If you're one of the people paying close attention [1] to the presidential candidates, and to the nation's financial condition, you may well be sitting at home thinking "these people are not making any sense at all."

Well, it's not just you. And Bloomberg News has done a major public service today by running stories comparing what the presidential candidates are saying to the actual fiscal facts. You absolutely need to read these:

On the Democrats: Clinton, Rivals Laud Spending Limits, Plan Big Spree [2]

On the Republicans: Giuliani, Romney Offer Tax Cuts, Omit Spending Curbs [3]

The sad fact is that there's not a lot of fiscal honesty on the campaign trail and what little there is ought to be encouraged. When you step back and look at the campaign this way, at the scale of the problems [3] and the state of the promises being made, it makes Paul Krugman's column [4] today seem completely beside the point. The next president will have no choice but to deal with Medicare and health costs, extending the Bush tax cuts and Social Security. The public at least deserves to hear some honest talk from the candidates about what to do.