The problem with the narrative of the OP (besides that it is a lying narrative) is that everybody underestimated the devastation of the Great Bush Recession. Bush destroyed the construction sector and the financial sector. There simply was no other recession to compare it to. The original estimates for Q4 2008 GDP were -3.8 %. It was revised numerous times and finally ended up at -8.9 %. And of course the OP has to pretend that pubs havn't been fighting President Obama every step of the way to reduce the deficit and improve the economy. Until cons realize that pubs rely on their ignorance, nothing will change
(editor's note. The BEA links wont work until the end of the Republican shutdown)
"
Real gross domestic product -- the output of goods and services produced by labor and property
located in the United States -- decreased at an annual rate of 3.8 percent
"
"
In the fourth quarter of 2008, which immediately followed the 2008 financial crisis, economic activity fell sharply. BEA’s initial, or “advance” estimate of GDP for the quarter, which was released on January 30, 2009, showed a decrease of 3.8 percent at an annual rate. In the second estimate, which was released on February 27, 2009, the revised estimate showed a decrease of 6.2 percent. Since then, the estimate has been revised several more times (in March 2009, July 2009, July 2010, and July 2011), and the latest estimate shows a decrease of 8.9 percent.
"
