By Denise Candea, Charlotte County Dems writer
We faced a bleak economic future when Obama took office in 2009. Banks were failing and markets were in free fall. Although the Republican-led Congress effectively stonewalled him during all but the first two years of his administration, Obama did a masterful job moving the economy forward. Unemployment, which peaked at 10%, was down to 4.7% by the end of his presidency. And he saved the US auto industry.
Obama’s bull market (which Trump claimed as his) came to a crashing halt with Trump’s inept response to the pandemic and the subsequent economic collapse. The only “bright” spot is the market, which has been fueled by trillions in corporate bailout funds and an influx of stimulus money and day-traders. The NASDAQ is more casino than stock exchange at present and is no longer tethered to reality in any meaningful way.
It is a commonly accepted perception that Republican administrations are better for the economy than Democratic administrations but recent history proves this wrong. In fact, it is a fairy tale:
- Ronald Reagan doubled the deficit in his 8 years from 1981 to 1989.
- George H. W. Bush made it much worse in his single term from 1989 to 1993.
- Bill Clinton inherited a large deficit but left office with a much lower deficit in 2001, having four of only five total surpluses achieved in the past 40 years.
- George W. Bush from 2001 to 2009 squandered that surplus with an illegitimate war in Iraq, huge tax cuts for the rich, and a massive, unfunded drug plan for seniors (with huge concessions to big pharma). When Bush left office in 2009, the worst recession since the Great Depression was well underway, after his administration failed to notice the subprime mortgage fiasco brewing under its watch.
- Obama fixed the mess left by the Bush administration and initiated the longest bull market in history from 2009 to 2017
- Trump with unbelievable ineptitude, has wrecked this economy from 2017 to 2020 and continues to do everything wrong now. The only tools in his playbook are tax cuts and low interest rates because they benefit his businesses. He has no other plans.
Why would we give him four more years?
Elect a Democrat to fix yet another Republican financial fiasco. Joseph R. Biden has unveiled his comprehensive plan to right this listing ship. VOTE BLUE in November. It’s our only hope.
