Bush Tax Cuts and the Republican Cult of Economic Failure

[boutons_deux]

Under George W. Bush, U.S. GDP growth averaged about 2.1 percent a year. Since the end of World War II, the country has never experienced such low economic growth during an eight-year period. And if you exclude the war demobilization of 1946, when U.S. government spending fell by two-thirds and the GDP fell by 10.9 percent, Bush had the worst economic record since Herbert Hoover. During FDR's first two terms, when the country remained mired in a Depression, GDP growth averaged about 6.3 percent a year.

There is no way to make Bush's performance look good. Even if you cherry-pick the data, by excluding fiscal year 2008, when GDP growth was zero, economic expansion was anemic. During Bush's first seven years, it averaged about 2.4 percent, the worst rate in half a century. And what was the source of most of that economic growth? Homeowner equity extraction. Bush could point to one sector where growth outpaced that of all prior administrations: Residential mortgage debt. It almost doubled, from $5.1 trillion to $9.8 trillion, between 2001 and 2006.

Average Annual GDP Growth
Bush 2001-2008: 2.1%
Clinton 1993-2000: 3.9%
Reagan/Bush I 1981 - 1992: 3.0%
Carter 1977 - 1980: 3.2%
Nixon/Ford 1969 - 1976: 2.8%
Kennedy/Johnson 1961 - 1968: 4.8%
Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis


Number of Jobs Added [millions]
Bush, Feb. 2001- Jan. 2009: 1.1
Clinton, Feb. 1993- Jan. 2001: 22.7
Reagan/Bush, I Feb. 1981- Jan. 1993: 18.7
Carter, Feb. 1976- Jan. 1981:10.3
Nixon/Ford, Feb. 1969- Jan. 1976: 11.3
Kennedy/Johnson, Feb. 1961- Jan. 1969: 15.7
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Seasonally Adjusted Nonfarm Payrolls

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-fiderer/the-bush-tax-cuts-and-the_b_781419.html?view=print

==============

Devastation, Repuglican Is Your Name.

[coyotes_geek]

Boy, those Bush tax cuts sure were bad. Thankfully, Obama & the lame duck democrat congress are going to let them all expire. Right?

[boutons_deux]

Bad? No! they were/are fantastic for redistributing wealth from citizens/taxpayers to the super-wealthy, who now hold so much unchallengeable wealth they can, and do, buy all of Congress and the Exec with their pocket change.

[Winehole23]

http://totallylookslike.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/129130065244524961.jpg

[Winehole23]

The more things change...

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/11/aides-comments-cause-stir-as-white-house-discusses-tax-strategy/

[Wild Cobra]

Boutons...

Are you complaining about low inflation?

If you look at the government data at OMB.gov, the annual average was 3.83% growth. President Clinton's was 4.89%. They used calender years. The budget and government operations are by fiscal year.

Does the Huff and Puff post ever get anything right?

Wouldn't the Misery Index (http://www.miseryindex.us/indexbypresident.asp) be a better thing to look at?



President Period Start End Change Average
Richard M. Nixon 1969-01 - 1974-07 7.8 17.01 9.21 10.57
James E. Carter, Jr. 1977-01 - 1980-12 12.72 19.72 7 16.26
Dwight D. Eisenhower 1953-01 - 1960-12 3.28 7.96 4.68 6.26
Barack H. Obama 2009-01 - 2010-09 7.73 10.74 3.01 10
Lyndon B. Johnson 1963-11 - 1968-12 7.02 8.12 1.1 6.77
George H.W. Bush 1989-01 - 1992-12 10.07 10.3 0.23 10.68
George W. Bush 2001-01 - 2008-12 7.93 7.49 -0.44 8.11
John F. Kennedy 1961-01 - 1963-10 8.31 6.82 -1.49 7.14
William J. Clinton 1993-01 - 2000-12 10.56 7.29 -3.27 7.8
Gerald R. Ford 1974-08 - 1976-12 16.36 12.66 -3.7 16
Ronald W. Reagan 1981-01 - 1988-12 19.33 9.72 -9.61 12.19
Harry S. Truman 1948-01 - 1952-12 13.63 3.45 -10.18 7.88