Deficit Has Gone Down Under Obama

The Treasury Department announced that the federal deficit for 2012 is $1.089 trillion. The federal budget shortfall for last year was $1.297 trillion. You can see by the chart made by Steve Benen that the deficit has gone down under President Barack Obama.

The Republicans cry about the stimulus. There were massive layoffs across the country. The Congressional Budget Office reports that the stimulus created 3.3 million full-time jobs. The stimulus was a one-time spending package. The Bush tax cuts, TARP bailout, Iraq war, and Bush's refusal to fight with his own party on yearly pork spending have had long-term effects on the deficit.

Paul Ryan wasn't crying about deficit reduction during the Bush years. Ryan was helping craft these massive spending bills in the Budget and Ways and Means committees.