Democrats have been telling anyone who will listen that Republicans destroyed the economy. And that letting Republicans take over is giving power back to the very people who drove the economy into the ditch to begin with.
But here’s the thing – only Democrats believe that load of hooey now.
People have moved on. What they understand is that Democrats have made a bad situation far, far worse:
Sixty-nine percent of independents say Obama has made the economy worse and 80 percent of those also say they will definitely vote this year. More than 6 out of 10 also disapprove of the job Obama is doing, are angry with government and oppose the health care reform plan he advocated and signed into law.
Things were really bad the last time Republicans ran Congress. In January of 2006 – the last time Republicans were in control – unemployment was a terrible 4.6%. And the last time Republicans submitted a budget (for FY2007), the budget deficit was $161 billion.
Just so you know, unemployment under Obama and the Democrat-owned Congress has been more than twice what Republicans left for seventeen straight months. The VERY NEXT YEAR after Republicans lost control of Congress, Democrats wrote a budget (FY2008) that was nearly THREE TIMES HIGHER IN DEFICIT SPENDING, with a $459 billion deficit.
Annual deficits under the last Republican Congress have become monthly deficits under the Democrats.
In 2008, during Bush’s final year in office, 40 banks closed. Compared to 140 banks closing in Obama’s first year in office, and 125 more banks have closed in Obama’s second year, as of September 21, 2010.
Under Obama, we are now seeing the highest poverty rate in fifty years. And more Americans are now on food stamps than ever before.
Which all goes to say that independents are right: Obama and the Democrats HAVE made the economy far worse.
Democrats tell the myth that it was Bush and Republican policies that destroyed the economy in 2008. But Democrats were crawling all over the policies that led to our economic implosion. It was Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac policies that destroyed our economy – and Democrats owned Fannie and Freddie. Democrats also claim that Bush and Republicans refused to implement regulations that would have prevented the crisis – but Bush tried MORE THAN SEVENTEEN TIMES to regulate Fannie and Freddie. And Democrats marched in goose-step to block every single one of those attempts.
Which is to say that Democrats have been far worse than voters believed they would be, while Republicans were nowhere near as bad as a profoundly dishonest and partisan media said they were.
Tags: 69%, bank closures, banks, budget deficit, Bush, Democrat Congress, Fannie Mae, food stamps, Freddie Mac, health care, Independents, Obama has made the economy worse, oppose, poverty rate, regulate, regulations, Republican Congress, Republicans controlled Congress, spending, unemployment
Start Thinking Right 
October 13, 2010 at 5:14 am
Dear Michael, I KNOW it is overwhelmingly Democrat policies that have gotten us into this financial mess. But I do have a question. Why was President Bush, with a Republican majority in the House and Senate unable to overcome the Democrats resistance to regulating Frannie and Freddie? I can’t figure this out and figure I don’t have the right information. Thanks.
October 13, 2010 at 1:26 pm
HL,
Democrats have enjoyed majorities these last two years that Republicans have NEVER seen. They had a 60-40 advantage in the Senate for most of the last two years. And they STILL had to play all kinds of shenanigans in order to pass their health care agenda, as one example.
In 2002, Republicans had 51 seats against 49 Republicans. In 2004, Republicans had 55 Senate seats against 45 Democrats. Republicans NEVER had the numbers to sustain a filibuster.
In the case of Fannie and Freddie, Democrats made it absolutely clear from 2003 forward that they would filibuster anything that touched their beloved GSEs. Republicans did not have the numbers to pass anything, given that sort of opposition. And Republicans – pathetically in my opinion – never pushed the issue to a real vote. When the Democrats threatened a filibuster, Republicans said, “Well, we can’t win a vote, so let’s not bother.”
The thing that makes me vomit is that Democrats have been demonizing Republicans for being the “party of no” when THEY were the party of no that actually destroyed our economy. And then they did what the left has done for the last 100 years – did truly evil things that created disastrous consequences, and then blamed the right. And they actually got away with it.
You asked the question about the wicked prospering. Someday there will be a lot of Democrats screaming in hell. But right now, they get to be the agents of darkness.