Spending spree

President Barack Obama has said that the U.S. government's "fiscal situation remains unacceptable," but has not scaled back his domestic agenda to reduce America's spending spree.

By unveiling a $3.8 trillion budget for fiscal year 2011, the president is perpetuating the problem of huge budget deficits that he readily blames on the previous administration.

Mr. Obama has been in office a full year and must chart his own course through the budgetary complexities and take responsibility for his decisions. The deficit will reach nearly $1.6 trillion this fiscal year, by the administration's calculations. That is the highest since World War II. It is projected to drop below $1.3 trillion in fiscal year 2011 but deficits will continue to soar through 2020.

The president says that he has made "hard choices and painful trade-offs," but they are difficult to see. He would increase taxes on the wealthy, large banks and oil and gas companies. Some domestic items would be frozen; some defense items would be cut.

But for the most part, spending will increase — in education, civilian research, food and drug safety and medical research. The same is true for entitlement programs such as Medicare and Social Security.

At this rate, by 2020, America's publicly held debt is projected to reach 77 percent of gross domestic product, the New York Times reports. Much of that debt is held by foreign creditors.

This path must be altered if the United States is to remain fiscally strong. But the costs associated with the retirement of baby boomers and the president's ambitious domestic agenda will exert considerable pressure on the nation's purse strings.

At a time when fiscal prudence is called for, we will continue to spend well beyond our means.