re: National debt tops $22 trillion for the first time as experts warn of ripple effects

Baseline (budgeting)

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Baseline budgeting is an accounting method the United States Federal Government uses to develop a budget for future years. Baseline budgeting uses current spending levels as the "baseline" for establishing future funding requirements and assumes future budgets will equal the current budget times the inflation rate times the population growth rate.[1] Twice a year—generally in January and August—CBO prepares baseline projections of federal revenues, outlays, and the surplus or deficit. Those projections are designed to show what would happen if current budgetary policies were continued as is—that is, they serve as a benchmark for assessing possible changes in policy. They are not forecasts of actual budget outcomes, since the Congress will undoubtedly enact legislation that will change revenues and outlays. Similarly, they are not intended to represent the appropriate or desirable levels of federal taxes and spending.[2]

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The Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 provided the first legal definition of baseline. For the most part, the act defined the baseline in conformity with previous usage. If appropriations had not been enacted for the upcoming fiscal year, the baseline was to assume the previous year's level without any adjustment for inflation. In 1987, however, the Congress amended the definition of the baseline so that discretionary appropriations would be adjusted to keep pace with inflation. Other technical changes, annual increase of now approximately 3% plus inflation, to the definition of the baseline were enacted in 1990, 1993, and 1997. Presently, the [automatic annual] Baseline Budgeting increase is about 7%.

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following the passage of President Donald Trump’s $1.5 trillion tax-cut package

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It has nothing to do with this as tax receipts have gone up a lot to record highs.

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congressional efforts to increase spending on domestic and military programs.

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It has everything to do with this

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I asked shortyrob to produce evidence of republicans controlling spending and you know what he gave me? Hypotheticals

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Well this is just false.

I said a majority of democrats favor several massive expansions on spending. That's not even debatable.

But I never said that Republicans are good at controlling spending. I said that at least there are some repeat some repeat some since you're stupid as frick repeats some Republicans who are actually for reducing spending but there are zero Democrats

and I pointed out that at the least the Republicans aren't favoring massive new entitlement programs and massive new discretionary spending. Also both undisputedly true

You might want to try again

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Automatic increases have been baked into the budget forever. It wasn't a new concept nor was it uniquely responsible for post-2009 deficits.

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Whoooosh!!! It went right over your head.

What he was pointing out is that the “stimulus” bill was sold as a one-time temporary expenditure. It wasn’t. It was added to the baseline budget.

As such... the way it was (and still is) referred to as a $787B expense is dishonest. You provided the perfect example by calling the “$1.5Trillion tax cuts” referring to the 10 year cost, not the $150B yearly cost. This distortion makes it look like Trump’s tax cut is larger. When in reality, it’s several multiples less.

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Presently, the [automatic annual] Baseline Budgeting increase is about 7%.

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Do you interpret this to mean that it is 7% annually in following years? Why hasn't that happened? Baseline budgeting doesn't set population growth rate or inflation rate adjustments for future years. Neither do they mandate future spending. Agency budgets have not grown anywhere near 5% annually, nor has discretionary spending. Your presentation so far has been exactly wrong.

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Not an issue at this time. The world is dependent on the American economy, so if anyone called that debt, it would destroy the world economy

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So when do we suppose to start caring?

When it all goes belly up?

And the world has slowly been decoupling from the dollar for years now. It isn't as dependent as it once was. Not nearly.