"When a trade deficit of $55 billion is good news, it makes you wonder"
Ya but---look at Western European countries, who run trade surpluses---their economies s-ck.
OTOH, Asian economies with a trade deficit > 5% GDP imploded in the 90s. Neither Europe nor Asia is a control group for the US economy, so it is difficult to draw any conclusions without considering the many other contributing factors. That being said, it's hard to see how running a trade deficit of this magnitude is healthy.
Not all Western European countries have economies that suck. Luxembourg has a exellent economy. Norways economy mis exellent to with a trade surplus of about 40% and a budget surplus that is around 15-20%. In additon Norway has no debt, but money saved up for future generations. Belgium, Ireland, Iceland are doing good too.