US News

More deficit gloom and doom

WASHINGTON — The nation’s annual deficit will grow to a stunning $1.5 trillion this year, according to a new government estimate, as President Obama and the new Republican House resumed an acrid debate over how to get control of the budget to bring down nation’s spiraling debt.

The predicted deficit would reach 9.8 percent of the nation’s total economic output, according to the latest forecast by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Economic growth would increase by 3.1 percent — not a robust enough clip to bring unemployment down quickly.

“The fiscal challenge confronting us is enormous. To solve this problem, it will require real compromise and a great deal of political will,” said Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-ND).