NRO On the President’s Budget

Every so often, there’s something useful in the NRO. Today was such a day. John J. Miller, not one of the better known denizens of the Corner had a post

February 28, 2001: “In his first address to Congress, Bush likened his $ 1.9 trillion budget to a family budget…”

February 5, 2002: “President Bush yesterday proposed a $ 2.13 trillion budget for next year…”

February 4, 2003: “President Bush announced a $ 2.23 trillion budget for fiscal 2004 yesterday…”

February 3, 2004: “President Bush sent Congress a $2.4 trillion spending plan yesterday…”

February 13, 2005: “President Bush sent Congress a $2.57 trillion budget…”

February 5, 2006: “President Bush plans to propose a $2.7 trillion budget tomorrow…”

Today: “President Bush took aim yesterday at domestic spending as part of a plan to balance the budget in five years without raising taxes while increasing funding for the Iraq war and permanently expanding the military. With the $2.9 trillion budget he submitted to Congress…”

If you’re keeping score at home, $1.9 trillion to $2.9 trillion is an increase of more than 52 percent.

Now, he doesn’t provide sources for his quotes, but they look about right to me. What he should have also mentioned was inflation…

According to the BLS inflation calculator, inflation from 2001 to 2006 was 13.83%. No doubt by 2008, when GW’s latest budget applies, it will be a bit higher. But any way one slices it, small government George has been increasing spending a heck of a lot faster inflation.