Letter to the editor:
On deficits, tea party protesters a little late
Saturday, Sept. 5, 2009 | 2:02 a.m.
I noticed that during the “tea party” rally in Las Vegas on Monday that the conservatives were protesting against what they perceive as out-of-control spending under President Barack Obama.
Where were these same protesters when the George W. Bush administration sent our deficit into orbit with the Iraq war?
Obama didn’t give us this huge deficit. I thought it was the conservatives who were concerned about too much waste.
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Idiot. After yelling about the past spending this administration tripled the spending and the only excuse is the last guy did some?
The war in Iraq was not what put the deficit into orbit. It was the entitlement spending which did it. Medicare, social secutity and medicade comprised about 42% of the budget while the department of defense only about 17%. This fool we have in the White House wants to add healthcare which will dwarf any other spending program in history and will probably break the government.
The Democrat arguement is that two wrongs make a right.
Contrast a Bush $2 trillion deficit over 8 years to the Obama forecast of $8 trillion over 8 year.
That is $250 billion per year versus $1.0 trillion per year.
The Afghanistan and Iraq wars have cost $650 billion under Bush. Without the war cost Bush would have had an average annual deficit of $170 billion per year - but still unacceptable.
Under Bush - the Revenue went up from $1,991.4 to $2,523.6 billion or 27% (3.4% per year). The revenue at the end of FY-2008 matches the Clinton Forecast in the late 90s, hence the Bush "tax rate" cuts while shifting the revenue further onto the rich, still achieved the "Clinton Forecast." 50% of earners do not pay taxes. The rate cut did get us out of the Clinton dot.com /9-11recesession.
In reality many Republicans (not conservatives) did over spend during the Bush years.
Under Bush -- the Outlays went from $1,863.2 to $2,978.5 billion or 60% (7.5% per year).
While the 2007 deficit was $160.7 billion it went up temporarily to $454.8 billion in 2008 due to the recession and a $200 billion dollar 2008 stimulus I and it includes $180 billion for the surge in the Iraq war. Hence the core 2008 deficit without the war and stimulus in 2008 was $70 billion.
The 8 year Bush investment included a 59% increase in veterans' benefits, 58% increase in education, 55% increase in health research and regulations, 51% increase in Medicare, 22% increase in highways and mass transit, and 17% increase in Social Security. $700 billion just for Medicare prescription drugs.
Appropriation the last four year of Bush was controlled by the Nancy Pelosi House and last 2 also by the Harry Reid Senate. Bush never veto the budget items passed by Nancy and Harry
In reality Democrats have never been opposed to deficits. It just suited their opposite spin when the deficit is not on their agenda items. Post 9/11 Wars were not on their agenda.
Now the Democrats call this spending an investment in America.
Since taking office Obama in 30 days, with help from Reid-Pelosi, has passed a $789 billion Stimulus II, a $350 billion TARP I(b), the $40 billion SCHIP, and a $410 billion 2009 Omnibus discretionary spending bill. Democrats would not pass a 2009 budget in 2008 so they could wait for Obama to shape to their spending. CBO is projecting a $1.5 trillion 10-year cost of health care coverage.
the retarded republicans are complete and total frauds...
it is the retarded republicans that are ruining this once great country...
w the scum bag liar loser clown and cheney the evil doer hurt this counrty very very badly...
it will take a generation to recover...
they inherited a budget surplus...
when they left the budget deficit would have been $1.5 trillion before obama spent a penny...
they doubled the national debt...
they played accounting gamed with cost of the wars...
they are frauds...
they should be in jail!!!
Democratic math "when they left the budget deficit would have been $1.5 trillion before obama spent a penny..."
"Would have been" Would have should have could have - that number was made up out of thin air by Obama. Like those non existing stimulus jobs.
Saying it does not make it true.
The Democrat Argument is that two wrongs make a right.
Since taking office Obama in 30 days, with help from Reid-Pelosi, has passed a $789 billion Stimulus II, a $350 billion TARP I(b), the $40 billion SCHIP, and a $410 billion 2009 Omnibus discretionary spending bill. Democrats would not pass a 2009 budget in 2008 so they could wait for Obama to shape to their spending.
And the forecast is still $1.5 Trillion.
How can Obama spend all that money and have no change in his story of what he say in Jan
Obama predicts that his fiscal policies would stabilize the debt at around 71 percent of the economy at the end of his first term.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/28/opinio...
Paul Krugman has come to tell us to not worry about our looming $9 trillion deficit. It only impact is political. Krugman is arguing that the debt to GDP ratio going from 30% to 70% because Belgium and Italy are okay.
Krugman says "We're looking at a rise in the debt/G.D.P. ratio of about 40 percentage points.
The real interest on that additional debt (you want to subtract off inflation) will probably be around 1 percent of G.D.P., or 5 percent of federal revenue. That doesn't sound like an overwhelming burden."
The slippery slope here is it depends on raging Jimmy Carter like high inflation to diminish the original borrowed value and the faith of the lenders like China that they have made a good investment
http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2009/08/o...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/con...
Until recently, many Fed watchers had expected Obama to seek a replacement for Bernanke, who was appointed by President George W. Bush. But the economy is stabilizing, and private economists and Obama give Bernanke a large chunk of the credit. Appointing someone new risked discombobulating financial markets.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/con...
wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter
8-24-09, E. J. Dionne bemoans that world leaders are correctly praising George Bush for his quick action in September and October 2008, to save the world financial system.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/...
Both the White House Office of Management and Budget and the nonpartisan CBO predicted the Obama budget deficit this year would swell to nearly $1.6 trillion, a record, and far above the then-record Bush 2008 budget deficit of $455 billion.
under w the scum bag liar loser clown and cheney the evil doer and the retarded republican party...
we wasted over $1 trillion in iraq...
not to mention 4,000 dead americans...
so...
the retarded republicans need to shut their pie holes...
period!!!
end of story!!!
As I recall, the tea bag rallies contain Independents, Republicans and Democrats who are upset at both parties for their out of control spending.
Larry...you would be correct.
It's such a shame that you can't hunt dirty rotten pidgeons in Vegas, isn't it?
Oh, don't get me started on that "Bird." Someone must have pulled out one of his tail feathers, as he has reached a new level of squawking.
The "Bird" was in a pretty good mood yesterday after he returned from Heidi's place. I think he got a real grooming and a few pin feathers pulled.
But he might have also picked up some lice over at Heidi's place, as he seems to be itching a lot today. Maybe that's what causing such a squawk. I better send over some "Winter Green" for the itch or some penicillin in case he develops an infection. We sure don't want our Bird friend to develop a runny tweeter.
Bird right again,Repubs wrong again.
Anyone keeping score?