To The Editor: A May 4 letter expresses the opinion that our financial "Armageddon" is of President Obama's own making. Here are the facts, obtained from a Google search of information originating from official government sources such as the Office of Budget and Management: When Ronald Reagan took office in 1980, the federal debt was $0.9 trillion. At the end of his two terms and the senior Bush's term, the debt stood at $4.2 trillion, an increase of $3.3 trillion. In contrast, under Bill Clinton the debt increased by $1.6 trillion, less than half the increase under his predecessors. But the prize winner for debt increase was George W. Bush. During his two terms the debt rose by $4.9 trillion, from $5.7 trillion to $10.6 trillion - an astounding 86 percent increase. That increase was due to three Bush administration policies and actions: tax cuts for the wealthy; the recession that began under his watch; and two wars which Bush paid for in no small measure by borrowing from the Chinese government. Democratic congresses cannot be blamed for Bush's sorrowful record. Republicans controlled the House for six of Bush's eight years and the Senate for four of six years. They effectively controlled the Senate for the remaining two years, when it was split 50/50 but Vice President Cheney could - and did - cast the deciding vote in case of a tie Senate vote. To summarize: When Ronald Reagan took office, the debt was $0.9 trillion; when George W. Bush left office, the debt was $10.6 trillion. Eeighty-four percent of the increase was created during the presidencies of Republicans Reagan and the two Bushes. A look at the spending habits of the administrations preceding Obama's reveals the same picture. Under Reagan, federal spending increased 14.5 percent in his first term and 7.4 percent in his second. For George H.W. Bush, the increase was 7.8 percent. Clinton's administration was the most frugal - 4.3 percent and 8.1 percent. And the prize winner again, George W. Bush: 18.9 percent and 13.3 percent. Of the four presidents, only Clinton transformed an inherited budget deficit into a surplus. The author of the May 4 letter decries Obama's "demand" that the debt ceiling be raised. Was he equally critical of George W. Bush's "demands" to raise the ceiling? During his eight years in office, the ceiling was raised no fewer than seven times. The November election results are a mandate to cut federal spending, say the author and others. Public opinion polls cast doubt on that assessment. When asked to make the difficult choices about which specific government programs to cut, majorities of poll respondents consistently oppose cuts to most programs, including Medicare and Social Security. Medicare, for example, repeatedly enjoys the support of 80 percent or more of those polled. Americans emphatically reject the author's characterization of Social Security and Medicare as socialized "cradle to grave security." That's why George W. Bush had to abandon his plan to privatize Social Security. And now congressional Republicans have given up their effort to privatize Medicare. During Obama's two and one-half years in office, the debt has risen by $3.7 trillion. But it is critical to an understanding of our perilous situation to recognize that the entire increase cannot be blamed on Obama administration policies and priorities. Roughly $1 trillion of that increase is interest on the $10.6 trillion debt when George W. Bush left office. And a significant portion of the increase is the result of the continuing impact of Bush's irresponsible economic policies. In short, blaming our economic crisis entirely on the Obama administration is grossly unfair, irresponsible, and inaccurate. Obama inherited 75 percent of the current debt. And of the increase under his tenure, half or more is reasonably attributable to his predecessors. JAMES DAVIS Avalon
https://www.capemaycountyherald.com/article/73012-obama+inherited+75+current+debt
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