Blog For Iowa

It has been only eight years since the summer when our economy cracked and descended in a downward spiral that would take us to the very edge an economic depression. As we spiraled downward it became pretty apparent that the Bush Administration had little clue what was going on nor what to do.

At that point many Americans were trying to come to grips with what the fact that all they had worked for all their lives could be wiped out in a few moments on Wall Street. Worse yet there was no competence within our government to deal with the situation.

By September the economy was spiraling out of control. Corporations that had been in existence for a century or more succumbed to events. And in Washington the administration had pretty much checked out.

Hundreds of thousands of Americans lost their jobs and homes. Into this maelstrom of building disaster a new president stepped up to the challenge. Barack Obama offered new programs to get the economy moving, stimulating the economy and shoring up the economy with government guarantees.

The economy went into a steady recovery and has been climbing ever since. While the recovery may not have been as fast as many hoped, that is due for the most part on the foot dragging by Republicans in the Senate. By creating a new power where it takes only 41 votes to stop legislation by implied threat to filibuster, Republicans were able to stop most of the major stimulus plans.

Rather than focus on the economy, Republicans in congress focused on making the Obama Administration fail. Obama’s failure would mean the country’s failure, but that was a price the Republicans were willing to let us pay. Our own Chuck Grassley was one of the major foot draggers as the Republicans used every tool they had to make the new president look bad. It is hard to measure how much damage Grassley did to our country during this period. He certainly did no good. In this earlier instance, Grassley also refused to do his job.

Fast forward to today when presumed Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump sent shudders through the economic world recently when he suggested he might negotiate to pay off United States debt at less than 100% value plus interest. At no time has an American president ever suggested that. Holding American debt has always been a rock solid investment. Most of us have some in our portfolios as a very basic investment. Social Security excess is held in US Treasury bonds.

But we should not be surprised. Republican Administrations have been notoriously bad for the American economy. Iowa’s own Herbert Hoover is often cited as being among the worst presidents due to the crash of 1929. However, the 8 previous years of Republican leadership set the table for the crash. Hoover’s biggest mistake was in his lack of response preferring to let the economy work its way out. Didn’t happen.

Hoover was not alone. Every Republican administration in the last century has been bad for the economy in general and for poor and working people in particular with the notable exception of the Eisenhower Administration. One could easily make a case that Eisenhower was not a true Republican. Eisenhower’s experience as the general in charge of a multi-national force in World War 2 helped him understand putting the good of the whole above the good of special interests was the utmost goal and that all factions must work together for the good of the whole.

The current Republican nominee has already signaled that his economic policies may be akin to those practiced by 3rd world countries. His stated intent to pay US debt at less than full value may be the craziest statement ever made by any presidential candidate.

America, you have been warned many times. Elect a Republican and you put the economy and your own economic well being in jeopardy. Sound economies need Democratc policies.

The new website http://reaganbushdebt.org/ gives a very interesting insight into the disastrous effects of recent Republican Administrations

Welcome to ReaganBushDebt.org

This site tracks the current Reagan Bush Debt.
The Reagan-Bush Debt is how much of the national debt of the United States is attributable to the presidencies of Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, George W. Bush, and the Republican fiscal policy of Borrow-And-Spend.

As of Friday, May 13, 2016 at 9:12:39AM CT,
The Current ReaganBush Debt is:  $17,980,013,492,917.80 which means that in a total of 20 years, these three presidents have led to the creation of 93.64% of the entire national debt in only 8.3333% of the 240 years of the existence of the United States of America.