#266 - The President Unhinged, Part II

More sounding off from Sunday's Meet the Press interview on NBC.

Russert: The General Accounting Office, which are the nation's auditors

President Bush: Yeah.

Russert: have done a study of our finances.

President Bush: Um hmm.

Russert: And this is what your legacy will be to the next generation. It says that our “current fiscal policy is unsustainable.” They did a computer simulation that shows that balancing the budget in 2040 could require either cutting total Federal spending in half or doubling Federal taxes.

President Bush: Um hmm.

Russert: How why, as a fiscal conservative as you like to call yourself, would you allow a $500 billion deficit and this kind of deficit disaster?

President Bush: Sure. The budget I just proposed to the Congress cuts the deficit in half in five years.

Now, I don't know what the assumptions are in the GAO report, but I do know that if Congress is wise with the people's money, we can cut the deficit in half. And at that point in time, as a percentage of GDP, the deficit will be relatively low.

I agree with the assessment that we've got some long term financial issues we must look at, and that's one reason I asked Congress to deal with Medicare. I strongly felt that if we didn't have an element of competition, that if we weren't modern with the Medicare program, if we didn't incorporate what's called "health savings accounts" to encourage Americans to take more control over their healthcare decisions, we would have even a worse financial picture in the long run.

[...]

Russert: But your base conservatives and listen to Rush Limbaugh, the Heritage Foundation, CATO Institute, they're all saying you are the biggest spender in American history.

President Bush: Well, they're wrong.

Russert: Mr. President

President Bush: If you look at the appropriations bills that were passed under my watch, in the last year of President Clinton, discretionary spending was up 15 percent, and ours have steadily declined.

And the other thing that I think it's important for people who watch the expenditures side of the equation is to understand we are at war, Tim, and any time you commit your troops into harm's way, they must have the best equipment, the best training, and the best possible pay. That's where we owe it to their loved ones.

Russert: That's a very important point. Every president since the Civil War who has gone to war has raised taxes, not cut them.

President Bush: Yeah.

Russert: Raised to pay for it. Why not say, I will not cut taxes any more until we have balanced the budget? If our situation is so precious and delicate because of the war, why do you keep cutting taxes and draining money from the treasury?

President Bush: Well, because I believe that the best way to stimulate economic growth is to let people keep more of their own money. And I believe that if you raise taxes as the economy is beginning to recover from really tough times, you will slow down economic growth. You will make it harder.

More incredulousness:

1. "The budget I just proposed to the Congress cuts the deficit in half in five years." Translation: My talking points say 'deflect all deficit questions. Remind the public that we're halving the deficit - making it much less, not more.'

2. "Now, I don't know what the assumptions are in the GAO report...." Translation: I just do what they tell me to do.

3. "I agree with the assessment that we've got some long term financial issues we must look at, and that's one reason I asked Congress to deal with Medicare." Translation: My talking points say 'deflect all deficit questions. Talk about Medicare. Americans care about health care, not fuzzy economic numbers.'

4. "Well, they're wrong." Translation: Rush, Heritage and CATO are not lovers of freedom and democracy.

5. "If you look at the appropriations bills that were passed under my watch, in the last year of President Clinton, discretionary spending was up 15 percent, and ours have steadily declined." Ahem: "With Bush's budget plan for FY2004, real non-defense discretionary outlays will rise 18.0 percent in his first three years in office (FY2002-FY2004). That growth far exceeds the first three years of any recent presidential term, including Ronald Reagan's first term (-13.5 percent), Reagan's second term (-3.2 percent), George H. Bush's term (11.6 percent), Bill Clinton's first term (-0.7 percent), and Clinton's second term (8.2 percent)." (Cato Institute) [Note: this source does not love freedom and democracy.]

6. "Well, because I believe that the best way to stimulate economic growth is to let people keep more of their own money." Translation: Poor people need to work harder. My friends are rich, and they work hard. So I'm giving them their money back. Plus, Dick says it will work.