Q: One, you mentioned what the president promised during the campaign. During the campaign, he also promised that he would eliminate the national debt within eight years. And as you know, the debt at the end of his first year was at $20 trillion; last year it went to $21 trillion; last month, $22 trillion. So what happened to that promise? I mean, the president has added historically large numbers to the national debt instead of keeping a promise to actually pay it off.
VOUGHT: Look, again, the last administration nearly doubled the national debt.
The real trouble, however, is the idea that this is Obama’s fault. Eventually, the White House should probably recognize Trump’s responsibility for creating his own mess. Perhaps a chart would help.
This image, which relies on Congressional Budget Office data, shows annual budget deficits since the Reagan era. Red columns point to Republican administrations, blue columns point to Democratic administrations, and red-and-blue columns point to years in which the fiscal year was split between presidents from two different parties.