Posted on 02/01/2012 9:24:56 PM PST by iowamark
Pollster and political analyst Scott Rasmussen says the U.S. is in the middle of a worsening fiscal crisis and the federal office charged with estimating the country's debt has missed the mark by trillions.
Rasmussen, of Rasmussen Reports, released this statement today following yesterday's Congressional Budget Office report on the nation's debt:
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) yesterday reported that the federal budget deficit is projected to reach $1.1 trillion in 2012. That number is troubling enough but the reality is much worse. The United States will actually go about $4 trillion further in debt during the year.
The difference comes from the fact that government accounting procedures simply ignores the cost of benefits being promised for future Social Security and Medicare recipients. While precise estimates vary as to how much these promises cost, they are in the range of $3 trillion annually. It is important to note that the CBO is not to blame for this accounting gimmick. That agency typically does a sound job of operating within the ground rules established by Congress. Unfortunately, the rules often make little sense.
As former CBO Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin explained to Scott Rasmussen, “The debt from the past is a problem, but the future potential debt is a crisis.”
The government does not recognize the debt piling up for future Social Security and Medicare benefits because they have officially determined that no such liability exists...
Rasmussen notes that the actual federal debt is closer to $120 trillion rather than the $16 trillion discussed in Congress.
Another gimmick used by politicians is amazingly simple. As 62 percent of voters recognize, when politicians today say they are cutting spending, they are really talking about nothing more than reducing the growth of spending. The impact of this is staggering...
(Excerpt) Read more at newsmax.com ...
Did he run a poll to find out what the deficits are going to be? Regardless, I have no doubt he’s correct in his analysis.
It's not like anyone with a brain ever thought those benefits would ever be paid.
Folks my age will likely not see a dime.
CBO got it right only because they know the debt will never be paid.
Try this: Google the thickness of the rag/paper used to print US Dollars.
Assume that we still make $ 1000 bills. (We haven’t since Tricky Dick).
Calculate how high stacks of $ 1000 bills for 1 Million, 1 Billion and 1 Trillion Dollars would be.
Then reverse the numbers and pretend to dig 3 holes for the same three stacks.
Sit down and have a Shiner Bock, maybe two.
It’s time ‘we the people’ renegotiate our liabilities. Go to Hell, DC.
Hope and Change... Tragic.
Countdown until Jackwagon leaves Office: 353 days as of February 2, 2012.
I didn't agree to any of this. (And, I ain't paying!)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.