When Barack Obama took office, it was clearly with a vision of a bi-partisan (or in his mind - 'post partisan') administration. This was clearly naive. Perhaps voters want it, and perhaps there are some enlightened politicians who can see the forest for the trees, but for the large majority - the Democratic win in 2008 is little more than a call for the Republicans to regroup and prepare for a full frontal assault in 2012.
If this wasn't clear before the vote on the Stimulus package, it should be clear now.
Already Republican operatives are drafting commercials for the midterm elections. They'll play like this: "Since Barack Obama took office, XX Americans have lost their jobs, XX Americans have lost their homes, and XX Americans have filed for bankruptcy. In light of the failed programs of the Obama administration, it's time to re-elect Republicans on a platform of tax reform, smaller government, and less handouts to the poor and underprivileged."
These commercials will work, because we all know that however successful the stimulus package is, there will be months, or years of economic pain before we start to see the positive effects of these investments.
So, what to do about this?
The answer is, we must name our pain. We must begin to refer to the current recession as the "Bush Recession." We must talk about the difficult, complex, long-term efforts we'll need to all engage in order to reverse the toxic economic environment created by the "Bush Recession."
The Bush Recession didn't happen overnight -- it took 8 years of careful, purposeful, willful actions to create this cycle of economic devastation.
I understand why Obama isn't focused on blaming the Bush administration. He's right to look forward, rather than back. There's way too much to do to spend any cycles placing blame. At the same time, if we don't name our pain, then we're likely to find ourselves fighting off right wing pundits in 2 years, and 4, who try to re-write history and hold the Obama administration responsible for the very things they're trying to fix.
So, with that in mind, let's catalog the drivers that have created the Bush Recession, and make sure we agree that these collective actions happened long before the Obama administration was in the White House.
First, the sub-prime mortgage meltdown. During the 8 years the Bush administration was in charge, we saw a dramatic expansion in available credit to borrowers who where not able to quality for conventional mortgages. This boom in new buyers drove up housing prices, creating a bubble of newfound wealth in the equity of homes, and creating a cycle of borrowing against newly inflated home equity. This bubble was evident to economists and consumers alike, yet in the absence of any legislation or government controls - the trend continued to balloon.
Second, Iraq. The cost of our dramatic increase in military spending provided a huge drain on the Federal Budget, as services that were heretofore part of the military budget became privatized and outsourced. Companies like Blackwater and Halliburton received huge military contracts to provide services - often without bids or oversight. Now, seven years later, we're uncovering fraud, waste, and violations of human rights that reflect both the size of the contracts and the Government's basic lack of ability to oversee or administer these programs. The elixir of privatization and deregulation created an environment that was ripe for fraud and misuse. In hindsight, is this any surprise?
Third, abandonment of a US economic vision. For 8 years the Bush administration focused on security and fear, while any vision of our economic future got put on hold. Gasoline taxes, emission standards or innovation in our core sectors were all either ignored or frowned upon.
Fourth, the environment. As George Bush dragged his heals on any environmental science, things like Kyoto were left unsigned. As former Vice President Al Gore raised the nation's awareness of Global Warming, the Bush Administration sought to minimize and obfuscate the science around climate change. As a result, government funding for new energy was back-burnered, and industries that count on the Government to legislate change and create a level playing field continued to build and produce gas guzzling trucks and automobiles. While world governments have used gas taxes to drive both conservation and innovation, the Bush administration essentially subsidized fossil fuel burning automobiles. The result, our energy industries are desperately behind, and our automotive industry is almost a decade behind in thinking about alternative energy.
Fifth, Wall Street and Banking. For 8 years there has been a dramatic expansion in the services and fast consolidation of what had been separate and in some cases regulated industries. As banking, brokerage, insurance, and financial services companies acquired and merged - the speed of these transactions far exceeded the regulatory ability or resources (not by accident) resulting in such things as credit default swaps that now even seasoned wall-streeters say were hard to understand.
The Bush Recession isn't the result of a single bad decision, or even actions out of our control. For 8 years we've allowed a handful of private industries to operate without oversight or review, with a focus on short term gains, as environmental and world economic issues have loomed large.
The Obama administration will face all the known issues that were the underpinning of the Bush Recession, as well as the need to manage and respond to the emerging crisis. So to suggest that a mere 24 months from the start of his administration, Obama and his Cabinet should be able to show enough progress to push back a full on frontal assault from the Republicans is beyond optimistic, it is impossible. The Republicans have made it clear by voting en-mass against the Stimulus Plan that they are positioning their party to run against Obama - and to essentially do what they can to blunt any potential progress or improvement in the conditions for average Americans that might be held up as a success for the Administration. This kind of partisan politics comes at the expense of average Americans and the country itself. To suggest that after spending 8 years building the largest government, the least oversight, and the largest deficit in history, they will run in 2010 on a platform that is against Stimulus and 'small government' is a clue about just how short a memory the Republican's think average Americans have for the condition of the economy.
We shouldn't let this happen.
It is the Bush Recession. We're deep in the teeth of it now. And we'll need to fight to regain economic stability and future prosperity that once seemed like an American birthright. The Bush Recession didn't happen overnight, and it won't be fixed overnight either.
Republicans should take responsibility for the economic conditions they brought on the country. And that means being part of the solution, rather than standing on the sidelines and looking for a 'Rovian' way to misdirect American anger in a cynical attempt to regain power.
When Barack Obama took office, it was clearly with a vision of a bi-partisan (or in his mind - 'post partisan') administration. This was clearly naive. Perhaps voters want it, and perhaps there are so...
When Barack Obama took office, it was clearly with a vision of a bi-partisan (or in his mind - 'post partisan') administration. This was clearly naive. Perhaps voters want it, and perhaps there are so...
Blaming it all on Bush is too short of view. For twenty eight years the federal government has been focused on making trade agreements which moved American production jobs offshore. Production jobs actually create wealth, but Ronald Reagan thought it would be best to simply trade wealth among ourselves. Let's call it what it really is, "The Reaganomics Depression."
siegfried: Blaming it all on Bush is too short of view.
I agree,we were sold out by BOTH parties,look at NAFTA and the favored trade act with China.Part time and temporary jobs boomed in the 80's and 90's,you can't live on that.Let's not forget the junk stocks and bonds for the last 30 years.The media hasn't help either,all they think about is what's good for the Democrats, Republicans and corporations.
steelmill: I agree,we were sold out by BOTH parties,look at NAFTA
I'm going to start a drinking game; for the next 8 years we all drink when George Bush is blamed for our problems. I know that many of you will be drinking koolaid....I'm drinking tequila!
JustAHumanOnEarth: I'm going to start a drinking game; for the next
YAY!!!!!! WOOT!!!!!!! Congratulations media you did it!!
All of your doom and gloom about how bad the economy is and the real estate market has been for the last THREE or FOUR years has finally screwed up the economy big time!!! It is only logical that if Bob Smith (and millions of others) keeps hearing that no one is buying homes, then he will think to himself I should not buy a home either! Yea media, aren't you happy!!!
Never let a republican control the checkbook. This depression has been almost 30 years in the making. I couldn't believe the number of people in the '80's that were falling for the Reagan concept that we can sustain an economy on consumption (credit consumption). If you don't produce and sell products, you don't have an economy. That's where we are.
leeman79: Never let a republican control the checkbook. This depression has
Recession my grits! This is the Bush/Cheney Depression in more ways than one.
Bush never wanted the job. He wanted the title, the prestige, the power. Someone else was supposed to do the job and he did...... Cheney that is. Both of them should be prosecuted of war crimes, crimes against the Constitution and other high crimes. They should be given life without parole and all their ill gotten assets seized to offset some of the damage they have done.
magginkat: Recession my grits! This is the Bush/Cheney Depression in more
Call is what it is but make sure you know what that means.
Here's how Bush helped ruin the economy.
He increased the government to 25% of GDP.
He approved the biggest increase in regulations since LBJ, including te most economically significant regulations ever.
He expanded the American empire and ran up a tremendous deficit.
Obama's solution: Double Down.
Remember under Clinton when the government was only 18% of GDP, which is considered about optimal, the banking system was reregulated in a smart manner, the deficit (by cash accounting standards) was paid off, and the empire, while alive and well, was taking a snooze?
This will get worse before it gets better but this time it will be Obama's fault.
goldrush: Call is what it is but make sure you know
Been calling it the Bush Depression for a long time...And keep in mind that the unemployment numbers don't reflect those who are self-employed or contract employees and therefore ineligible for benefits...
Blakkwolfe: Been calling it the Bush Depression for a long time...And
Let's call it the new Republican Depression. It is beyond a recession. Let's calculate the number of unemployed using meaningful and accruate means and not some voodo arithmetic calulated to spin the figures into representing less than they are. I keep reading where unemployment is somewhere about 9%. In truth it is closer to 22%. Has anyone tried to count the homeless? One dwelling in nine is vacant. Calling this a recession is praising with faint damnation.
Senzasord: Let's call it the new Republican Depression. It is beyond
I would prefer to call it the "Bush Recession". The defacto leader of the Repubs called it the "Obama Recession" before he even took office. Repubs have a screw loose if they think we'll forget who got us here and it squarely rests on the shoulders of the Bush Administration.
fishgirl26: I would prefer to call it the "Bush Recession". The
You're absolutely right! Although he did try to re-regulate the banks and Wall Street, only to be stymued by corrupt Dems. But it is his recession. That's what he gets by governing like a Liberal Democrat.
camper65: You're absolutely right! Although he did try to re-regulate the
This is a great strategy, something you would expect to come from Republicans!
Don't forget another contributing factor, one I think is just as important, and definitely planned by the Bushies. That being, the meteoric rise in oil prices, and thus profits, by the oil giants and speculators. Why don't we hear the Republicans yelling "Drill, baby, drill" anymore? Where are they now? Cheney and his secret cabal of oil execs planned from day one the raping of the consumer with out of control oil prices and out of control oil company profits. They got it in at the last months of the BushCo administration. They kept saying prices would come down if we had Iraq's oil. It sure didn't translate to lower gasoline prices. They kept saying we need to drill here, drill now. That was a lie, as oil prices have fallen without any new supply contributing to the fall. It was all speculators and oil companies reaping record profits that inflated oil prices. We can't let the voters forget who's policies were responsible for that.
PatSinnott: This is a great strategy, something you would expect to
Considering the Republican plans to blame Obama for the bad economy, it is really important to get out front of them and use every media outlet to blame the Reagan-Bush no-regulations out of control laissez-faire capitalism. Too many people really do not understand how we got into this fix, and they should be educated, so that we can put a stake in the heart of MiltonFriedmanism.
Margalo: Considering the Republican plans to blame Obama for the bad
They will try and put Obama on the defense. He must be positive, move forward and stay on the
offense....didn't the repubs try and run on Reganomics and look where it got them. This will not
happen again. If they continue to push tax cuts, tax cuts, tax cuts, how much longer do they
feel it will work with out something else to offer to get us out of this mess?
ChapStick80: They will try and put Obama on the defense. He
I BELIEVE IN FREE ENTERPRISE!
BUT, I ALSO WANT A
WATCHDOG
SO THAT FREE ENTERPRISE
DOES NOT BECOME
THEFT ENTERPRISE
http://jackstatum.wordpress.com/
All of your doom and gloom about how bad the economy is and the real estate market has been for the last THREE or FOUR years has finally screwed up the economy big time!!! It is only logical that if Bob Smith (and millions of others) keeps hearing that no one is buying homes, then he will think to himself I should not buy a home either! Yea media, aren't you happy!!!
http://www.TheCommentDepot.com
This economy was the reason we call teh 30's the Great Depression.
This is the "Lil' Depression"
Bush's Depression.
Bush never wanted the job. He wanted the title, the prestige, the power. Someone else was supposed to do the job and he did...... Cheney that is. Both of them should be prosecuted of war crimes, crimes against the Constitution and other high crimes. They should be given life without parole and all their ill gotten assets seized to offset some of the damage they have done.
Here's how Bush helped ruin the economy.
He increased the government to 25% of GDP.
He approved the biggest increase in regulations since LBJ, including te most economically significant regulations ever.
He expanded the American empire and ran up a tremendous deficit.
Obama's solution: Double Down.
Remember under Clinton when the government was only 18% of GDP, which is considered about optimal, the banking system was reregulated in a smart manner, the deficit (by cash accounting standards) was paid off, and the empire, while alive and well, was taking a snooze?
This will get worse before it gets better but this time it will be Obama's fault.
Call it the Bush Recession.
The policies of the last 25 years of expanded government spending, lax lending practices and no personal responsibility for anything got us here.
And we are putting the pedal to the metal on just those policies.
Here in CA we are paying for a woman with 6 kids (on government support) to have 8 more.
Don't forget another contributing factor, one I think is just as important, and definitely planned by the Bushies. That being, the meteoric rise in oil prices, and thus profits, by the oil giants and speculators. Why don't we hear the Republicans yelling "Drill, baby, drill" anymore? Where are they now? Cheney and his secret cabal of oil execs planned from day one the raping of the consumer with out of control oil prices and out of control oil company profits. They got it in at the last months of the BushCo administration. They kept saying prices would come down if we had Iraq's oil. It sure didn't translate to lower gasoline prices. They kept saying we need to drill here, drill now. That was a lie, as oil prices have fallen without any new supply contributing to the fall. It was all speculators and oil companies reaping record profits that inflated oil prices. We can't let the voters forget who's policies were responsible for that.
Don't we all wish that the people in Washington were able to plan things like energy prices. Unfortunately I don't think they can.
offense....didn't the repubs try and run on Reganomics and look where it got them. This will not
happen again. If they continue to push tax cuts, tax cuts, tax cuts, how much longer do they
feel it will work with out something else to offer to get us out of this mess?