Triples the deficit - gets 18 clean debt ceiling increases

[Playinghardball]

I'm sure it has nothing to do with race though, right, conservatives?

[indepat]

1. All hail the power and glory of the mighty gipper from whom all right-wing blessings

flow.

[Zorra]

2. K&R & shamelessly stolen, thanks. nt

[eppur_se_muova]

3. Darn ... I guessed it was Gee Dubya ...

I guess RFR is the next most obvious suspect.

[Wounded Bear]

4. Not so much about racism, really...

but it kind of blows the whole bi-partisan shit out the window.

It's party politics on steroids, HGH, and speed.

[LaydeeBug]

5. "cuts the deficit in half"

Does anyone have a link for this? I have it as falling at the fastest rate in 60 years, but 'cuts the deficit in half" would be a great link to have.

[Laelth]

7. I don't have the link you want.

That said, cutting the deficit in half is quite believable (2008 Bush Budget vs. 2012 Obama Budget). Now, cutting the national debt in half would be an absurd claim, and I'd want to see a link for it too (and I still wouldn't believe it if I saw it).

-Laelth

[LaydeeBug]

8. Here's why I asked...

Number 1, I would *love* to shove this to the tea baggers, but really, I think he was on course to do that, but the GOP obstructed the recovery:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/wp/2013/09/24/has-obama-cut-the-budget-deficit-in-half/

[Laelth]

10. Nice link. Thanks. n/t

-Laelth

[Igel]

11. Even then ...

It means that the 1/2 of TARP that was only released because president-elect Obama requested it as well as the spending bills that * had promised to veto and the "Obama" stimulus are all firmly Bush II's responsibility. At least part of that "expense" consisted of loans that were repaid a year or so later.

That's the "deficit" part.

"Cutting the deficit" also involves a bit of trickery, because some of it happened naturally (as the recession ended), some happened as a result of tax increases, but this year a reasonable amount of it was repayment of the capital of a loan issued under that "Bush II" budget.

Even then, the deficit in 2013 is around $900 billion. The max deficit was $1.6 trillion, with what--about $1.2 trillion of that being 1/2 TARP and the 2009 "stimulus".

[orpupilofnature57]

6. That's why on his worst day, he beats bonzo's buddy .

[Rex]

9. Thanks, that picture is going viral.

nt.

[Salviati]

12. As I posted in an earlier: The republicans aren't really upset by the government being in the red..

They're actually just upset that the black is in the government.

[Iliyah]

13. K & R