White House projects bigger deficits, bigger debt

By The Associated Press

Posted 11:21AM on Tuesday 25th August 2009 ( 15 years ago )

WASHINGTON - White House officials project lingering high unemployment in the short term and a massive 10-year federal deficit of $9 trillion that feeds a ballooning national debt.

White House budget director Peter Orszag and economic adviser Christina Romer cited a worse-than-expected economic crisis for the dire fiscal landscape. The new projections were released Tuesday morning.

In May, the administration had predicted a $7 trillion deficit for 2010-2019. In documents and in remarks, the White House officials said the economy this year will contract by 2.8 percent, more than twice what they had predicted earlier this year.

President Obama announces in Oak Bluffs, Mass., Tuesday he is keeping Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke for a second term. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

http://accesswdun.com/article/2009/8/222700