There is no question we are just beginning to pull out of the
massive economic downturn due, in large part, to the incompetency of President
Barrack Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush. In 2002 President Bush famously
misquoted the idiom: Fool me once,
shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me, by instead saying "Fool me
once, shame on... shame on you. Fool me.... You can't get fooled again.". The Bush
policies, most notably his massive tax cuts, eroded the economic growth spurred
by Bill Clinton before him. History has shown more of the same.
Fool me once. In 1982, President Ronald Reagan introduced his
first massive tax cut Reagan's theory of "trickle down" economics provided the
rich with tax breaks and in the hope they would create jobs and economic growth
for the middle class. How'd that work out? The national debt tripled under
Reagan's administration. Almost 30 years have passed and instead of trickling
down, the rich kept the money and we all suffered. Shame on you.
Fool me twice. In 2001 and 2003 President Bush enacted the Bush
tax cuts -- $3.9 trillion over the course of 10 years, all "paid for" with
deficit spending. In 1980, the top marginal tax rate for an individual was 70%;
today, it's 35%. Those in the lowest marginal
tax rate for an individual only saw a decrease from 14% to 10% over the same
period.
Not only are the rich getting
the tax cuts, they are increasing their wealth compared to the rest of the
country. Four years after Bush's second tax cut saw the top 5% of taxpayer's increase
their income by 7% while everyone else was left behind with no change in income
whatsoever. That same year, the top 1% took
in 50% of the United States total
earnings.
Reagan's former budget director David Stockman, who helped
construct Reagan's financial policy, railed current-day Republicans for blowing
a gigantic hole in the deficit with the Bush tax cuts. "I'll never forgive the
Bush administration" for "destroying the last vestige of fiscal responsibility
that we had in the Republican Party." The former trickle-down proponent also
said we need "a higher tax burden on the upper income." How could anyone
believe tax cuts for the rich would still work is baffling, but the public
bought in and Bush was soon re-elected in 2004. Shame on me.
Fool me thrice. Slowly we are emerging from a recession. The
Bush tax cuts are set to expire on December 31st and there is a
President in office who has pledged to let them expire for the top 2% of
earners, or those making over $250,000. Yet, all of a sudden the GOP has
blocked the extension of benefits to those who are unemployed and are clamoring
to extend the Bush tax cuts. A little ironic considering that many of those who
are unemployed may be a direct result of those massive tax cuts for the rich. Instead
the GOP is holding America hostage by refusing unemployment benefits until the ridiculous
Bush tax policies are continued. The unemployment benefits that would be allowed
to expire cost $33 billion, but now 15 million out-of-work Americans get nothing until the "compromise" recently
formed is passed through the senate. This
"compromise" would provide $700 billion for those already earning over $250,000. $700 billion to the rich and almost nothing
to the poor is so backwards it would be almost comical if it were not actually happening.
Of course, this also comes at a time when a newly released CBS poll shows that
only 26% of those polled wished to continue the Bush Tax Cuts for everyone and
53% wanted them to continue for those earning less than $250,000. Even more
shocking is a majority of Republicans favor letting the Bush Tax Cuts expire
for the wealthiest 2% with only 46% voicing support. The idea that these hurtful Tax Cuts are
being allowed to continue is utterly ridiculous. The GOP is hurting America
with its refusal to acknowledge that massive tax cuts for the rich just don't
work and are playing Scrooge by ignoring the masses of unemployed. It's miserly
of them, especially so close to Christmas. At least Obama has the heart to play
the Santa Claus to 15 million unemployed Americans by working in the extension
of unemployment benefits for another year. Well Merry Christmas GOP, you've yet
again forced us to buy a present we can't afford. If these tax policies pass
through the Senate, and it appears they will, then shame on U.S.
