Bush Urges GOP to Focus on Economy
From Associated Press
August 22, 2006 5:55 AM EDT
(Lower case statements are per Bush and the AP story, UPPER case statements are the truth per me)
WASHINGTON - Even though he's not running for re-election this year, President Bush knows just what he would focus on if he were: the economy and taxes.
As Republicans face an increasingly tough political outlook, in part because of Bush's sagging approval ratings, the president offered some advice Monday to GOP candidates in the midterm elections.
"If I were a candidate ... I'd say, 'Look at what the economy has done. It's strong. We've created a lot of jobs. ... I'd be telling people that the Democrats will raise your taxes. That's what they said. I'd be reminding people that tax cuts have worked in terms of stimulating the economy," Bush told reporters at a news conference.
THE TRUTH IS WE HAVE CREATED LOW ER PAYING WILL FEWER BENEFITS. THE TRUTH IS WE ARE STILL OVER A MILLION JOBS BELOW WHERE WE WERE IN 2000.
The economy has slowed in recent months, in part because of the slump in the housing market. Recent economic indicators showed a 4.8 percent jobless rate in July and 4 percent annual economic growth rate through the first half of the year.
HOW IS THIS SLOWING ECONOMY A GOOD ECONOMIC RESULT OF THE BUSH POLICIES?
The Labor Department recently said employers added just 113,000 new jobs in July, down from 124,000 in June.
THE TRUTH IS THAT TO JUST STAY EVEN WITH WORKER GROWTH WE NEED 125,000 NEW JOBS PER MONTH!
Only 37 percent of Americans support Bush's handling of the economy, according to the Associated Press-Ipsos poll in early August. The same survey showed Bush's overall approval rating at 33 percent.
I GUESS THE MAJORITY OF AMERICANS DO NOT THINK BUSH HAS DONE WELL IN MANAGING THE ECONOMY!
As a candidate, Bush said he would remind voters of the "philosophical difference between those who want to raise taxes and have the government spend the money, and those of us who say, 'You get to spend the money the way you want to see fit. It's your money.'"
THE MAJORITY DO NOT SEEM TO AGREE WITH THE WAY BUSH HAS BEEN SPENDING OUR TAX DOLLARS!
"I'd remind people that pro-growth economic policies had helped us cut that deficit faster than we thought," he said.
In 2000, the last year of the Clinton administration, the surplus was $236 billion. The $260 billion deficit forecast for the current budget year, which ends Sept. 30, is $112 billion below previous estimates. Tax revenues contributed to the smaller deficit.
WE WENT FROM A BALANCED BUDGET IN 2000 TO CONTINUAL DEFICITS UNDER BUSH. HIS NEW ESTIMATE OF THE 2006 DEFICIT TO $260 BILLION IS AFTER HE SUBTRACTS THE SOCIAL SECURITY SURPLUS OF $200 BILLION. THUS THE REAL 2006 DEFICIT IS MORE LIKE $460 BILLION AND WE WILL HAVE A NATIONAL DEBT OF ALMOST $10 TRILLION BY THE TIME BUSH LEAVES OFFICE.
IF REPUBLICANS RUN ON THAT RECORD THEY WILL BE TOAST!
Bush also said Republican and Democratic candidates should focus on working with the president to solve the budget problems facing the Medicare and Social Security programs.
THE BUSH SOLUTION TO SOCIAL SECURITY DID NOT DO ANYTHING BUT MAKE THE FUNDING OF THE BABY BOOMERS RETIREMENT MORE OF A PROBLEM. HE HAS DONE NOTHING BUT MAKE MEDICARE EVEN WORSE WITH THE PRESCRIPTION DRUG PLAN WITH NO MONEY TO PAY FOT THIS NEW ENTITLEMENT.
"People expect us to come here to solve problems. And thus far, the attitude has been: Let's just kind of ignore what the president has said and just hope somebody else comes and solves it for us," he said.
IF RESULTS AND SOLUTIONS ARE THE WAY VOTERS SHOULD JUDGE THE GOP, THEY SHOULD THROUGH THE BUMBS OUT!