Indicator #1: Federal Budget Deficits

The chart below shows the actual and projected federal budget deficits.

It's important to note that the projections have the ridiculous assumption that there will be no wars, recessions, or other events that cause extra federal spending.

Even with this rosy and unrealistic forecast, the US government is projected to have a cumulative deficit of over $22 trillion over the next ten years, which will have to be financed by issuing more debt.

Indicator #2: The Federal Debt

The federal debt has exceeded $35 trillion, representing more than 123% of GDP.

It's important to remember that GDP is a flawed statistic.

For example, it counts government spending as a positive. A more honest measure would count government spending as a big negative as it compounds the debt spiral.

In the US, government spending accounts for at least 37% of GDP.

This means that the debt relative to the productive economy supporting it is much higher than most people realize.

Indicator #3: The Federal Interest Expense

Annualized interest on the federal debt exceeded $1 trillion for the first time this year and is shooting higher.

The interest cost on the federal debt is already the US government's second-largest expenditure—larger than even the defense budget.

Interest expense is set to exceed Social Security and become the BIGGEST federal expenditure in the coming months.