Does Everyone Know How Much $2.2 Trillion Is Over the Next Decade?

It seems unlikely that many people, even among the relatively well-educated readers of the New York Times and Washington Post, have much clue as to how much money is at stake in the battle over the debt ceiling. As some points of reference, the government is projected to spend roughly $46 trillion over the next decade. This means that $2.2 trillion in cuts would be around 4.8 percent of projected spending.

However, the impact is likely to be much larger on specific portions of the budget. If ...