Projected Budget Deficit for 2019

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Projected Budget Deficit for 2019
Posted on 10/17/2018 at 18:16:45 by Bill Crawford, (14)

The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) projects a budget deficit of $1 trillion in 2019. (See below link).
The below site: (https://www.usgovernmentspending.com/federal_deficit_chart.html) discusses budget deficits over the past several years.

It looks like Trump's call for a five per cent decrease in spending across all of his cabinet departments won't do all that much towards decreasing the federal deficit.
I can't help but recall an earlier string which showed that if all discretionary spending were cut to zero, we would still have a budget deficit.
The beginning of an answer to the deficit problem has to include addressing the mandatory spending problem.

Here is an old post of mine on the subject:

"..The Overriding Need to Reform Entitlement Programs 

osted on 1/17/2013 at 21:26:47 by Bill Crawford, (14)  

When I was sitting in the Doctor's waiting room today, I was reading a Time Magazine column by Fareed Zakaria about the overriding need to reform the major entitlement programs.  (It seems like the only time I read Time Magazine is when I�m sitting in the Doctor�s waiting room).

  Zakaria was talking about the impact of the increased longevity of Seniors upon the ballooning costs of the major entitlement programs.
Although he was talking primarily about Medicare/Medicaid in his column, the points he was making apply equally as well to Social Security.   

Although my remembrance of the stats he quoted might not be 100% correct, they were close to the following:   --- Medicare costs currently represent about 10% of the federal budget. In 2030, these costs are projected to represent 40% of the federal budget.   --- In 1900(?), one in every twenty five U.S. citizens was over age 65. At present, one in every five citizens is over age 65.   --- When Medicare went into effect, there were five people paying into Medicare for each person receiving Medicare. At present, there are only two people paying into Medicare for each person receiving Medicare.  ---etc. etc.
  
As I�ve said before on this site, I think the simplest way to address the ballooning costs of the entitlement programs would be to increase the eligibility age by two or three years (in recognition of the continuing increase in longevity) , and by upping the FICA Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes by a not unreasonable amount.  These changes would probably have to be  phased in over three to five years so as to soften the blow on those currently nearing age 65.  (I think I recall seeing a recent poll which indicated that the majority of Americans would prefer to employ the above steps for solving the Entitlement problems rather than cutting back on benefits).

  In addition to the above, with respect to Medicare, I think that another major step that has to be taken is that of further reigning in hospital and other medical costs.

  Linked below is a pretty sobering article on where our federal tax dollars go.   Where Our Federal Tax Dollars Go
http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=1258..."

Projected Budget Deficit in 2019

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