Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Director Douglas Elmendorf told the Senate Budget Committee that the U.S. will face unemployment around 8.9% and slow economic growth through the rest of 2012. He also discussed how policy decisions made in the near future will affect both the short-term economy and the nation’s long-term fiscal health. This was Douglas Elmendorf’s second day on Capitol Hill, having testified before the House Budget Committee on Wednesday.
The report, released on Tuesday, January 31, has been called "grim" and "gloomy." It predicts the 2012 budget deficit to be about $1.1 trillion, with the economy recovering slowly and the jobless rate remaining in the eight percent range.