We’re taking the name of this post at Truth-Out.org, “Three Charts to Email to Your Right-Wing Brother-In-Law,” as encouragement to share. And since these graphs appeal to our love of accuracy, we will do just that.
For starters, we have the amount that federal spending has increased under Pres. Obama (a barely cost-of-living equivalent 7.2 percent) compared to how much it increased under the two off-the-books wars and one unfunded prescription drug mandate man, Pres. Bush (a whopping 88 percent). Truth-Out noted that the figures do not include recent budget cuts.
But wait, there’s more reality-based number crunching ahead.
Regarding the deficit, Truth-Out takes its figures from the horse’s mouth, the Budget of the United States Government: Historical Tables Fiscal Year 2012. They reflect the amount the government spent versus the amount the government borrowed. Those who claim Obama tripled the deficit are getting their figures elsewhere. From out of their butts, for example.
And finally, let’s talk about jobs, or what the Republicans always say they want to talk about just before they change the subject to the deficit. This chart shows that Obama’s stimulus spending was working, and has probably saved us from things being much worse than they were headed to be. It also shows that now is not the time to buy into GOP/Tea scarcity-based hysteria about the impropriety of spending public money on infrastructure upgrades, green energy, or disaster rebuilding. They’re just wrong, and wrong is hard to argue into right when the facts keep intruding.
Great stuff, but Republicans will never acknowledge any of it. Remember the old British comedy show with Benny Hill? He sang this goofy song that included the line, “I stick my fingers in my ears and go ‘Ting-a-ling-a-ling!'”
As opposed to Obamanble inherent chronic tintinnitis toward the rest of US!
Republicans never base anything on fact only the propaganda they hear from Fox.They live on the Nazi principal that if you tell a big lie often enough people will begin to believe it and they have.
Just imagine what those graphs would look like if Mr. Obama had followed through on any of his campaign promises such as ending Bush’s wars, Closing Guantanamo, eliminating earmarks. Or done common sense things like not handing out the other half of Bush’s TARP funds to Corporate Cronies, or pandering to insurance companies with obamacare. Stayed the hell out of Libya. Ending foreign aid. Maybe even closed some corporate tax loopholes while he had a majority in congress rather than making it a sticking point after he lost the support of the American voter and subsequently congress. Oh well, hindsight is always 20/20.
Great charts..thanks for posting them. I’ve already used them at a political message board I sometimes post to. LOL I’m sure the righties will just ignore them but it felt good to shut them up if even for a few minutes.
I don’t know what you were thinking when writing this. Truth has no place in politics. All of you analyzers need to go back to your basement and speculate on what will save this country, while watching it all fall apart on TV. Vote4Perry!