Since 2001, the federal budget has never been balanced, and the federal debt has exploded to a hard-to-fathom $19 trillion. You might think damming the river of red ink would be high on the list of pressing issues before the electorate this year. But a balanced budget is not on the agenda for the presidential race. No one is campaigning on a vow to make Washington live within its means.

In fact, most of the candidates would increase federal spending — as if the $3.92 trillion outlay projected this year were pitifully inadequate. According to an analysis of the candidates' plans by the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, Hillary Clinton would boost outlays by 2 percent, Donald Trump by 3 percent, Ted Cruz by 6 percent and Bernie Sanders by (gulp) 33 percent. John Kasich is alone in planning to bring spending down, by 2 percent.

Expenditures are only one factor in deficits. The other is revenue. The Tax Policy Center estimates that Cruz's tax plan would cost $8.6 trillion in lost receipts over the next decade, while Trump's would slash federal income by $9.5 trillion. (Kasich hasn't provided enough specifics for an estimate.)

The Democrats would go the opposite direction by raising taxes. Clinton's changes would capture an extra $1.1 trillion over 10 years. Sanders' would bring in an additional $15.3 trillion — but the top federal tax rate would jump to 77 percent, roughly double the current maximum. The damage to the economy from Sanders' program would greatly exceed any benefit to the federal balance sheet.

The takeaway is that the grim federal budget outlook is only going to get worse. That they share with President Obama. Under his plans, the annual deficit is projected to climb every year to $1.1 trillion by 2022 and keep heading upward.

Sooner or later, our elected officials will have to reverse the federal government's alarming slide toward insolvency — or just let it fly over that cliff. But for now, our candidates for president are just going with the flow.

FROM AN EDITORIAL IN THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE