Just the Facts Ma’am

U S Treasury Building

Since the recession began in December 2007 Congress has passed two stimulus packages; a $16.8 billion in February 2008, and a $287 billion in February 2009.

     Today’s Unemployment rate is 10% yet omits those looking for a full time job while working part time jobs, and those who have outright stopped looking for gainful employment. A more inclusive estimation would be 17.3% Unemployment rate. 

     The residential real-estate collapse (thank you Mr. Barney Frank and your mishandling of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) lead to a the recession whose after effects might cause a burst in the commercial real estate sector. Because of a high and prolonged unemployment consumers are spending less.

     As for the Federal Budget in 2015; interest payments on the National debt are at an estimated $530 billion, equal to 1/3 of the income tax revenues.

     The national debt is $12 trillion. According to White House estimates, servicing the debt will rise to more than $700 billion a year in 2019 and that’s a conservative approximation.

     In 2009 the additional $500 billion a year in interest payments surpassed the combined budgets of education, energy, homeland security, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

     Nearly 10.7 million households hold mortgages greater than the present value of their home referred to as negative equity; or simply put, an outright loss on their investment.
     U S Banks have trillions of dollars of debt which will mature (time to pay up) during the next few years. Banks will have to refinance their debt but at a higher interest rate which will be passed on to the consumer via higher interest rates-thank you Wall Street and Government Bailouts.
    U S reaches record debt as payments for Social Security and Medicare are about to explode with and when the oldest Baby Boomers approach 65.

     As for the ballooning short term borrowing, consisting of 36% of the overall debt, and more than $1.6 trillion is due in March of 2010.

     Now Americans have to climb out of two debts: the first being debt-laden consumers whose personal wealth has diminished by falling home values alongside the second being plunging stock prices.

Foreign Owners of

United States Securities

Nation                                     In Billions of Dollars                                      Percent

China                                                 $798.9                                                 23.35%           

United Kingdom                               $249.3                                                 6.42%

Russia                                                 $118.0                                                 3.44%

Germany                                             $56.3                                                   1.64%

Mexico                                                $27.7                                                   0.81%

Israel                                                   $16.9                                                   0.49%

Information gathered from Newsmax: January 2010; Money Troubles and

Newsweek: January 25, 2010; 

The Rational Exuberance The unemployment rate is 17.3%

Say It Aint So!