It doesn’t really mean anything except that round numbers make good headlines, but it’s true nonetheless.

The federal government ran a deficit of $2 trillion last year for no apparent reason. Politicians are keeping their promise to ignore the debt and keep spending. The mother of all fiscal cliffs is coming in 2025. All true whether the really long number starts with a 33 or a 34 (or, in about six months at the pace we’re going, a 35).