This answer is precisely what I am talking about when it comes to your credibility.
Agreeing with something Trump did as a matter of principle does not remove how things really work. "SS and Medicare have no business being part of the deficit (i.e. budget)" is a political position you may have, but all government ran funds operate the same way meaning your rhetoric is useless.
No matter how you think it should work every single cent coming into Social Security (for example) is immediately exchanged for special issued intergovernmental debt every single day, with those funds ending up in the general ledger. All as a matter of law. Also, every single dollar paid out of Social Security is paid for by cashing in aged special issued intergovernmental debt down to the cent with that check coming from the general ledger. Every transaction between the Social Security "Trust Fund" and the general ledger is reported, and the "Status" of the Trust Fund comes down to the trend in how much of that special intergovernmental debt is held down to the penny. Based on the economy and relation of inbound to outbound tells us the health of the Fund.
What that means is from a budget position every source of revenue ends up in a giant pool just as every expenditure comes out of that pool. Any action taken by the government that impacts any revenue or expenditure determines their relation and results in either deficit or surplus. Social Security is not excluded, nor is Medicare. They all matter, none are excluded no matter how clever your argument is that they should be. They are not, period. Mandatory, non-mandatory, by department, by fund, whatever else... it is all spending, all outlays. Revenue from Corporate Taxes, Individual Taxes, Fees, Withholding for Social Security or Medicare... it is all revenue, all in the pool of the general ledger. All as a matter of law.
The point of this conversation is lowering revenue from any source and keeping spending the same or increasing for any, many, or all areas of spending results in new deficits and additions to Debt.
It does not matter if some politician wanted something that did not happen, what did happen in terms of revenues and outlays is what matters to our deficit or surplus condition. Your own example illustrates what Republicans in the 115th did. Deficits are increasing for a multitude of reasons, you do not get to save Trump's tax cuts from the discussion just because ideologically you agree with them... those cuts did not occur in a vacuum and deficits jumping was impacted by his cuts, just as it was impacted by other things that make up a fiscal year result.
Again, your own source confirms all this. Nothing in the entire PDF supports your political desire for "what it should be." You can claim all you want that one action is good, the others are bad, and ignore the fiscal year result... but it kills whatever credibility you had left when you use the very source that tells us the actual results of all the President and associated Congresses actions.
