Frosty, it's not so much the national debt as it is the loss of revenue.  You can't have tax cuts while waging several wars.  If you allow corporations to outsource, if you let corporations pretend they headquarter in the Bahamas to avoid paying taxes, if you give tax credits to corporations that earn billions while paying no taxes--then you will not have enough revenue to run the country.

The states have it worse.  Unlike the Federal government, they must have a balanced budget.  Revenues are down because of the housing bubble and the very high unemployment.  Nor are people buying anything except the necessities, which keeps sales tax collections low.

The solution was for the Federal government to have a proper and immediate stimulus plan as well a finding ways to keep people in their homes.  It accomplished none of that.  We have a bunch of clowns running the country.