A Tale of Two Stories

Business Week:

CBO Predicts Drop in Budget Deficit
By ANDREW TAYLOR, Associated Press Writer

AUG. 15 5:41 P.M. ET The federal budget-deficit picture turned brighter Monday as congressional scorekeepers released new estimates showing the level of red ink for the current fiscal year would drop to $331 billion.

The new report by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, which does budget analysis for lawmakers in Washington, gave the latest proof that surging revenues and a steadily growing economy are combining to bring the deficit down from a record $412 billion posted last year. CBO predicts a $314 billion deficit for the budget year starting Oct. 1.

The New York Times :

Forecasters See Drop in Budget Deficit
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: August 15, 2005
Filed at 7:31 p.m. ET

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congressional forecasters said Monday the federal deficit this year, though still huge, won't be as bad as originally projected -- a welcome turn for President Bush who inherited healthy surpluses four years ago and saw them disappear in a sea of red ink.

At the same time, the fiscal outlook remains troubled for years to come, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said.

The CBO predicted a $331 billion deficit for the budget year ending Sept. 30 and a $314 billion deficit for next year.

By the way, the CBO's report predicts (Table 1.2) the deficit will continue to shrink as a percentage of GDP¹:



(source: CBO)

Both stories missed that point.
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¹ Just as it would be illogical to assess an individual's indebtedness without reference to his income, the NY Times concedes "the more relevant measure of the deficit is to weigh it against the size of the economy," i.e., GDP.

(via Instapundit)