Morning Bell
$17,000,000,000,000
by Gerren McHam
October 21, 2013

President Obama boasted last week that he had signed legislation to lift “the twin threats” to our economy of government shutdown and default. But what was done to fix the problem of growing debt that leads Washington to repeatedly raise the debt ceiling?

Nothing. In fact, by Friday, the U.S. debt had rocketed past $17 trillion.

What does this mean?

At $17 trillion, this number has passed total U.S. gross domestic product (GDP), the measure of all that is produced in the economy.

Since Obama took office, the national debt has increased from about $10.6 trillion to more than $17 trillion—a 60 percent increase.

How quickly Obama changed his tune when he transitioned from Senator to President. Here’s what he said just a few years ago:

"The fact that we are here today to debate raising America’s debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a sign that the U.S. Government can’t pay its own bills. It is a sign that we now depend on ongoing financial assistance from foreign countries to finance our Government’s reckless fiscal policies." (Senator Barack Obama, March 16, 2006)

And his partner in debt, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), argued mightily against what he now champions—when a different Administration was in office.

For the rest of this article and more, go to Heritage Network