Bush Budgets

BUSH: Well, maybe we ought—maybe we ought—I don't know the figure of 1 percent or 99 percent, but if that—if it's good public policy, it's good public policy. —"Larry King Live," CNN, July 20, 2000

Misleading Bush Tax Cut*

The Treasury release states that “91 million taxpayers will receive, on average, a tax cut of $1,126.” However, according to analysis by the Tax Policy Center:

-- The average tax cut in 2003 for households in the middle of the income spectrum (i.e., the middle fifth of households) will be $217, or less than one-fifth the total advertised by the Administration.

-- 83 percent of households will get less than the average amount cited by the Administration.

-- Some 53 percent of U.S. households — or 74 million households — will receive a tax cut of $100 or less. This includes 50 million households that will receive no tax cut whatsoever. Center for Budget and Policy Priorities

Bush Medicare Bill a Cancer*

"This legislation may harm access to high-quality cancer care for many elderly Americans," said Dr. Margaret Tempero, ASCO's [American Society of Clinical Oncology] president.

ASCO had warned that earlier versions of the bill would cut about $500 million, or about 30 percent, annually from U.S. cancer care.

The group is calculating the impact of the new Medicare bill but expects the cuts to be "significant," said Deborah Kamin, ASCO's senior director for cancer policy and clinical affairs.

ASCO plans to monitor the situation next year and possibly ask Congress for changes, Kamin said. Lisa Richwine, Reuters, 11/24/03

AARP Sells Out to Bushies*

It [the Medicare bill] contains several Trojan horse provisions that are clearly intended to undermine Medicare over time — it will allow private insurers to cherry-pick healthy clients in selected cities, and it will heavily subsidize private plans competing with traditional Medicare. . . . .

Over the years AARP has become much more than an advocacy and service organization for older Americans. It receives more than $150 million each year in commissions on insurance, mutual funds and prescription drugs . . .And this Medicare bill is very friendly to insurance and drug companies. . . .

William Novelli, AARP's chief executive, wrote a glowing preface to Newt Gingrich's book on health care reform. After all, Mr. Gingrich has long advocated turning the administration of Medicare over to private companies — an unpopular idea, and also an expensive one. Krugman, NY Times 11/21/03

Wal-Martization

The 70,000 grocery workers on strike in Southern California are the front line in a battle to prevent middle-class service jobs from turning into poverty-level ones. The supermarkets say they are forced to lower their labor costs to compete with Wal-Mart, a nonunion, low-wage employer aggressively moving into the grocery business , , ,This Wal-Martization of the work force, to which other low-cost, low-pay stores also contribute, threatens to push many Americans into poverty. The first step in countering it is to enforce the law. The government must act more vigorously, and more quickly, when Wal-Mart uses illegal tactics to block union organizing. And Wal-Mart must be made to pay if it exploits undocumented workers. NY Times Editorial 11/15/03

Support the Unemployed*

Serious help is needed for the 2.4 million more recent jobless facing the end of their state benefits, not to mention the 2.1 million long-term unemployed who have slipped off the job-hunting scope. The promising uptick in the deep hiring slump — 126,000 new jobs in October — is less than half the rate needed to even begin to dent the backup of joblessness. To deal realistically with the problem, Congress needs to double — to 26 weeks from 13 weeks — the federal emergency benefits that are available when state benefits run out. . . .
After the tax-cutting binges President Bush and Congress engineered for the affluent, failure to renew the nation's helping hand to the jobless would present a scandalous holiday scenario worthy of Dickens. More than talk, action is required. NY Times Editorial 11/12/03

Working Families in Bush Country*

• The number of Americans living in poverty has increased by three million in the past two years.

• The median household income has fallen for the past two years.

• The number of dual-income families, particularly those with children under 18, has declined sharply. . .

Jared Bernstein, a senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, has taken a look at the hours being worked by families, rather than individuals. . . . The declines he found were "of a magnitude that's historically been commensurate with double-digit unemployment rates," he said. . . .

Americans continue to face:

• Sharply increasing local taxes, including property taxes.

• Steep annual increases in health care costs.

• Soaring tuition costs at public and private universities. BOB HERBERT, NY Times 10/27/03

The Bush American Dream

"In the last 20 years, there has been a polarization of jobs into low wage and high wage jobs," said Milkman. "In Southern California it has been extreme. This is an attack on the remaining middle."

A generation ago the worker was in a far better position. There was little competition from abroad, industry was just beginning to automate and unions were strong. Over time, however, globalization, advancing technology and union busting allowed companies in many industries to slash benefits and keep pay levels down, experts say.

Supermarket checkers, and in some places janitors and hotel workers, are the last remaining holdouts. But even these workers fear that their days are numbered. David Washburn,
San Diego UNION-TRIBUNE, 10/19/03

Tax Looting*

What we have here is a form of looting." So says George Akerlof, a Nobel laureate in economics, of the Bush administration's budget policies — and he's right. With startling speed, we've blown right through the usual concerns about budget deficits — about their effects on interest rates and economic growth — and into a range where the very solvency of the federal government is at stake. Almost every expert not on the administration's payroll now sees budget deficits equal to about a quarter of government spending for the next decade, and getting worse after that. , , George W. Bush is like a man who tells you that he's bought you a fancy new TV set for Christmas, but neglects to tell you that he charged it to your credit card, and that while he was at it he also used the card to buy some stuff for himself. Eventually, the bill will come due — and it will be your problem, not his. Krugman, NY Times, 10/17/03

Third-World USA *

a third world country with America's recent numbers — its huge budget and trade deficits, its growing reliance on short-term borrowing from the rest of the world — would definitely be on the watch list.

I'm not the only one thinking that. Lehman Brothers has a mathematical model known as Damocles that it calls "an early warning system to identify the likelihood of countries entering into financial crises." . . . But applying the same model to some advanced countries "would set Damocles' alarm bells ringing." Lehman's press release adds, "Most conspicuous of these threats is the United States." . . .

I know: it all sounds unbelievable. But would you have believed, three years ago, that the U.S. budget would plunge so quickly from a record surplus to a record deficit? Krugman, NY Times 10/14/03

Incurious George

The reality is that Bush is trying to fundamentally change U.S. policy both domestically and in foreign policy without a mandate to do either. Domestically, the budget deficits, if they are not stemmed, will eventually force a dramatic cutback in discretionary government programs. Whether that means doing away with Social Security as we know it or restructuring Medicare and Medicaid will have to be determined. But unless something is done to stem the deficits, there won't be enough money to pay for the retirement of the baby boomers and meet the other obligations of the government.
In foreign policy, Bush has introduced a doctrine of preventive war, caused the most serious rupture of relations with allies in more than 50 years
Newsday Editorial, 10/12/03

Why did Bush Think the Rich Needed More Tax Cuts? (the statistics below are from before Bush's tax cuts)

The bureau study found that in 2000, the top 1 percent income group had the largest share of before-tax income for any year since 1929. . .

.Federal tax burdens for most Americans had declined over the previous two decades, and not risen as some conservative policy experts have asserted, the center said. LYNNLEY BROWNING, NY Times, 9/25/03, Graph by Costanzo.org

The Patriot Tax *

There's all sorts of talk now about how to finance the $87 billion price tag for the reconstruction of Iraq. I say, let's make OPEC pay — indirectly. Let's have a $1 a gallon gasoline tax and call it the "Patriot Tax." We could use the revenue it would raise — about $110 billion a year — to finance the entire reconstruction of Iraq, with plenty left for other good works. . .

A $1 a gallon gasoline tax, phased in, would not only be a huge revenue generator (even with tax rebates to ease the burden on low-income people, farmers and truckers) but also a huge driver of conservation and reduced oil imports. Not only would it mean less money for Saudi Arabia to transfer to Wahhabi clerics to spread their intolerant brand of Islam around the world, but it would radically improve America's standing in Europe. . . Unfortunately, this president — for ideological reasons, because of whom he is beholden to economically, and because he knows that the American people never demanded this war, so he cannot demand much from them. Friedman, NY Times 10/5/03

Bush Friends Profit *

Contributing to the growing sense of unease in some quarters and outrage in others is the blatant war profiteering in Iraq by politically connected firms like Bechtel and Halliburton — profiteering that is taking place with the scandalous encouragement and connivance of the Bush administration.

A front-page article in The Times on Tuesday said: "A group of businessmen linked by their close ties to President Bush, his family and his administration have set up a consulting firm to advise companies that want to do business in Iraq, including those seeking pieces of taxpayer-financed reconstruction projects."

Iraq is proving to be a bonanza for the Bush administration's corporate cronies even as it is threatening to become a sinkhole for the aspirations of ordinary Americans. Herbert, NY Times, 10/3/03

U.S. Can't Afford Health Insurance *

The number of people without health insurance shot up last year by 2.4 million, the largest increase in a decade, raising the total to 43.6 million, as health costs soared and many workers lost coverage provided by employers, the Census Bureau reported today.

The increase brought the proportion of people who were uninsured to 15.2 percent, from 14.6 percent in 2001. The figure remained lower than the recent peak of 16.3 percent in 1998. ROBERT PEAR, NY Times 9/30/03

What Can $87 Billion Buy?

The Center for American Progress is a nonpartisan research and educational institute based in Washington, D.C.

On September 7th, President Bush asked Congress for an additional $87 billion for the war in Iraq, acknowledging that the engagement in Iraq is going to cost many hundreds of billions of dollars. This was a surprise considering that prior to the war, the administration dismissed such estimates, and even fired its top economic adviser, Lawrence Lindsey, for suggesting those estimates were correct. To get some perspective, here are some real-life comparisons about what $87 billion means.

$87b Is More Than The Combined Total Of All State Budget Deficits In The United States

The Bush administration proposed absolutely zero funds to help states deal with these deficits, despite the fact that their tax cuts drove down state revenues. [Source: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities]

$87b Is Rougly The Total Of Two Years Worth Of All U.S. Unemployment Benefits

The U.S. spends about $50 billion a year on unemployment insurance. At least 1.1 million people have exhausted all of their unemployment benefits without finding a job, and yet Congress has refused to extend benefits. [Source: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities]

$87b Is Enough To Pay The 3.3 Million People Who Have Lost Jobs $26,363 Each

The unemployment benefits extension passed by Congress at the beginning of this year provides zero benefits to "workers who exhausted their regular, state unemployment benefits and cannot find work." All told, two thirds of unemployed workers have exhausted their benefits. [Source: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities]

$87b Is More Than Double The Total Amount The Government Spends On Homeland Security

The U.S. spends about $36 billion on homeland security. Yet, Sen. Warren Rudman (R-N.H.) wrote "America will fall approximately $98.4 billion short of meeting critical emergency responder needs" for homeland security without a funding increase. [Source: Council on Foreign Relations]

$87b Is 7 Times What The Government Spends On Title I For Low-Income Schools

President Bush proposed a budget of just $12 billion for Title I, leaving a $6.2 billion hole in what he promised to spend on Title I in his No Child Left Behind Bill. [Source: House Appropriations Committee]

$87b Is 87 Times The Amount The Federal Government Spends On After School Programs

President Bush proposed a budget that reduces the $1 billion for after-school programs to $600 million -- cutting off about 475,000 children from the program. [Souce: House Appropriations Committee]

$87b Is About 9 Times What The Federal Government Spends On Special Education

Legislation authorizes the federal government to pay 40 percent of the cost of special education, but because of budget shortfalls, it only pays roughly 18 percent (or $9.9 billion), driving up local property taxes. [Source: House Appropriations Committee]

$87b Is More Than 10 Times What The Government Spends On All Environmental Protection

The Bush administration requested just $7.6 billion for the entire Environmental Protection Agency. This included a 32 percent cut to water quality grants, a 6 percent reduction in enforcement staff, and a 50 percent cut to land acquisition and conservation. [Source: Natural Resources Defense Council]

$87b Is 8 Times The Total For Pell Grants -- The Major College Program In The U.S.

In 1975, when the Pell Grant program was established, it financed about 84 percent of the cost of attending a four-year public college. Today, that share is down to about 40 percent, and under Congress's current proposal to freeze Pell Grant funding at about $10 billion, it would drop to 38 percent. [Source: House Appropriations Committee]

$87b Is More Than The Total Cost Of The First 3 Years Of The Medicare Pres. Drug Proposal

[Source: Congressional Budget Office]

$87b Is Enough To Give Every Man, Woman And Child In America $300

"[We] want to control spending. And I hope Congress lives up to their words. When they talk about deficits, they can join us in making sure we don't overspend. They can join us and make sure that [they are] focused those items that are absolutely necessary to the American people." - President Bush, Jan. 6, 2003

Guns vs. Butter *

Mr. Bush's request for the next year would bring American spending on Iraq to some $150 billion . . . For now, Washington will have to pay most of the bills, and those sums cannot simply be added on to a deficit already nearing a half-trillion dollars. The $87 billion Mr. Bush seeks is equal to a fifth of next year's civilian discretionary spending at home — more than the combined total for education, job training, and employment and social services.

But as big as these issues are, Congress already needs to think beyond them. Before the war, the administration failed to define achievable American goals for Iraq or an eventual exit strategy. Those questions can no longer be deferred. NY Times Editorial 9/10/03

COST OF THE WAR TO DATE

Greatest employment contraction since the Great Depression

Since the recession began 29 months ago in March 2001, 3.3 million private sector jobs have disappeared, a 2.9% contraction. This is the largest sustained loss of jobs since the Great Depression. Since the official end of the recession in November 2001, there has been a 1.3 million loss in private sector jobs, a 1.1% contraction. Unemployment has risen to over 8.9 million people, as the unemployment rate increased from 4.0% in 2000 to 6.1% in August 2003. (See State Data and Organizations for more information on your state.) www.jobwatch.org

34.8 Million Americans Below Poverty Level *

To counter a decline in manufacturing jobs, the president this week announced plans to designate an assistant secretary of commerce -- a jobs czar -- for this economic sector. The decline is a long-term trend, however, and will not be slowed by a single appointment. It would be better for Bush to propose extensive retraining programs to move workers into occupations where jobs are more plentiful.

The federal government does not track poverty on the same monthly basis as unemployment, but the Census Bureau reported this week that 1.4 million more people dropped below the poverty line in 2002. That means 12.4 percent of the US population, or 34.8 million people, had incomes that were far less than needed for life's necessities. Boston Globe Editorial, 9/7/03

Bush Gives to the Rich and Takes from the Working *

At the last minute, Congressional leaders added legislation to their pre-adjournment agenda that would extend more than a dozen tax breaks scheduled to expire at the end of the year. But . . . Congressional leaders have shown no willingness to consider extending the temporary federal program to help the long-term unemployed . . .

In addition, the House version of the tax-cut extension bill would continue a large, supposedly temporary corporate tax break that was enacted as part of the 2002 stimulus legislation. When it comes to the unemployment benefits, however, House Majority Leader Tom DeLay told BNA Daily Labor Report on November 19 that there is “no reason” for extending those benefits. The House approach implies that corporations need continued support amidst a still-weak economy, but that laid-off workers do not. Joel Friedman, David Kamin, and Isaac Shapiro, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities 11/25/03

Bush Orgy*

Republicans have presided over an orgy of tax cuts and benefit increases that, according to the Concord group, will not only boost this year's projected deficit but also add as much as $800 billion to the national debt over the next 10 years. The damage will be even greater in the following decade. Among the more prominent items are $400 billion for Medicare (this page supported the new prescription drug benefit), $300 billion in tax cuts and $22 billion in new veterans' benefits. If the energy bill had passed, which fortunately did not happen, that would have added another $23 billion to $30 billion in tax cuts, plus perhaps twice that much in newly authorized programs. And all of this comes on top of three consecutive tax cuts totaling more than $1.7 trillion over the next decade. NY Times Editorial 11/25/03

Bush Budget Busting Energy Bill

Fiscally Irresponsible*

America's fiscal position has deteriorated fast during George Bush's presidency. It will not be easy to reverse.
members of the National Association of Business Economists described the federal deficit as the biggest problem facing America's economy. A bipartisan coalition of three economic think-tanks—the Committee for Economic Development, the Concord Coalition and the Centre on Budget and Policy Priorities—recently declared that, without a change in course, the next decade might be the “most fiscally irresponsible” in the country's history . . . Uncle Sam's demand for dollars is likely to crowd out private investment and reduce long-term economic growth. The Economist, Special Report 11/6/03

More for Bush Friends, Again

A House committee voted Tuesday to advance a $128 billion corporate tax cut amid disagreements over whether it will hurt or help U.S. manufacturers.

The House Ways and Means Committee voted 24-15 to pass the bill. Republicans said it makes long-needed tax changes to reflect an increasingly global economy. Democrats said those very changes will undermine companies that manufacture in the United States.

Congress finds itself forced into a debate over corporate tax laws after the World Trade Organization declared that a $5 billion annual tax break for U.S. exporters amounts to an illegal subsidy. The United States faces $4 billion in sanctions if the tax break is not repealed. Mary Dalrymple, Salon, 10/28/03

Bush ~~Tax~~ Job Cuts *

the Bush tax cuts will account for almost $300 billion of a deficit expected to top $500 billion. (If that $300 billion had been used to employ workers directly — a new W.P.A., anyone? — it would have created six million jobs.)

Yet Mr. Bush's own Treasury secretary has, in effect, admitted that despite the administration's unimpeded efforts, and all that debt, the job market will still be in poor shape a year from now.

Mr. Bush's handlers have often managed to have small achievements hailed as triumphs by persuading people to set the bar very low. Now his officials are trying to convince the public that if, after several years of dismal performance, they can achieve one year of job creation at a rate below the average rate Bill Clinton achieved over eight years, this will constitute a great economic victory. Krugman, NY Times 10/24/03

The Bush Tax Cut Crusade *

If taxes stay as low as they are now, government as we know it cannot be maintained. In particular, Social Security will have to become far less generous; Medicare will no longer be able to guarantee comprehensive medical care to older Americans; Medicaid will no longer provide basic medical care to the poor. . .

In fact, though most Americans feel that they pay too much in taxes, they get off quite lightly compared with the citizens of other advanced countries. Furthermore, for most Americans tax rates probably haven't risen for a generation. And a few Americans -- namely those with high incomes -- face much lower taxes than they did a generation ago. Paul Krugman, NY Times Magazine, 9/15/03

GAO Reports Weaknesses in Preparedness for Terrorist Attack on Commercial Nuclear Power Plants; Bush wants $87 Billion More for a War we Did Not Need to Fight

although NRC’s [Nuclear Regulatory Commission's] force-on-force exercises can demonstrate how well a nuclear plant might defend against a real-life threat, several weaknesses in how NRC conducted these exercises limited their usefulness. Weaknesses included using (1) more personnel to defend the plant during these exercises than during a normal day, (2) attacking forces that are not trained in terrorist tactics, and (3) unrealistic weapons (rubber guns) that do not simulate actual gunfire. Furthermore, NRC has made only limited use of some available improvements that would make force-on-force exercises more realistic and provide a more useful learning experience. Government Accounting Office Report Released 9/24/03

Bush Budget Accountability--NOT *

The bottom line is that, in my view, the federal government’s current financial statements and annual reports do not give policymakers and the American people an adequate picture of our government’s overall performance and true financial condition. This is a serious issue. As Thomas Jefferson once noted, an informed electorate is the basis for a sound democracy. But how can the American people and their elected officials make sound decisions if they aren’t given timely, accurate and useful information?

. . . based primarily on serious financial management problems at the Defense Department, the government [has an] inability to adequately account for certain intra-governmental transactions, and . . . to properly prepare consolidated financial statements. DAVID M. WALKER, COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES, 9/17/ 2003

What Can $87 Billion Buy?