Posted by Jack
“The Budget should be balanced, the Treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed, lest Rome will become bankrupt. People must again learn to work instead of living on public assistance.”
Cicero, 55 BC
So, evidently we’ve learned absolutely nothing over the past 2,069 years.
Since deficits go up under Republican presidents and down under Democrat presidents, it seems the lesson we haven’t learned is…we should elect Democrat presidents.
Let’s examine what you said. First, the legislative branch controls the budget. Now if you look at it from the legislative branch and not the executive branch, we see that it’s the democrats who have truly con tributed more to our deficit.
During the Reagan administration, Democrats controlled the House all 8 years. The Senate had slight Republican majorities for the first six years, before Democrats won back a majority in 1986, but the GOP never had enough seats to avoid a Democratic filibuster. Overall, Democrats clearly had more power in Congress when the debt ballooned 189% from 1981-1989.
During the administration of Bush 41, Democrats controlled both bodies all four years, when the debt went up 55%.
During the first two years of the Clinton administration, Democrats controlled both bodies of Congress. However, Republicans won back both chambers in 1994, and kept them for the remainder of his Presidency. In 1994, the deficit (annual contribution to the total debt) was $203.2 billion. In the year 2000, the last year of the Clinton Presidency, after 6 years of GOP control of spending and taxes, we had a $236.2 billion SURPLUS (see the previous link for budget numbers).
For the first six years of the Bush 43 Presidency, Republicans controlled both the House and the Senate. The deficit peaked in 2004 at $412.7 billion, the highest it was during any of those six years. In 2008, the deficit was $455 billion, higher than any other full fiscal year under Bush. This is after the Democrats won back control of both the House and the Senate in the 2006 midterm elections.
When Obama took office in January of 09, Democrats had already been controlling spending and taxation for 2 years prior and had just won even larger majorities in the 2008 elections, the deficit set an all time nominal record of $1.4 trillion. Many (rightfully) blame this on the recession. Tax receipts had dropped substantially, and the Democrats felt increasing spending would help “stimulate” the economy. You be the judge if that worked or not, but let’s not pretend this $1.4 trillion jump in the national debt is the fault of the Republicans, even if you choose to not hold Democrats responsible.
In January 2011, following the 2010 midterms, Republicans entered with more seats in the Senate than before, and a new majority in the House. They didn’t have as much control over spending/taxes as they did in the 1990s, but they had more than before, and could get their agenda on the table under the Obama Presidency. Since Republicans have had the chance to manipulate fiscal policy (to one extent or another) starting in January 2011, the deficit shrunk from its high of $1.4 trillion, to $483 billion in 2014.
It’s clear, to any honest person, which party is more responsible with the nation’s finances. So there it is Chris, like it or not, it’s the truth.
Excellent response Jack!
I’m not seeing the link you referred to…any chance you can find it again?
It was Libby’s post and it linked to an Atlantic article. It should be just down the page a bit.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/08/the-utility-of-white-bashing/566846/
This is a plausible argument, Jack, if you ignore the main drivers of the deficit under each president. For example, Reagan drastically expanded federal spending while cutting taxes during his presidency. This wasn’t the Democratic congress’ idea, it was Reagan’s. Under Bush Jr., the major drivers of the deficit were underfunded wars, tax cuts and Medicare Part D. Again, Bush’s ideas. Looking forward, the main drivers of the deficit are expected to be tax cuts + spending increases, in addition to Trump’s new tariffs/trade war. If we counted Trump’s border wall proposal that would drive the deficit up as well, but I’ll be generous and not count that since it isn’t going to happen.
I suppose you could blame Democrats in Congress under Reagan and Bush for not stopping these things, but they were Republican ideas. Currently Republicans hold all three branches of government, so Democrats can’t be blamed for the deficit going up now.
Keep in mind that while Republicans predicted that Obamacare would be a major driver of the deficit, the deficit actually fell after its implementation. The CBO has long predicted that repeal or sabotage of the ACA would be worse for the deficit than full implementation, and that theory has already started to bear out.
So I stand by my statement, with the addition that Republican ideas and policies are the ones that tend to grow the deficit the most.
“For example, Reagan drastically expanded federal spending while cutting taxes during his presidency. This wasn’t the Democratic congress’ idea, it was Reagan’s.”
Achieved by magic perhaps?
All spending bills derive from the House. The Senate approves the budget. The president does not write law nor does he create the budget. The president presents his ideas to Congress but it is Congress that writes the bills, funds the programs, stuffs the budgets of individual departments, and adds the pork.
Tip O’Neil sent Reagan budget bills that he couldn’t possibly review in the short time allotted him due to budget deadlines (they just ignore them now and pass continuing resolutions, the cowards). Reagan asked for the line item veto for the president. This was denied, of course. It was never Reagan’s intention to deficit spend…Tip O’Neil didn’t give a rats a$$ about deficit spending! Deficit spending = big government = deficit spending…what’s not to like?
Carter (like Obama after him) decimated the military. Reagan had to increase military funding just to bring it back to normal security levels. Defense of the nation is mandated by the Constitution…it’s the only “program” the federal government is required to fund constitutionally.
The Democrats in Congress were determined to undermine Reagan’s tax policy. Deficit spending was one of the means by which they were able to convince people like you that Reagan was responsible for deficit spending and that tax cuts don’t lead to prosperity.
Congress has become a political body, much like WWE, phony as hell and definitely looking out for itself, often along ideological lines, rather than looking out for the general welfare of the citizenry.
Congress was never meant to be a social engineering body!!!! That level of involvement was meant to be addressed by the individual states, counties, cities and citizens.
Deficit spending is a result of an ever expanding and controlling federal government! Pork projects, automatic increases to department budgets without accountability, and expanding social programs all add to deficit spending. A party that pushes policies and methods that create ignorance and dependency will, by default, create continuing deficit spending.
War spending has added to the deficit. Bush’s response to 911 was not initially executed in a way that worked but as his term drew to a close Al Qaeda was all but decimated. Obama didn’t take the opportunity afforded him to bring the war to a close. Instead his nonchalant attitude allowed the rise of ISIS and it’s expansion and gave terror buying power to Iran. Obama presided over 8 years of never ending war expanded into more regions and countries and the huge refugee crisis for which he had not planned. Democrats can’t complain about war spending after the eight years of spending that did nothing but make matters much worse globally!
The Reagan tax cuts increased revenues to the federal government:
We have deficits (and therefore debt) because Congress always spends more than they take in…always! (Exception Newt Gingrich’s House: “Skeptics said it could not be done in seven years. The GOP did it in four.”)
The question we should all be asking is why future Congresses haven’t adopted the Gingrich model!
“Keep in mind that while Republicans predicted that Obamacare would be a major driver of the deficit, the deficit actually fell after its implementation.”
Early CBO scoring was inaccurate. Unintended consequences are never figured in until after the damage is done.
Oct 2014, CBO Projections Indicate Obamacare Will Raise Deficits by $131 Billion:
The main drivers of our debt are Medicare and Social Security, neither of which is constitutionally mandated. Barack Obama indicated as much about Medicaid and Medicare as he pushed Obamacare: “Medicare and Medicaid are the single biggest drivers of the federal deficit and the federal debt by a huge margin.”
Of course he wanted people to believe Obamacare was the cure…a lie of epic proportions.
These programs are Democrat ideas. Social Security is a Democrat idea. Government funded healthcare is a Democrat idea. Big government is the mantra of the Democrat Party now selling free college and a living wage!
To say that Republican ideas are driving deficit spending (and debt) is ludicrous beyond belief!
A few facts about Trumps tax cuts:
Tax Revenues Jump 13% To Record High In April — When Will Dems Admit They Were Wrong About Trump’s Tax Cuts? :
The tax cuts put money directly into the pockets of every tax paying American…Pelosi called that money crumbs! The tax cuts have put many poor and middle class Americans back in the workforce and wages are rising!
National Review:
During the Obama years economists told the American people we had to settle for 2% growth…2% was the new norm and we should just accept the lousy economy and jobs.
Independent Journal Review:
During Bubba Clinton’s time in the white house, Clowngress gave him the power of the “blue pencil” to enable him to remove items from the passed budget that he did not like. And he used it.
However, that power was rescinded by a Demwit Clowngress shortly before Bush took Bubba’s place as the Demwits were afraid the Repubs would use it a well.
A new low for Clowngress.
Giving the president blue pencil power might give voters a REAL budget rather than a collection of pork products……
Waaay off topic. Today’s chuckle–
https://bayourenaissanceman.blogspot.com/2018/08/police-get-bovine-assist.html
After the video, scroll down to the comments and click the link for “Cows With Guns”.
Time for paper ballots and voter ID.
VOTER FRAUD? Twice As Many Ballots Cast As There Are Voters In Georgia Precinct:
“Twice as many ballots as the number of registered voters were cast in a northeastern Georgia precinct during the state’s primary elections in May.
According to official numbers from the Georgia Secretary of State, 670 votes were cast in Habersham County’s Mud Creek precinct, where there were only 276 registered voters, says a report from McClatchy DC. Impossibly, this means the precinct saw a 243% voter turnout.
In a bizarre turn of events, the number of registered voters changed from 276 to 3,704 on the secretary of state’s website on Tuesday morning.”
https://www.dailywire.com/news/34226/voter-fraud-twice-many-ballots-cast-there-are-amanda-prestigiacomo?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=062316-news&utm_campaign=dwbrand
Tina scores again, As usual Tina is bringing to light the facts instead of the political pretense of a left leaning spin.
Thanks should go to both Jack and Tina for helping P.S. readers realize that awareness of conservative values and leadership willing to implement them can, will and have make America great again.