U.S. Government Spending Like a Drunk Sailor Since 1950

Chart of the Week #17

It might surprise you, but government deficits were practically nonexistent from the early days of our country until about halfway through the 20th century.

This, of course, changed in the second half of the century when government spending started picking up, partly due to initiatives like Lyndon B. Johnson's War on Poverty and the introduction of new social programs like Medicare and Medicaid.

The outcome?

In the 20 years between 1950 and 1970, 15 of those years ended in budget deficits, meaning the government spent more than it took in.

And as you can see in today’s chart below, showing the surpluses and deficits of the U.S. government since 1970, it only got worse from there.

What you'll notice right away is that since 1970, the government has lived within its means in only four years.

Put another way, in the past 74 years, the government has run a deficit in 65 of those years (that includes the 50 years and the 15 years it overspent between 1950 and 1970 that I mentioned earlier).

But if you look at the last 22 years, the federal government has overspent every single year. And each time, it piled on more and more debt. Every single time.

Have a great weekend!

Lau Vegys