American Notes the Budget

Alas, poor Gramm-Rudman. This year the federal deficit was supposed to start receding as a prelude to the Gramm-Rudman deficit-reduction targets of $144 billion for 1987 and zero for 1991. Instead, 1986 has turned into another year of record red ink. Last week the Office of Management and Budget predicted that when the accountants close the books on fiscal 1986 in September, the federal deficit will stand at a stupefying $230 billion, $27 billion more than the Government predicted in February. Said a chagrined OMB Director James Miller: "It is not something I'm proud of."

With the economy on slow, the Congressional Budget Office is predicting that the deficit in 1987 will drop, but only to around $173 billion, $29 billion more than Gramm-Rudman mandates.

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