US Presidency
1978

We've brought the deficit down by one-third since I ran for President, from more than $ 66 billion in fiscal year 1976 to about $ 40 billion in fiscal year 1979, a reduction of more than $ 25 billion in the Federal deficit in just 3 years. It will keep going down. Next year, with tough restraints on Federal spending and moderate economic growth in prospect, I plan to reduce the budget deficit to less than one-half what it was when I ran for office, to $ 30 billion or less. The Government has been spending too great a portion of what our Nation produces. During my campaign I promised to cut the Government's share of our total national spending from 23 percent, which it was then, to 21 percent in fiscal year 1981. We now plan to meet that goal 1 year earlier. Reducing the deficit will require difficult and unpleasant decisions. We must face a time of national austerity. Hard choices are necessary if we want to avoid consequences that are even worse.