05/08/2002 Archived Entry: "Your Debt clock, the Bush deficit"

The National Debt has continued to increase an average of $1,111 million per day since
September 28, 2001!

Yet another clock, this one from the U.S. NATIONAL DEBT CLOCK website, with a nifty each citizen's share feature that updates as well. While I wrote this, my share of this debt is $21,081.90.

Apparently, it's a myth that Bush ever stated while campaigning that he would deficit spend only in the case of his trifecta, according to Jonathan Chait in THE DEFICIT GETS WORSE, AND SO DOES BUSH:

...Next Bush offered up what has in recent months become his all-purpose escape clause:

"I want to remind you what I told the American people, that if I'm the president--when I was campaigning, if I were to become the president, we would have deficits only in the case of war, a recession, or a national emergency....Never did I realize we'd get the trifecta." George Bush

But this escape clause is not only a falsehood; it's actually a revision of a previous falsehood, which itself was consciously designed to cover up the fact that the budget is in far worse shape than Bush lets on....

It's also a myth that Sept. 11th brought about the busting into the social security lockbox. It was already happening.

August 29, 2001, CBO: Social Security funds needed to balance books. Reading thru this news piece seems like going back into another age. As Kerry says, Sept 11th time-warped us back into the 1980's, when increased military expenditures and spending, amidst shrinking revenues with taxes being cut, rapidly increased the public debt.

"I am going to focus on this economy like a laser beam. I will work non-stop to turn this mess around and create new jobs and lower the deficit and fix the things that are wrong." Bill Clinton, 1992 campaign

It's fairly easy to conclude that Clinton picked up the fumble from Bush, drove the team the distance and scored, and then gave the ball to another Bush well in sight of eliminating the debt, but alas, we have another fumbler. For the past couple of years, it seems you can pretty much track the public approval alongside the NYSE & NASDAQ, which have been tanking and doing these mini-spurts that are Bear Runs, after the rebound from last Sept. So, I'm not surprised it's at a low right now, and probably headed lower, if this 2000 astro forecast is correct. The only question is if Bush approval numbers follow them down, into the mid-60's. I think they will. I wonder if he still reads box scores (he did during the 2000 campaign). His Rangers seem destined to make for a 4-peat in the cellar under his watch. We could be on our way, debt-wise, to testing those Reagan-Bush lows. Speaking of baseball and politics, you just have to read this summation on the difference between fans and players.