Originally posted by sh76
It's the deficit that is shrinking, not the debt. The debt is still rising.
The deficit in the first year of the Obama administration (2009) was obscenely high due to the stimulus spending and economic recession decreasing tax revenue. While that it's come down is certainly a good thing, it's hardly anything to celebrate. It hasn't come down enough. A $450B ...[text shortened]... before 2009 and all of a sudden, it's nothing to write home about.
http://tinyurl.com/zfger9w
Having a world wide empire is rather expensive; we're spending about $156 billion to maintain 800 military bases overseas:
Although few Americans realize it, the United States likely has more bases in foreign lands than any other people, nation, or empire in history.”
http://www.mintpressnews.com/214492-2/214492/
Does everybody do it? Not quite:
The foreign military presence of other nations pales in comparison. “Britain, France and Russia, by contrast, have about 30 foreign bases combined,” according to Vine.