Anyone Got the Graph showing the national deficit over the last 30 years

[NeedleCast]

I've seen it posted a few times, showing that conservatives have been responsible for pretty much ever incident of breaking the national debt record since Ford was president.

[Lasher]

1. Well try these:

Just the Facts from IBEW

Increases in the National Debt

[NeedleCast]

3. That's the one, Thanks!

[hughee99]

2. Conservative presidents, yes.

I saw the graph the other day. If you're looking at the House, though, it's mixed.

[Lasher]

5. Yes, it's mixed if you look at just the House.

But there is nothing to support the GOP claim that they are more fiscally responsible than Democrats, even if you consider the House only. And when you take into accout party control of the presidency and both houses of Congress the evidence is compelling: Deficits are lower when Democrats are in charge.

Republicans do cut taxes more than Democrats do. But Republicans spend more.



The above chart shows federal spending as percent of GDP, sorted highest spending percent. Party leadership is at bottom. Blue is Democrat; orange is Republican. Top row is President; middle is House; Bottom is Senate. The top ten spending years - across three different Presidential administrations have been Republican years in the White House - seven of them with Republican Senates (tempering the counter argument that spending is something Congress does that the White House can't stop.)



With low taxes and high spending, the deficit has been a disaster under the Republicans. Fourteen of the fifteen worst deficits in recent history have been under Republican Presidents, the lone Democrat entry on that list was Clinton's FY 93 budget that was pretty much inherited from the GHWB administration. None of the top 14 Republican Presidential deficits were immediately inherited from a Democrat.

The Republicans do a great PR job of labeling Democrats as "tax and spend", but only the "tax" part of the label has any potential legitimacy. Spending - and spending when there is no cash in the bank to pay for it - has been a Republican trait for quite some time now.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=2678226&mesg_id=2687918

[Canuckistanian]

4. I've got an interesting one about wealth distribution