9 Comments

  1. TaterSalad on May 8, 2012 at 9:53 am

    The debt figures above are just one of many reasons why true and patriotic Americans will not support Barack Obama and his ideology this next election. We actually believe that he is doing this all on purpose and to destroy this type of government.



    • quinersdiner on May 8, 2012 at 9:57 am

      I hope you’re correct, but I’m dubious of your assertion. Look at France. They’re in worse shape than the U.S., and they just elected a guy who says the solution to their debt woes is to spend more. Like you, I hope there are enough sensible Americans to elect adults who will dispense the medicine we need to make us well again.



  2. Dawn on November 4, 2015 at 9:51 am

    Relying on OMB (obm[dot]ohio[dot]com) data, the public debt grew under Reagan – who promised as a candidate to balance the federal budget – by 186%. He is, by any fair measure, the Father of the Modern Deficit – among modern presidents, Reagan fundamentally changed the way in which federal officials approached the nation’s finances. When it comes to deficits as a percentage of GDP, Reagan also ranks last among all modern presidents.

    From there, H.W. Bush increased the debt by 55%, Clinton by 37% (he’s the only modern president to see surpluses), W. Bush by 86%, and Obama by 59% as of Dec 2014 when this was reported. MSNBC arrived at these numbers through simple arithmetic: what was the debt on their inauguration day, what was the debt when they left office, and by what percentage did the debt go up.



    • quinersdiner on November 4, 2015 at 10:35 am

      You have been manipulated. Percentages can be deceiving, especially when not adjusted for inflation.



    • quinersdiner on November 4, 2015 at 10:38 am

      Regarding Ronald Reagan, “who promised as a candidate to balance the federal budget”, I would simply say that he submitted 8 budgets to Congress. They spent more than he asked for 7 times. Had they gone with his 8 budget requests, we would have had a budget surplus in 1989.



  3. Anonymous on November 5, 2015 at 11:07 pm

    this is blatantly untrue



  4. Ariel on December 27, 2015 at 3:04 pm

    Um, that’s totally not true. The national debt has DECREASED under Obama, by quite a bit. And all that debt was accumulated under Bush, we were more or less debt free when Clinton left office



    • quinersdiner on December 27, 2015 at 5:05 pm

      Um, I’m not sure what you’ve been smoking, or what liberal publication you’ve been reading. When Mr. Obama took office, the national debt stood at $10.6 Trillion. It now exceeds $18 Trillion. Thanks for writing.