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'Runaway Government Spending' Is a Myth Only One Thing Can Reduce the National Debt (1,965 words) By David Demers Government spending is out of control. In fact, it’s “runaway.” Just ask any conservative. “Runaway government spending drove skyrocketing prices, draining household savings, eroding purchasing power, and stretching family budgets to their breaking point,” writes U.S. Representative Jodey Arrington. “As a Main Street businessman, I believe we need to reduce runaway federal spending and address our national debt,” says Senator Mike Braun. “Runaway government spending is already turning us into a nation of debt slaves,” according to two Heritage Foundation fellows. So what does “runaway” mean to a conservative? Fifty percent increase in spending from year to year? Ten? Five? There is, of course, a growing gap between federal outlays and revenues (nearly $2 trillion in 2023; see Figure 1). But you won’t find an answer to the runaway question, because conservatives haven’t done the math. So I did it for them. And the results even shocked me. ... From 1980 to 2023, the average annualized inflation-adjusted increase in federal outlays was only ... (CLICK PDF ICON ABOVE TO READ THE REST OF THE STORY) | ||