not making the deficit worse. But I do not put deficit reduction on the same level with universal health care or the transformation we're going to need on global warming. I may disappoint you, and if deficit reduction is your thing, I may lose you on this. But you should know the truth." - John Edwards

Rudolph Giuliani on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Budget like a business, cut the amount of civilian federal employees
Description:	Giuliani wants the government to start budgeting like a business by... * Stop anonymous earmarks. * Require mandatory sunset clauses for all Federal programs. * Require Congressional Budget Office cost estimates for all legislation before it is voted upon. * Create separate capital and operating budgets. * Bring generally accepted accounting principles to the Federal government. His plans also include.. * Reducing the federal vivilian workforce by 20% through attrition and retirement. * Further decrease the size through technology and privatizaton. * Require agencies to identify at least 5% to 20% in spending reductions. * Propose a constitutional amendment establishing a presidential line-item Veto * Establishes a government-wide accountability program ["GAPStat"] * Allows the Office of Management and Budget to evaluate effectiveness and hold Congress accountable for the programs it funds.
Citations:

1.	2008 DMR/ IPTV IA Republican Debate (Part 2) (12/19/07) The Federal Government has to restrain its spending because it causes a national security problem.
2.	Rudy's Commitment to Restore Fiscal Discipline (10/7/07) Rudy says he will cut fiscal spending.
3.	Rudy's Plan to Restore Fiscal Discipline (10/7/07) "All spending is discretionary. Read the Constitution. Congress has to appropriate it; the President has to sign it. All spending is discretionary and it has to be looked at from the point of view of, can we afford it now? Is it appropriate to pass it on to the next generation? This is what I did in New York City. I restored fiscal discipline ..." - Rudy Giuliani
4.	Romney, Giuliani spar over budgets (10/11/07) This article summarizes the GOP debate in Dearborn Michigan on Tuesday October 9, 2008. It focuses on the disagreement between Romney and Giuliani about their spending histories.

Mike Huckabee on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Cut spending and allow line-item veto's
Description:	"I believe that our massive deficit is not due to Americans' being under-taxed, but due to the federal government's over-spending. Achieving and maintaining a balanced federal budget is an important and worthy goal necessary to our long-term economic well-being. To achieve a balanced federal budget, I believe the President should have the line-item veto." - Mike Huckabee
Citations:

Taxes/Economy (10/7/07)
I believe that our massive deficit is not due to Americans' being under-taxed, but due to the federal government's over-spending. Achieving and maintaining a balanced federal budget is an important and worthy goal necessary to our long-term economic well-being. To achieve a balanced federal budget, I believe the President should have the line-item veto.

Duncan Hunter on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Limit the growth of the government in non-defense areas, get additional revenue from economic growth
Description:	"I support a balanced federal budget, with additional revenue provided by economic growth, not increased taxes. Further, I support limiting growth in non-defense areas." - Duncan Hunter
Citations:

1.	Balanced Budget (10/7/07) I support a balanced federal budget, with additional revenue provided by economic growth, not increased taxes. Further, I support limiting growth in non-defense areas.

Dennis Kucinich on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Cut wasteful spending and provide states with zero-interest loans
Description:	In June 2004, Congressman Kucinich introduced a bill, Rebuilding America's Infrastructure, H.R. 4631. This initiative would provide state and local governments with the funds needed to rebuild schools, bridges and roads, water treatment and sewer systems, and to provide funds for new school construction, mass transit systems and expanding the information superhighway to underserved populations. The plan, based on a model developed by the Jerome Levy Institute, would provide state and local governments with $500 billion in zero interest loans for infrastructure programs over the next 10 years. Though infrastructure projects are very expensive, this bill would use money that the government already has in store. The Federal Reserve always holds a large amount of Treasury securities in order to add liquidity to our monetary system. Our bill will take a portion of those securities and simply transfer them into a new bank, the Federal Bank for Infrastructure Modernization (FBIM). These funds in the FBIM will continue to be overseen by the Federal Open Market Committee to maintain economic stability. The FBIM would establish zero-interest mortgage loans for states and local governments to use to fund specific projects. This way, Congress doesn't need to appropriate any money, and states will be able to cut the cost of most projects in half with zero-interest loans. This unique funding mechanism has the potential to support America's largest infrastructure program ever. State and local governments would decide how and whether to use the funds made available by this initiative. Congress would define eligible projects by type. In this initiative, Congress would require that half the funds would be used for school repair and school construction.
Citations:

Budget and Economy (10/8/07)
The federal budget is a statement about priorities. Congressman Kucinich thinks that the federal government's priorities are misplaced. For example, Congressman Kucinich believes the budget for veterans is inadequate, while major defense contractors are reaping massive profits from the excessive defense budget.

New Hampshire Democratic Presidential Candidates Debate Transcript (10/15/07)
"I'm saying that we should not be borrowing money from China to run a war in Iraq. We need to change our spending policies in many ways.

Change our trade laws. We need to get out of NAFTA and the WTO and go back to bilateral trade, conditioned on worker's rights, human rights and the environment and stop driving an $800 billion trade deficit." - DK

John McCain on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Enforce Fiscal Discipline, End Pork Barrel Spending, Increase Accountability and Transparency, Lower Taxes
Description:	John McCain wants to end pork barrel spending where "Congress diverts taxpayers dollars to special interest pet projects with little or no national value." He also wants to increase transparency which he claims would increase accountability by making all members of Congress who request earnmarks be identified and their request fully describe. McCain also feels we need to reform Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare because they are currently unchecked. Finally, McCain wants to lower taxes to stimulate growth.
Citations:

1.	Government Spending, Lower Taxes and Economic Prosperity (10/7/07) John McCain outlines his plan to cut government spending.

Barack Obama on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Supports transparency in Federal spending, restriction no-bid contracts, and "pay as you go" budgeting
Description:	Obama co-drafted the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act. President Bush which signed this measure into law in September of 2006. This will create a website to search all government contracts, grants, earmarks, and loans, thereby opening up Federal financial transactions to public scrutiny. He also sponsored the Transparency and Integrity in Earmarks Act. Under the bill, all earmarks, including the name of the requester and a justification for the earmark, would have to be disclosed 72 hours before they could be considered by the full Senate. Senators would be prohibited from advocating for an earmark if they have a financial interest in the project or earmark recipient. And, earmark recipients would have to disclose to an Office of Public Integrity the amount that they have spent on registered lobbyists and the names of those lobbyists. Several of these provisions were included in the ethics and lobbying reform bill that passed the Senate in January 2007. Finally, Obama supports "Pay As You Go," or "PayGo" rules, which would require any new increases in discretionary spending to be offset by a reduction in other areas of spending.
Citations:

1.	Good Government, Responsible Spending (10/15/07) How Obama wants to handle government spending.

Ron Paul on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Cut spending and resolve the federal reserve
Description:	The Federal Reserve, our central bank, fosters runaway debt by increasing the money supply %u2014 making each dollar in your pocket worth less. The Fed is a private bank run by unelected officials who are not required to be open or accountable to "we the people." Worse, our economy and our very independence as a nation is increasingly in the hands of foreign governments such as China and Saudi Arabia, because their central banks also finance our runaway spending. - Ron Paul
Citations:

1.	2008 DMR/ IPTV IA Republican Debate (Part 2) (12/19/07) Cut military spending to reduce the deficit.
2.	Debt and Taxes (10/8/07) Ron Paul wants to lower taxes and dissolve the federal reserve.
3.	Monetary Policy and the State of the Economy (10/14/07) "Transparency in monetary policy is a goal we should all support. I've often wondered why Congress so willingly has given up its prerogative over monetary policy. Astonishingly, Congress in essence has ceded total control over the value of our money to a secretive central bank." - Paul

Bill Richardson on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Restore Fiscal Discipline
Description:	"Our next President must have the discipline to rein in spending so that we may return to the budget surpluses we experienced during the Clinton Administration." - Bill Richardson
Citations:

1.	Jobs and Economy (10/8/07) Talks about how the next President needs fiscal discipline.
2.	New Hampshire Democratic Presidential Candidates Debate Transcript (10/15/07) Richardson talks about how he balanced budgets and what needs to be done to balance the national deficit.

Mitt Romney on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Reform entitlement programs
Description:	"The Federal government must stop its borrowing and spending binge. The debt is a burden on our economy, our currency, our foreign policy, and our future. This is beyond pork barrel spending. We must address entitlement programs - not just to save money - but to give Americans confidence in their future." - Mitt Romney
Citations:

1.	2008 DMR/ IPTV IA Republican Debate (Part 2) (12/20/07) Cut unnecessary programs to save money (and he gives a lot of examples).
2.	Stopping Runaway Spending (10/8/07) The Federal government must stop its borrowing and spending binge. The debt is a burden on our economy, our currency, our foreign policy, and our future. This is beyond pork barrel spending. We must address entitlement programs - not just to save money - but to give Americans confidence in their future.
3.	Mitt Romney - I like Vetoes (10/25/07) He will save 300 billion dollars a year by vetoing.
4.	Romney's Speech: Conservatives Take Heart (10/21/07) "I saw the potential of economic conservatism when I became governor. The state budget was $3 billion short. Liberals wanted to raise taxes, but I cut government instead. I eliminated and combined duplicative and wasteful agencies and programs, and I balanced the budget four years in a row. One commentator said that I didn't just go after the sacred cows, I went after the whole herd. And after four years as governor, I'm proud to report that Massachusetts has 600 fewer state workers than when I took office."
5.	Romney, Giuliani spar over budgets (10/11/07) This article summarizes the GOP debate in Dearborn Michigan on Tuesday October 9, 2008. It focuses on the disagreement between Romney and Giuliani about their spending histories.

Tom Tancredo on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Reform the Welfare State by fixing mandatory spending programs
Description:	"The federal government is in debt because it spends too much, not because it taxes people too little. Government spending is classified as either discretionary or mandatory. Discretionary spending includes funds for things like the military and is explicitly set by Congress on an annual basis. But the major culprit in ballooning budgets is mandatory spending for entitlement programs like medicare, expenditures which are determined by the number of beneficiaries. The only way to control the budget is to reform the entitlement programs that mandatory spending funds. Those decisions on how to allocate resources are as economically necessary as they are politically and ethically difficult." - Tom Tancredo
Citations:

1.	2008 DMR/ IPTV IA Republican Debate (Part 2) (12/20/07) Follow the minimalist constitution to save money and don't ask the government from "womb to tomb" protection.
2.	Budget (10/8/07) The federal government is in debt because it spends too much, not because it taxes people too little.

Fred Thompson on National Deficit More on this candidate

Stance:	Use a market-based approach to reform, Open the government's fiscal books, develop a solution, cut spending
Description:	We need market-based approaches to reform that guarantee benefits for those who need them and embrace personal responsibility and cost-effectiveness without raising taxes. I am committed to: * Opening the government's fiscal books on this looming crisis for all to see and understand. * Working with individuals of all political persuasions to develop a comprehensive solution to the pending fiscal crisis. * Leading and making the hard choices necessary, to include cutting wasteful government spending, to safeguard our security, promote our prosperity, and protect our children and grandchildren from fiscal calamity. - Fred Thompson Campaign Site
Citations:

Federal Budget and Spending/Budgetary Reform (10/8/07)
"We need market-based approaches to reform that guarantee benefits for those who need them and embrace personal responsibility and cost-effectiveness without raising taxes. Given the scope and urgency of this problem, and the burden it will place on our children, reform is not only an economic necessity, it is a moral imperative that requires action now." - Fred Thompson

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National Deficit

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