The Deficit - part three of three

The US deficit has reached unprecedented levels in the last five years.
The orange line represents the yearly incremental deficit as a percent of GDP.  The dark red line represents the yearly incremental deficit as a percent of total federal government outlays.  The red and blue shading represents party control of the House, the Senate, and the Presidency.  (The white space from 2001-2002 represents an even split in the Senate.)

These values are not due to welfare and they’re not due to war.  They’re not the results of a republican government, and they’re not the result of a democratic government.  They are the results of poor fiscal planning and a lack of government responsibility, regardless of which party is in control.

(click on image to enlarge)

Data Sources:

Budget data http://www.gpo.gov/

GDP data http://www.bea.gov/

Unemployment data http://www.bls.gov/

Party data http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Party_divisions_of_United_States_Congresses