Speaking of the national debt and bubbles, the federal government released the annual Financial Report of the United States Government a couple of weeks ago. To deafening silence.

While our current political climate at times seemed without precedent in American history, there is at least one area in which President Donald Trump has carried on the tradition of his predecessor, President Barack Obama: They both presided over an explosion of the national debt.

New Jersey has become a case study for financial disaster (forgive the cynical language, but you try to define the NJ balance sheet and budget in one word).

“… Bill Bergman at the non-profit group Truth in Accounting says Virginia is actually in pretty good shape compared to other states. ‘When you look across the 50 states, older states tend to be in worse shape, and Virginia is one of those states that is actually an old state but is also in relatively good shape,’ says Bergman.”

“… ‘The government’s finances deteriorated significantly, and more recent reports suggest the trend is only getting worse in 2019,’ Bill Bergman, the TIA’s director of research, wrote on his blog.”

The final stage of college competition to address fiscal challenges facing the US government was held in Washington, D.C. last Friday.

“… With assets of $3.8 trillion, the federal government’s unfunded liabilities and debt totals $108.9 trillion, leaving a debt burden of $105 trillion. … As a result, TIA gives the federal government an ‘F’ grade for its financial outlook. … In its new report, TIA clarifies that while the issue of a $779 billion national deficit is concerning, it doesn’t reflect the bigger picture. …” 

“According to Sheila Weinberg, a CPA, there is so little truth in so many government budgets, that they could be considered works of fiction.”

A Senate budget resolution that some say contains 'draconian cuts' actually increases spending overall, economist Daniel J. Mitchell at the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE) argues.

“… But you can bet future commercials will target one vulnerability Smith insists is shared by both his May primary opponent and the incumbent Democrat he hopes to defeat in November: The city’s debts. … It’s all a matter of perspective — and, of course, politics — because both positions appear to be factually correct.”

The Pentagon’s inability to pass an audit, after years of outright stonewalling, followed by many more years of foot-dragging, is suddenly a hot topic.

The ranks of these supposedly ‘non-essential’ employees included financial experts in departments across the government.

“For the moment, Lori Lightfoot owns Chicago. But can she save it? The diminutive underdog outsider turned mayor-elect of the nation's third largest city pulled off a stunning election-day blowout of Cook County political boss and County Board Chairman Toni Preckwinkle. … That certainly is her mandate, cleaning up the political filth that has run rampant in Chicago for decades. But does she have the will and the integrity to pull it off?”