[jpl]

I'll bet the phrases "2.57 trillion" and "austere" have never before appeared in the same story.

By my calculations, $2.57 trillion comes out to roughly $8,500 for every man, woman, and child in America.

And I love how budgetary increases below the rate of inflation always qualify as "deep spending cuts".

[cdrw]

Right.

I haven't looked at the GDP numbers is a couple years but last I remember a 2.5 trillion budget would be nearly 25% of GDP. And that doesn't include state or local taxes. That's a huge cut to take out of the economy (even if our European socialist counterparts make even larger grabs).

Your calculations are probably accurate. That means the average family of four has to cough up $34,000 in taxes each year (by means of direct taxes plus taxes that are built into the price of everything they buy). Across the board cuts won't work. Entire programs need to be scrapped or radically restructured to achieve their goals in more cost effective ways.

[bayourod]

For a family of four that means $26,0000.00 And then you have to add state and local taxes. That's at least $40,000 per family.

No wonder Buchanan/Tancredo can argue that illegal immigrants don't pay their share of taxes.

Thank God for the upper ten percent who pay 80% of the taxes.

[JPJones]

And I love how budgetary increases below the rate of inflation always qualify as "deep spending cuts".

Ditto that, I remember when Clinton proposed a 1.6 trillion dollar budget, that at the time, was outrageous. If we spend 2.5 trillion, then next year we should spend 2.0 trillion, then 1.6 trillion, etc., that would be fiscally responsible.