Anyone who says that deficit shrinkage alone is great for the U.S. is not telling the whole story.
Here are the true facts:
Deficit: The amount by which the government’s total budget outlays exceeds its total receipts for a fiscal year. —US Senate Budget Committee
This year, FY 2013, the federal government in its budget estimated that the deficit would be $973 billion. The latest deficit estimate, from the Congressional Budget Office, is $642 billion.
The federal debt increases each year by more than the deficit. For FY 2013 the federal budget estimates that the federal debt will increase by $1,199 billion. That’s $226 billion more than the official “deficit.” See Federal Debt.
Why won’t all politicians tell us the whole story?