Viewpoint on the increase of the U.S. debt ceiling
The deal adopted by the U.S. Congress and signed by President Obama on August 2, 2011 will see the federal debt ceiling in the United States raised by at least $2.1 trillion from its current limit of $14.3 trillion. The agreement has been criticized by a number of commentators, who believe that it represents a “capitulation” to “extremists” who insist on balancing the budget without raising the fiscal burden. Yet an analysis of the agreement shows that even if all the cuts contained in it were indeed enacted, they would not prevent the U.S. federal debt from continuing to grow.
Media Release, August 5, 2011 :: Spending cuts in the U.S. debt ceiling agreement are insufficient, explains the Montreal Economic Institute
Download Figure 1 (U.S. federal government discretionary spending 2012-2021) and Figure 2 (U.S. federal government deficit 2012-2021) in eps format
Related Content
 |
 |
 |
| Three U.S. Debt Crisis Myths (Column by Michel Kelly-Gagnon published on huffingtonpost.ca, August 18, 2011) | Interview (in French) with Germain Belzile (SRC-R, August 11, 2011) | Interview with Germain Belzile (SUN TV, August 9, 2011)
Interview (in French) with Youri Chassin (TVA, August 9, 2011) |