Fiscal Conservative? an oxymoron

A LOOK AT SPENDING DURING THE BUSH PRESIDENCY

This shows the amount of spending and the size of the deficit during President Bush's two terms in office, how the president proposes to allocate the federal budget in his last year in office and the administration's track record in estimating the federal deficit from fiscal year 2002 through fiscal year 2007. The president's spending request to Congress is the first step in a lengthy budget process. Fiscal year 2009 begins Oct. 1, 2008. Bush's proposed 2009 spending: Total $3.1 trillion Discretionary spending $1.2 trillion Defense and Homeland Security: $730 billion Discretionary domestic programs: $482 billion Mandatory spending $1.6 trillion Social Security: $644 billion Medicare $408 billion Medicaid and SCHIP $224 billion Other $360 billion Net interest: $260 billion Federal budgets, deficits during the Bush years 2002 Spending: $2.01 trillion Deficit: $157.8 billion 2003 Spending: $2.16T Deficit: $377.6B 2004 Spending: $2.29T Deficit: $412.7B 2005 Spending: $2.47T Deficit: $318.3B 2006 Spending: $2.66T Deficit: $248.2B 2007 Spending: $2.73T Deficit: $162B 2008 (estimated) Spending: $2.93T Deficit: $410B 2009 (estimated) Spending: $3.11T Deficit: $407.4B Comparing deficit estimates Estimated deficits in Bush's original budget, compared with what the actual deficits turned out to be: (in billions) 2002 Estimated deficit or surplus: $231.2 Actual deficit: -$157.8 2003 Estimated deficit or surplus: -$80.2 Actual deficit: -$377.6 2004 Estimated deficit or surplus: -$307.4 Actual deficit: -$412.7 2005 Estimated deficit or surplus: -$363.6 Actual deficit: -$318.3 2006 Estimated deficit or surplus: -$390.1 Actual deficit: -$248.2 2007 Estimated deficit or surplus: -$354.2 Actual deficit: -$162.0