America in the Red

Thousands of Americans are struggling with debt, forced to make tough budget decisions in order to stay within their means. The federal government also is facing massive debt problems, but unlike families across Nebraska and the nation, it is refusing to take the tough steps necessary to put our nation's fiscal house in order.

Each year in which the federal government spends more than it takes in it creates an ever-growing deficit. The government then has to borrow money to pay for its excess spending. The accumulation of annual deficits makes up the debt.

Since fiscal year 2007, the federal deficit has increased from $162 billion to $1.42 trillion in fiscal year 2009. This is an increase of $1.3 trillion -- or 774.7 percent -- in just two years. Government spending grew by $705 billion in fiscal year 2009, an increase of 24 percent. In just the first two months of fiscal year 2010, the federal government has run up a deficit of $292 billion. The national debt now exceeds $12 trillion -- a cost of $39,500 per U.S. citizen.

In total, Congress has pumped more than half a trillion dollars in additional spending into non-defense discretionary programs in just three short years. The more we spend, the more we must borrow. Rather than looking for ways to reduce the deficit and begin to pay down our debt, Congress continues to spend at unbelievable levels - and to borrow to cover the cost.

This increased borrowing necessitates increasing the government's credit limit by upping our country's debt ceiling. In order to accommodate all of this new debt, Congress has increased the national debt limit five times in less than three years -- from $8.97 trillion in January 2007 to $12 trillion today. This is an increase of $3.4 trillion or 38 percent.

In early December, Congress passed a measure increasing the statutory limit on the national debt. This debt limit increase is expected to provide only two months of spending in 2010 before another debt limit increase will be necessary.

This isn't a Republican or Democrat issue -- nor is it a recent development. In the last eight years, Congress has voted seven times to increase the statutory debt limit to allow more borrowing. The federal government's seemingly insatiable need to borrow more and more to fund an ever-increasing spending habit will crowd out the private sector from the credit market, leading to less private investment, lower productivity, lower wages and lower economic growth.

Instead of allowing runaway spending and the expansion of the federal government, Congress should take a serious look at where spending can be cut and other commonsense solutions to reduce federal spending.

We can't keep kicking the fiscal can down the road and expect our national debt to just go away. Many American families are struggling with paying their bills every day, while Congress continues to spend tax dollars with reckless abandon. Ultimately, these families will have to foot the bill for this runaway spending in the form of tax-increases, and even more debt will be placed on future generations.