Dr. Mike Walden, North Carolina Cooperative Extension economist in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at N.C. State University, responds:

"The deficit is still going to be an issue. The deficit as a percent of the economy will be 9 percent this year, it will be 6 percent next year, then 4 percent and then settle down in the 3 percent range for the rest of the decade. So this means we will be borrowing, but fortunately we will be borrowing at a slightly lower pace as we move through this decade.

"However, this means as we are borrowing more money the national debt is going to increase. Again, measured as a percent of the economy it is going to go from 53 percent now up to 67 percent at the end of the decade.

"Interest payments, consequently, will rise. In fact by the end of the decade, interest payments on the national debt will take almost as much of the federal budget as defense spending.

"Now revenues coming into the government have certainly slowed during the recession. They are expected to return to their long run average. But spending is going to go higher. And what is really driving spending in the federal budget for most of this decade will be the big three programs: Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid."