"On July 13, the White House predicted the deficit would shrink for the next four years. Few in Washington believe that is likely now, even though federal revenues have been rising handsomely," writes The Christian Science Monitor. "For fiscal year 2005, tax receipts are up 15.3 percent through August, while outlays have risen 6.8 percent. But now Katrina is costing an estimated $1 billion to $2 billion a day.
"The total bill from that storm could reach as much as $200 billion in fiscal 2006, some say."