How to Respond to the 8 Lies Bush Will Tell in Tonight’s Debate

He also suggests responding to these lies with, of all things, the TRUTH.





1)  Jobs



Bush: 1.7 million jobs created since the summer of 2003, and the economy is “strong and getting stronger.”


Krugman:  “Bush is the first president since Herbert Hoover to preside over a decline in payroll employment.”  



2)  Unemployment



Bush:  Boasts about the decline in the unemployment rate from its June 2003 peak.



Krugman: 
“Unemployment declined only because some of those without jobs stopped
actively looking for work, and therefore dropped out of the
unemployment statistics.”




3)  The deficit



Bush:  The recession and 9/11 caused record budget deficits.



Krugman:  “Congressional Budget Office estimates show that tax cuts caused about two-thirds of the 2004 deficit.”




4)  The tax cuts



Bush:  Kerry opposed “middle class” tax cuts.



Krugman: 
“Budget office numbers show that most of Bush's tax cuts went to the
best-off 10 percent of families, and more than a third went to the top
1 percent, whose average income is more than $1 million.”




5)  The Kerry tax plan



Bush:  Kerry plans to raise taxes on small businesses.



Krugman: 
Few “would be affected. Moreover, … the administration's definition of
a small-business owner is so broad that in 2001,” it included Bush
himself.




6)  Fiscal responsibility



Bush:  Kerry proposes $2 trillion in new spending.



Krugman:
“That's a partisan number and is much higher than independent
estimates. Meanwhile,… the administration's own numbers show that the
cost of the agenda Bush laid out ‘is likely to be well in excess of $3
trillion.’”




7)  Spending



Bush:  He increased nondefense discretionary spending by only 1 percent per year.



Krugman:  “The actual number is 8 percent, even after adjusting for inflation.”




8)  Health care



Bush:  Kerry wants to take medical decisions away from individuals.



Krugman: 
“The Kerry plan would expand Medicaid (which works like Medicare),
ensuring that children, in particular, have health insurance. It would
protect everyone against catastrophic medical expenses, a particular
help to the chronically ill. It would do nothing to restrict patients'
choices.”