Something interesting I found while browsing the CBO site...
From the latest CBO budget projections:
The paper shows deficits peaking in 2004, then slowly heading down, and eventually into the surplus zone by 2012. Wow. Didn't see that little item in the New York Times.
Some important caveats: these numbers assume the expiration of the tax cuts in 2010. I wish they had provided numbers with the tax cuts extended. One assumes that, given their static calculation technique, the numbers beyond 2010 would not look so good. Of course in reality, tax cuts create increased revenues in the long run.
Also, if the idiotic Congress passes a brand-new entitlement, all bets are off.