U.S. Federal Deficits and Debt: Understanding the History and Context
Written by: Stephen Hershey Kroes
Throughout its history, the U.S. federal government has often operated under a deficit, and has always held a federal debt. Over this time there have been many debates over these issues, and the current contest over the presence of large deficits and the size of the debt is not surprising. However, with the drastic increase of the deficit the past few years, and projections that show the persistence of large deficits because of mandatory spending, … Continued