The National Debt Clock has run out of space to display the $10 trillion of debt America has now surpassed.

Remember when gas stations ran out of the number “4″ to put on their signage when prices skyrocketed? Well, there’s a similar predicament in Times Square.

The National Debt Clock has run out of spaces to display $10 trillion in red numerals.

By adding $100 billion to bail out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and $700 billion to bail out banks and the credit market, there’s no room for more zeroes.

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Popularity: 3% [?]

It’s something I’ve made mention of on more than a few occations here.  The economy sucks.  In a big way.

And it’s not getting better, it’s getting worse.  Increases in cost of imported good, Decreases in the value of the dollar, Continued massive spending in Iraq, our country’s debt grows at an astronomical rate. 

Unemployment continues to grow as jobs are outsourced to other countries and businesses cut employees (or just their number of hours spent working) to save money (not seeming to decrease the bonuses their CEOs recieve at the end of the day… but that’s another rant for another time).

So which of the two Candidates proposes a better way for us to get out of it?

Here’s the tax plan each Candidate is proposing (note that just because they’re proposing these plans doesn’t mean they’ll happen, every plan would have to be voted upon by Congress)

The tax plans                                                   Obama                           McCain
$227,000 - a year - plus                                $23,000 more               $15,000 less
$112,000 - $227,000 (15% of population)  $2,300 less                    $3,200 less
$66,000 - $112,000 (20% of population)   $1,290 less                     $1,009 less
$38,000 - $66,000 (20% of population)     $1,042 less                     $319 less
$19,000 - $38,000 (20% of population)     $892 less                        $113 less
$0 - $19,000 (20% of population)               $567 less                         $19 less
Impact of tax changes on federal budget:   Returns $700 billion     Costs $600 billion
Source: Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center. Numbers are estimates and averages.

So there you have it, McCain gives big breaks to the top 1%, and smaller breaks to the middle class and below- basically keeping the Bush tax cuts intact, Obama aims to give the middle class and below a bigger break- but make up the difference by taking it out of the top 1%.

Under McCain’s plan the deficit will continue to grow.  Of course, neither of these plans take into account the spending that could be occuring in our various overseas endeavors (ie: continued occupations in Middle East countries and picking fights with others) so it’s quite likely that neither candidate’s plan will rectify the cash bleed as it stands.

Anyone scared yet?  Well don’t even think of trying to run for the border, while we’re fighting to keep the illegals out of the country, there’s a new provision that was added to the Heroes Act of 2008 which was primarily touted as the bill that increased benefits for veterans- if you want to leave the country, you will be taxed on all of your assets as though you were selling them.  Think of it as a moving tax.  Everything you own will cost you.

So with the deficit rocketing towards a record $400 billion for the year, $9 trillion total, we’re all tied in to this wonderfully sinking ship.  One thing is clear, it’s not going to matter what Candidate takes the wheel- it’s not going to be a matter of steering to change the course, it’s going to be a matter of fixing the hole in the bottom.  Something that’s going to require an overhaul in how we as a nation do business.

I’m not a smart enough man to have the answers, but I think it’s time we stop looking for soundbites and flag pins, and start looking for the folks who might actually have the knowledge to apply to fixing the problems we face.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Hillary Clinton won in Kentucky, won big in fact.  But Barack Obama won Oregon, and with it- more delagates, which puts him solidly in the majority delegate count, regardless of how the next contests pan out.  He’s less than a hundred shy of the needed 2,026 to be handed the nomination, barring the sudden jumping ship of a vast percentage of super delegates already pledged to Obama, this thing is over, but as we’ve learned Hillary will not quit.  Ever.  She’s so solidly into this whole Primary thing that she’s spent herself into debt to the tune of $31 million in debt.  Let me repeat that, because it takes a bit to seep in.  Hillary Clinton and her campaign owe $31 million that she’s spent over what she’s brought in either through fund raising, or from giving it to herself.  In a nation that is struggling financially due to over taxing it’s resources whether economically, ecologically, or militarily- someone arguing that she’s the one to get us back on track is sending herself steadily into potentially unrecoverable debt to keep a lost campaign in all appearances- viable.

Obama on the other hand continues to be a money making machine, though to a lesser degree now than earlier in the year, with his April earnings rounding out at about… wow, get this… $31 million.  Maybe if Hillary asks nicely Obama will lend her the money to stay afloat after the DNC tells us what we already know- that he is the Presidential candidate.  Wouldn’t that be a nice gesture?

Popularity: 4% [?]