From Z-Facts we get another way to look at the real forces behind our budget deficits ...
The graph below (also from Z-Facts) also makes it clear that the size of our federal workforce is not growing.
A key observation here is that federal job growth under both President Reagan (200,000) and President Obama (38,000) held at about the same percentage relative to our general population growth.
So, you might ask after looking at these charts, why do we keep hearing about Obama's deficit problem and growing government?
In the case of our "growing government," as Z-Fact points out, it's "pretty simple." Because the Republicans want to cut government programs "so we can grow the economy" (cough, cough) they need Americans to believe that the federal government is too big. However, the size of the federal government in the 1950s and 1960s was much larger (as a proportion of the population) when economic growth was much stronger than it is today.
The reality is the financial titans behind the GOP want to reduce their tax burden, so they've gotten their political oompa loompas in Congress and the right wing noise machine to convince a large number of Americans that the government is out of control. The reality is, as the graphs above make clear, the real culprits behind our budget mess are: (1) tax cuts, (2) increased military spending, (3) and the economic fallout from the 2008 market crash.
Throw in the fact that our "growing government" is really a myth (actually, it's a lie) one needs to ask, Why do many Americans believe we need to cut government and enact more tax cuts?
Oh ...
- Mark
The graph below (also from Z-Facts) also makes it clear that the size of our federal workforce is not growing.
A key observation here is that federal job growth under both President Reagan (200,000) and President Obama (38,000) held at about the same percentage relative to our general population growth.
So, you might ask after looking at these charts, why do we keep hearing about Obama's deficit problem and growing government?
In the case of our "growing government," as Z-Fact points out, it's "pretty simple." Because the Republicans want to cut government programs "so we can grow the economy" (cough, cough) they need Americans to believe that the federal government is too big. However, the size of the federal government in the 1950s and 1960s was much larger (as a proportion of the population) when economic growth was much stronger than it is today.
The reality is the financial titans behind the GOP want to reduce their tax burden, so they've gotten their political oompa loompas in Congress and the right wing noise machine to convince a large number of Americans that the government is out of control. The reality is, as the graphs above make clear, the real culprits behind our budget mess are: (1) tax cuts, (2) increased military spending, (3) and the economic fallout from the 2008 market crash.
Throw in the fact that our "growing government" is really a myth (actually, it's a lie) one needs to ask, Why do many Americans believe we need to cut government and enact more tax cuts?
Oh ...
No comments:
Post a Comment