Push that Boulder Up the Hill, New York Times

The New York Times has recommitted itself to providing the context for the debt-ceiling crisis with a helpful infographic and article. How did the deficit get so big?

With President Obama and Republican leaders calling for cutting the budget by trillions over the next 10 years, it is worth asking how we got here — from healthy surpluses at the end of the Clinton era, and the promise of future surpluses, to nine straight years of deficits, including the $1.3 trillion shortfall in 2010. The answer is largely the Bush-era tax cuts, war spending in Iraq and Afghanistan, and recessions.

It's a factual statement. It's been repeated ad nauseum. It has no effect on the American right's philosophic depedence on cutting unrelated government priorities.

Democrats cut budget, Republicans increase deficit

Two stories today tell the unfolding narrative of the 112th Congress and the Obama administration. Despite Republican promises to cut government spending, and deal with the deficit in a serious way, it is the Obama administration who is putting savings for American taxpayers on the table. Meanwhile, the first substantive act of the Republican-led house will be to add to the deficit and increase the national debt.

Much of the increase in the federal budget over the last decade has been in defense and security spending, though the exact budgetary demands of these semi-secret agencies are classified. Taking on the secret security apparatus will be an interesting challenge, but I doubt that President Obama wants to engage in that fight. After all, Republicans love nothing more than bashing Democrats for cutting wasteful weapons systems that will never be used.