We must fix economy and then control debt

Joseph E. Mallie's Dec. 6 letter, “We cannot afford Obama recovery tactics,” incorrectly stated “President Obama's administration has increased the national debt from $4 trillion to $12 trillion.” Perhaps it was a typo.

America's national debt surpassed $4 trillion under Reagan's administration and has been going up ever since, with the exception of a brief period during the Clinton administration when budget surpluses were starting to pay down the debt. Unfortunately, George W. Bush did not maintain that course, and left us $11 trillion in debt when he left office 10 months ago.

I agree with Mallie that, long-term, we must get our national debt under control, but first we have to fix our economy, which was left in shambles. Recovery efforts narrowly averted another Great Depression, but we're not out of the woods yet.

Brian Ochs

Marion