America's (Un-)Balance Sheet -- with references

America’s (Un-)Balance Sheet

· Estimated cost of rebuilding after hurricane Katrina [1] $ 300 Billion

· Estimated total cost of the Iraq War [2] $ 1.6 Trillion

[ … At no time in the past has America both waged a war and cut taxes:

until now, the rich as well as poor bore the economic sacrifice … ]

· What the Government owes Social Security Trust Fund [3] $ 1.6 Trillion

· Current US international debt [4] $ 2.0 Trillion

· Credit needed from foreign countries (Japan, China, Korea, Europe)

to support continuing US indebtedness, every day [5] $ 2.0 B / day

· Current national debt [6] $ 7.9 Trillion

· Total American debt [7] $ 40 Trillion

· Personal savings rate (lowest on record) [8] - 0.6 %

· Decline in value of US dollar since 2001 [9] 26 %

· Americans living paycheck-to-paycheck [10] 28 %

· Current minimum wage (same since 1996) [11] $ 10,300 / yr.

· Poverty threshold (two adults, two children) [12] $ 19,350 / yr.

· Children in households benefiting if min. wage lifted [13] 10 Million

[… Congress has raised its own pay 7 times since 1996 … ]

· Interest on the National Debt (as % of budget) [3] 17 %

[ … this, at the lowest rates in 45 years … which may not last …]

· Projected National Debt Interest (% of budget) in 2031 [14] 50 %

[ … when half the budget goes to servicing the debt, we’re in big trouble … ]

Federal Balance Sheet Effects on New Mexico:

· New Mexico federal budget cut for clean water programs [a] $ 7.2 Million

· Native American Housing Block grants cut [b] $ 106 Million

· NM's Medicaid federal portion cut in 2006 budget [c] $ 148 Million

· NM No Child Left Behind Act underfunded [d] $ 154 Million

· Cannon AFB realignment, cost to NM [e] $ 211 Million

Some have commented that the US government’s response to hurricane Katrina

resembled the ineptitude of a third-world nation. In economic terms, we are the

greatest debtor nation of all time, a dubious distinction. If the current trend continues,

we will resemble a third-world nation in more ways than just disaster response.

References:

1. http://news.findlaw.com/ap/p/56/09-10-2005/8e9b00386e453e00.html

http://www.house.gov/paul/tst/tst2005/tst091905.htm

2. http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/082105D.shtml

3. http://www.uagrad.org/Alumnus/w05/broke.html

4. http://www.research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/FDHBFIN

http://www.morganstanley.com/GEFdata/digests/20050919-mon.html#anchor0

5. http://socialize.morningstar.com/NewSocialize/asp/FullConv.asp?forumId=F100000065

&lastConvSeq=88

6. http://www.publicdebt.treas.gov/opd/opdpenny.htm

7. http://mwhodges.home.att.net/nat-debt/debt-nat.htm

8. http://www.sptimes.com/2005/09/02/Business/US_savings_rate_hits_.shtml

http://www.321gold.com/editorials/shedlock/shedlock092005.html

http://www.321gold.com/editorials/richebacher/richebacher091905.html

9. http://www.frbatlanta.org/invoke.cfm?objectid=E4DCDB6F-4F9C-11D5-

93360020352A7A95&method=display

10. http://www.mailtribune.com/archive/2005/0710/biz/stories/02biz.htm

11. http://www.policyalmanac.org/economic/minimum_wage.shtml

12. 2005 HHS Poverty Guidelines, (http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/05poverty.shtml)

13. http://okimc.org/newswire.php?story_id=771

14. http://www.macleans.ca/topstories/world/article.jsp?content=20050307_101541_101541

a. http://www.nrdc.org/media/docs/050211.pdf

b. http://www.nlihc.org/news/020905.html

c. http://www.chn.org/pdf/factsheets/NewMexico.pdf

d. http://www.nationalpriorities.org/auxiliary/maps_files/the_presidents_budget:_impact_on_the_states/NM.pdf

e. http://www.bizjournals.com/albuquerque/stories/2005/08/22/daily24.html?f=et201&hbx=e_du