this is the intro

Budget Briefs

Charts

The following table shows spending in 2007 dollars (i.e. controlled for inflation) of national defense spending since 1940. National defense is a category of spending defined by the government.

A deficit is when the outlays exceed revenues and a surplus is when revenues exceed outlays.

With a national debt of about $8 trillion, it is clear why this issue has assumed such political and economic significance.