While the overall economy produces this growth, it's the workers who pay the bulk of the tax receipts out of their paychecks, and more money is pouring into the U.S. Treasury because more people are working.

Since the Bush tax cuts fully took effect in 2003, the American economy has created more than 8.2 million new jobs, cutting the unemployment rate to 4.5 percent. That rate, by the way, is on average lower than the rates for the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, OMB says.

Here's a startling fact that puts these numbers into sharper perspective: The economy has had the longest stretch of nonstop job-creation growth since June 1990.

That's why federal tax receipts have risen by more than 37 percent over the past three years and will grow by an additional 7 percent this year.

That said, it could be dangerous to focus solely on the deficit at the expense of economic growth. The Democratic majority in Congress, feigning concern about the deficit, has proposed more than $200 billion in additional spending over the next five years and huge tax increases that will include letting parts of the Bush tax cuts expire in 2010.

That would eliminate some of the strategic tax cuts that in turn would eliminate incentives to invest, slow down the economy's engine of growth and enlarge the deficits.

Bush, sharpening his little-used veto pen, has sent word to Capitol Hill that "this isn't going to happen on my watch."