This was a big week: Easter, NCAA Finals, and baseball’s opening day ….
Let’s play off those events and flashback for some yucks.
First, W and O throwing out opening day pitches.
One of them throws a strike, one of them doesn’t.
Guess …
OK, I know what you’re thinking: “He’s just picking on Obama. Everybody knows that hoops is his game”.
Hmmm.
Remember the Easter eggs festivities at the Whitehouse in 2013?
If you missed yesterday’s post “How’d we get into this fix?”, check it out now.
Apparently, Pres. Obama missed it.
How do I know?
Simple: his historical recollections in last night’s speech didn’t seem to match the numbers.
Somebody forwarded him the link, ok?
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Following up on yesterday’s post, some HF readers asked for a summary table.
So, here it is … click below for a PDF version
Conclusions stay the same as yesterday …
Bush overspent Cinton by about $1 Trillion annually and Obama makes him look like a tightwad.
Obama is spending $1 Trillion per year more than Bush and $2 Trillion per year more than Clinton.
Still, Obama wants taxpayers to bail him out. Don’t constrain him with spending restraints …
What planet ?
click chart to enlarge or click below to download a PDF version
Obama’s stump riff is that we’re in this debt-deficit mess because of 2 unfunded wars, an unfunded prescription drug plan, and the unfunded Bush tax cuts.
Oh, really?
Let’s look at the nums … starting with Bush’s last year – 2008.
A couple of takeaways:
That’s the static view.
For context, let’s look at Bush’s spending (in his last year) versus Clinton’s spending in his last year (2000):
click to enlarge
A couple of more takeways:
Now, keep in mind, that Obama inherited a national debt of about $10 Trillion and an annual deficit of under $500 Billion.
Also, keep in mind that the spending on the 2 wars and the Rx drug plan were baked into Bush’s final year’s numbers.
OK, now let’s look at the Obama years.
click to enlarge
Well, well, well.
Total spending for the current year is projected to be almost $1 Trillion over spending in Bush’s last year … and, about $2 Trillion over Clinton’s last year.
Gawd, how can that be?
So, there’s a roughly $5.5 Trillion projected increase in the national debt in Obama’s first 3 years …. or, $4.5 Trillion if you still believe that the Stimulus was a necessary and extraordinary budget item.
Double OUCH !
During the period 2008 to 2011, tax policy (i.e. rates, brackets and deductions) stayed essentially constant – remember that the Bush tax cuts were extended last December.
But, tax receipts went down from $2.524 Trillion in 2008 to $2.162 Trillion projected in 2011. I guess a “making work pay” program, a payroll tax holiday, and 9% unemployment will do that to you.
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Bottom line: Readers know that I stay pretty close to this stuff.
Still, the numbers are mind-numbing … even to me.
Bush added a Trillion to the deficit over 8 years. Obama did it in 3.
Bush added about $5 Trillion to the debt in 8 years. Obama did it in 3.
Bush disappointed when it came to fiscal management.
But, Obama has literally spent us into a potential default.
He thinks the problem is accelerated depreciation on corporate jets and too little tax paid by the rich.
And, he doesn’t seem to understand – despite the Nov. elections –that tax payers don’t want to pay for his spending binges.
I’m not very optimistic …
The Homa Files 