Slapping Down Republican Lies on the Economy

The inimitable bonddad on DKos has again just slapped down more Republican lies concerning the actual state of the U.S. economy. The Republicans, who took a SURPLUS of $128 billion when they took over and converted it within two years to a DEFICIT of $337 billion are crowing about the effectiveness of their financial management(!!) Amazing! It's as if FEMA was bragging about what a damn good job it did in New Orleans! Republicans are again talking the same, discredited, idiotic supply side-trickle down trash that's been shown to be bankrupt again and again and again. The Right is arguing that the tax cuts are "paying for themselves". An absolute falsehood. Key points:

According to the CBO, revenues from individual taxpayers decreased from $994 billion in 2001 to $793 billion in 2003. In other words, the first tax cut decreased revenue by 20%. I don't remember any trumpeting of this achievement three years ago...

According to the CBO revenues from individual taxpayers totaled 809 billion in 2004 and 927 billion in 2005 - 6.7% less than when Bush took office. So after two tax cuts, we will probably have tax revenue levels above those when Bush took office 4 years after the first tax cut. Meanwhile, discretionary spending increased from 825 billion in 2003 to 967 billion in 2005 - an increase of 17%. So, through the end of 2005 we have a decrease in individual revenue of 6.7% and an increase in discretionary spending of 48%. Finally, the Republicans -- the party of fiscal conservatism -- have increased total debt from 5.6 trillion to 8.3 trillion over the last 5 years. That's [2.7] trillion dollars invested in government securites that could have been invested in the private economy. This is not the record of success; it is the record of blind adherence to a now debunked theory (if you can call something written on a cocktail napkin a theory.)

Remember there is no lie the Republicans will not tell in order to keep their place as the primary looters of the American people. Their policies are pushing this country to catastrophe. We need to keep fighting them with the thing of which they are most terrified: the truth.