Every American should look at this information!
The final 2006 budget expenditures are available on the Treasury web Site. You can also get a summary on www.federalbudget.com. Here are the GRIM facts:
Interest payments on the National Debt is the third largest federal expenditure. In 2006 it totaled $406 Billion. Only Health and Human Services at $660 Billion and National Defense at $540 Billion were more then we spent on Interest. The money we spent on Heath and Human Services and Defense provided Americans with essential services. The $406 Billion we spent on Interest paid for the past when we refused to balance the budget.
Let's take a look at some other federal expenditures from 2006 compared with this $406 Billion dollars we spent on interest:
On Education we spent $61 Billion. On Transportation $56 Billion. Energy $30 Billion. Veterans Affairs $70 Billion. Homeland Security $ 50 Billion.
By 2010 the interest on the National Debt will be about $500 Billion. That is what we spent on ALL Social Security Payments in 2006! What is even worse is that if President Bush keeps his promise to cut the annual budget deficit in half, we will still be running an annual budget deficit, not counting the Social Security and Medicare surplus, of about $250 Billion and driving the interest even higher.