KING: The White House budget director calls it a blunt warning to Congress. The U.S. federal deficit spiking 17 percent from a year ago to $779 billion. Watchdogs warned this would happen after Republicans passed their tax cut plan and the president signed it into law. Getting the number down is one of the many things the president promised to do if he won the election.</s>DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Will you put forward a balanced budget, your first budget, or will it take a couple of years?</s>DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No. No, but it will take fairly quickly and it can be done.</s>KING: Fairly quickly and it can been done. That's what candidate Trump said. Instead, fiscal conservatism is out the window in a Washington where the White House and Congress are controlled by politicians who say they are fiscal conservatives. CNN's Christine Romans has a close look at all the new red ink.</s>CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Question, John, do deficits matter in Washington anymore? The federal government is racking up the bills, spending so much more than it takes it. It's running the largest budget deficit in six years, up 17 percent this year to $779 billion. The highest since 2012. That's when the country was spending big to stimulate a struggling economy. But, John, 2018 is very different. The economy is strong and growing. Unemployment very low. Typically, deficits shrink during boom times as the government collects more taxes from taxpayers. But thanks to tax reform, the U.S. is spending more than it takes in. Spending rose 3 percent because of higher interest payments on debt and more defense spending. But tax revenue failed to keep up thanks to tax cuts. Government revenue was flat. Corporate tax collection, taxes
Budget Deficit Highest Since 2012.