US Budget Deficit Forecast At Record $1.65T

The White House has unveiled its projected budget for the current fiscal year that would see the federal deficit rise to the highest amount in history, even with a hefty package of spending cuts, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The White House has unveiled its projected budget for the current fiscal year that would see the federal deficit rise to the highest amount in history, even with a hefty package of spending cuts, according to The Wall Street Journal. On Monday, President Barack Obama’s administration released a budget for 2011 that includes an estimated $1.65 trillion deficit. That total would be the largest dollar amount in history and equal about 10.9% of gross domestic product marking the largest portion of the economy since the World War II.

The budget also proposes government spending of $3.73 trillion in 2012, and for the deficit for that year to ease down to $1.1 trillion or 7% of GDP. The plan has the deficit cut down to $627 billion or 3% of GDP by 2017, which would include over $1 trillion in accumulated spending cuts over the coming decade. The projected deficit for the current fiscal year is larger than the $1.48 trillion projected by the Congressional Budget Office, and the long-term plans still leave big budget gaps that will increase pressure on lawmakers to tackle the country’s growing debt level.

Click here to read the story from The Wall Street Journal.