Tag: consumption

The fiscal year 2020 budget proposes spending $4.7 trillion. That's up from $4.5 trillion last year and $4.1 trillion in FY 2018. Spending between FY 2020 and FY 2029 will grow by 40 percent, and thanks to projected GDP growth averaging 3 percent over the next decade, revenue may grow by 72 percent during that time. Also, $2 trillion have been added to the debt during the last two years. While the deficit is projected to be cut in half over the next decade and the debt may stabilize, as we shall see, these numbers carry little credibility. And to be fair, the budget does propose $2.7 trillion in spending reduction over the next 10 years. While many of these spending reform proposals are worth implementing, they simply aren't realistic. The budget proposes cutting these expenditures 9 percent between this year and next, and 26 percent over the next 10 years. What's more, the administration uses an old trick practiced by previous administrations. Fiscal responsibility can never be achieved on the back of non-defense spending alone, especially if it's offset by massive growth to defense spending.