"Republicans cast aside projections that their 2017 tax reform law would add $1.9 trillion to deficits over a decade. Larry Kudlow, the top White House economic advisor, claimed just last week that the tax cuts were on track to pay for themselves."

Kudlow is right. Revenues for the first 9 months this fiscal year are up from last year, and at a higher rate than they were rising the last two years before the tax cuts. Here's the pertinent line you seemed to ignore:

"Spending has also shot up as a result of bipartisan budget deals, in which Republicans sought massive increases in defense expenditures and Democrats sought equal increases on domestic priorities such as health and education."

Yes Virginia, we have a spending problem. And the current Santa Clauses vying for the Dem nomination want only to stomp on the pedal.

With that said, part of me is cheering for another complete clusterfrack this fall leading to a return to sequestration, as bad as that would be for our short term.