Debt Has Increased $5 Trillion Since Speaker Pelosi Vowed, ‘No New Deficit Spending’

Monday, October 25, 2010
By Terence P. Jeffrey

(CNSNews.com) - When Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) gave her inaugural address as speaker of the House in 2007, she vowed there would be “no new deficit spending.” Since that day, the national debt has increased by $5 trillion, according to the U.S. Treasury Department.

"After years of historic deficits, this 110th Congress will commit itself to a higher standard: Pay as you go, no new deficit spending,” Pelosi said in her speech [2] from the speaker’s podium. “Our new America will provide unlimited opportunity for future generations, not burden them with mountains of debt."

Pelosi has served as speaker in the 110th and 111th Congresses.

At the close of business on Jan. 4, 2007, Pelosi’s first day as speaker, the national debt was $8,670,596,242,973.04 (8.67 trillion), according to the Bureau of the Public Debt [3], a division of the U.S. Treasury Department.  At the close of business on Oct. 22, it stood at $13,667,983,325,978.31 (13.67 trillion), an increase of 4,997,387,083,005.27 (or approximately $5 trillion).

Pelosi, the 60th speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, has added more to the national debt than the first 57 House speakers combined.

The $4.997-trillion increase in the national debt since she took the gavel is more debt than the federal government amassed from the speakership of Rep. Frederick Muhlenberg [4] of Pennsylvania, who became the first speaker of the House on April 1, 1789, to the start of the speakership of Rep. Newt Gingrich [5] of Georgia, the 58th speaker, who took up the gavel on Jan. 4, 1995.

The national debt first topped $5 trillion on Feb. 23, 1996, more than a year into Gingrich’s speakership.
Gingrich served as speaker in the 104th and 105th Congresses, officially taking the office on Jan. 4, 1995 and leaving office on Jan. 3, 1999.  During that period, according to the Treasury Department, the national debt increased $812.4 billion dollars ($812,423,595,162.98), rising from $4.8 trillion ($4,801,793,426,032.89) to $5.6 trillion ($5,614,217,021,195.87).

Rep. Dennis Hastert [6] (R-Ill.), the 59th speaker, who presided over the 106th, 107th, 108th and 109th Congresses (serving as speaker from Jan. 6, 1999 to Jan. 3, 2007), enjoys the distinction of having increased the debt more than any other speaker except Pelosi. During Hastert’s time, the national debt increased $3.1 trillion ($3,061,785,703,851.74).
Thus far (the 111th Congress will not be done until the end of the year), Pelosi has increased the debt by an average of $2.5 trillion for each Congress she has led as speaker. Hastert increased the debt by an average of about $785 billion per Congress, while Gingrich increased the debt by an average of $406 billion per Congress.
Under the U.S. Constitution, the federal government cannot spend any money that has not been approved by congressional appropriations; and, by congressional precedent, appropriations bills originate in the House.

"No money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law," says Article 1, Section 9, Clause 7 [7] of the Constitution.
“By precedent, appropriations originate in the House, with the Senate following suit,” says the House Rules Committee in an explanation [8] of the appropriations process.
Annual federal expenditures have increased by about $730 billion in the Pelosi era, while annual deficits have increased almost 8 fold. In fiscal 2007, when Pelosi became speaker, the federal government spent $2.73 trillion and ran an annual deficit of $162.8 billion, according to the Treasury Department [9]. In fiscal 2009 [10], the federal government spent $3.52 trillion and ran an annual deficit of $1.4157 trillion. In fiscal 2010 [11], the federal government spent $3.46 trillion and ran an annual deficit of $1.2941 trillion.
“The 2010 deficit was equal to 8.9 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), CBO estimates, down from 10.0 percent in 2009 (based on the most current estimate of GDP),” the Congressional Budget Office said in its October Monthly Budget Review [12]. “The 2010 deficit was the second-highest shortfall—and 2009 the highest—since 1945, relative to the size of the economy.”
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THANKS, NANCY, FOR ALL YOU'VE DONE FOR US...AND OUR KIDS

 ...Thanks to Neal Boortz, the TalkMaster, for this acknowledgement to Princess Nancy

Princess Pelosi is upset. And I, of course, am upset that she's upset. She is upset that you have not bowed down and kissed the ground she walks upon, thanking her for everything she has done for this country. Pelosi says that "we haven't really gotten the credit for what we have done." By "we" she clearly means Democrats. Well how about we thank Nancy for this. In fact, why don't you go ahead and write a thank you note on behalf of your grandchildren ...

When Nancy Pelosi gave her inaugural address as speaker of the House in 2007, she vowed there would be "no new deficit spending." Since that day, the national debt has increased by $5 trillion, according to the U.S. Treasury Department. Thank you so very much, Nancy, for the $5 trillion in debt our children and grandchildren are going to have to pay off. You deserve the credit.

Now ... let's see. Surely there are other things we can give Nancy credit for! How about that spectacular ObamaCare bill that we had to pass so we could find out what was in it? Princess Pelosi complains that "You have all those forces at work, pouring millions of millions of dollars into the media, and now into the campaigns to mischaracterize everything that we did." Well .. it's government accountants, not the evil media and the hated (but only as long as they're serving Republicans) "special interests," that are now telling us that Obama care is going to cost way more than you said, and that it will be adding to our deficits as early as next year.


Then there's the stimulus bill. Actually, Nancy, that one pretty much belongs to you. The Community Organizer wanted to spend some money to make it look to the American people like he was actually doing something ... so he came to you and told you to get a stimulus bill written. You then went to your House members and told them to get all of their spending bills written up in nice difficult to understand legislative language and sent to her office so she could put it into a nice stimulus package. So, if we can't thank you, we want to convey the thanks of those Siberians who are being taught with borrowed money - money our children will have to pay back - how to interact with their government ... in Moscow. Thanks also from that academic hack in Oklahoma who now has over $1 million of stimulus money to study grandparent interaction in Alaska. Oh ... and the turtles thank you for their turtle tunnel.

Mischaracterize? Don't think so, Madam Speaker. It's all there in black and white in the legislation you crammed down American throats. It's not real hard to mischaracterize a $5 trillion increase in national debt. Know what? I think that your real problem is that the American people understand all too well what you've really done. We recognize your accomplishments, and we look at our children and feel remorse for the idiotic votes we cast that gave you all this power.

Actually ... the American people DO want to thank you. They want you to know that they're so appreciative of the job you've done that they want you to go ahead and enjoy your hard-earned retirement. We're going to throw a little retirement party for you in ... say ... about one week. Maybe after all of the burdens of the speaker's office are removed from your shoulders you'll decide to just go ahead and retire. Trust me ... you've earned it.