Greenspan stated in 2001 that by 2010 the Federal Debt would be paid off- Opps

Testimony of Chairman Alan Greenspan
Outlook for the federal budget and implications for fiscal policy
Before the Committee on the Budget, U.S. Senate
January 25, 2001

The most recent projections from the OMB indicate that, if current policies remain in place, the total unified surplus will reach $800 billion in fiscal year 2011, including an on-budget surplus of $500 billion. The CBO reportedly will be showing even larger surpluses. Moreover, the admittedly quite uncertain long-term budget exercises released by the CBO last October maintain an implicit on-budget surplus under baseline assumptions well past 2030 despite the budgetary pressures from the aging of the baby-boom generation, especially on the major health programs.

The most recent projections, granted their tentativeness, nonetheless make clear that the highly desirable goal of paying off the federal debt is in reach before the end of the decade. This is in marked contrast to the perspective of a year ago when the elimination of the debt did not appear likely until the next decade.

http://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/testimony/2001/20010125/default.htm

I guess anyone can be off by $12 Trillion however, by next winter we may be burning dollars to heat our homes unless global warming sets in. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflation_in_the_Weimar_Republic