To understand why Republicans make ridiculous statements like this, you have to realize that Republicans do not operate in the same fact-based reality as the rest of us.
· “...[W]hen we act, we create our own reality. And while you’re studying that reality... we’ll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that’s how things will sort out. We’re history’s actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do.”-- Karl Rove (a.k.a. “Bush’s Brain)
· “A compelling story, even if factually inaccurate, can be more emotionally compelling than a dry recitation of the truth.”--Frank Luntz, conservative consultant and pollster
Throw in the old adage: If you tell a lie enough times, it becomes the truth--and that is how Republicans have created the myth that they are better for the economy than Democrats. That is why Rush Limbaugh is paid $50 million a year to repeat their lies over and over, and why Fox News broadcasts Republican propaganda twenty-four hours a day. They know that if the American public ever learned the truth about which party is better for the economy, it could be the end of the Republican party.
This myth of Republican fiscal responsibility lost all credibility during the past eight years, as Americans watched the Bush Administration bring us to the brink of economic catastrophe, by cutting taxes, waging wars, borrowing and spending, while Wall Street engaged in an orgy of unregulated greed. So, the Republicans did the only thing they know how to do. They invented a new story:
· They’re sorry. They realize they have strayed from their bedrock principles of fiscal responsibility, but they have learned their lesson and promise to once again follow the divine teachings of their Patron Saint, Ronald Reagan. Then, all will be well. Republicans will win elections again and they will save the nation from the economic disaster caused by Barack Obama and the Democrats.
The problem with the Republicans’ new story is the same as with their old story--Republicans have never been the party of fiscal responsibility and the Ronald Reagan they worship is the biggest myth of all.
Since World War II, only three presidents have increased the federal deficit as a percentage of the gross domestic product: (Republicans) Ronald Reagan, Bush I, and Bush II. (Historical Tables of the Budget of the United States Government, compiled by the Office of Management and Budget)
According to Treasury Department figures (courtesy of the Daily Kos):
· Republicans have held the presidency for 17 of the last 25 years. They have never balanced a budget and have increased total debt outstanding 11.69% in each year they have held the White House.
· The Democrats have held the White House for 8 of the last 25 years. They have balanced the budget 3 times and increased total debt outstanding 4.2%.
A comparison of the years 1927 and 1998 found that the stock market returned about 9 percent more a year under Democratic presidents than under Republicans (The Presidential Puzzle: Political Cycles and the Stock Market, Journal of Finance, Oct. 2003).
· “[S]ince 1949 Democratic administrations have done better than Republican ones when it comes to unemployment (5.2% to 6.0%), job creation (-.0.4% decrease in unemployment, compared to 0.3% increase), GDP growth rate (4.2% to 2.9%), and even corporate profits as a share of GDP.”--perrspectives.com, citing Does the Party in Power Matter for Economic Performance?, University of Nevada, December 2006
Ronald Reagan raised taxes when he was Governor of California; and as president, he raised taxes in 1982, 1983 and 1984--“including the largest peacetime tax hike in American history when measured as a percentage of the national economy.” (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 3/20/08) Why did Reagan raise taxes? Because the government needed money and that is how government is supposed to work: tax and spend--not borrow and spend as the Bush Administration did for the past eight years.
If you examine the numbers, you will find that Democratic Administrations have been better for the U.S. economy--even for business and stock investments. The only thing Republicans do better than Democrats is LIE. It is time to call them on it.
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