With deficit falling, Biden highlights fiscal responsibility

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden plans to highlight deficit reduction in remarks noting that the government will pay down the national debt this quarter for the first time in six years. In remarks Wednesday (May 4, 2022), Biden will stress how strong job gains have increased total incomes and led to additional tax revenues that have improved the government’s balance sheet. A White House official previewed the speech on condition of anonymity. The Treasury Department estimates that this fiscal year’s budget deficit will decline $1.5 trillion. That decrease marks an improvement from initial forecasts and would likely put the annual deficit below $1.3 trillion.