Nominal Comparisons
Attention Nominal Comparisons of Obama National Debt Figures: Get Real
The conservative blogosphere (with the help of Drudge) is busy citing a story put out by CNSNews’ Terence Jeffrey, whose headline reads: “Obama Added More to National Debt in First 19 Months Than All Presidents from Washington Through Reagan Combined, Says Gov’t Data.”
Unfortunately, this type of simplistic analysis suffers from two major problems:
(1) The implication that the entire increase in the debt since January 20, 2009 is Obama’s fault is ridiculous.
(2) Budget numbers today are larger in nominal terms as a result of inflation, which means you can do this analysis for almost any modern-day president
Continuing on (2), let’s do the same type of analysis for Bush and Reagan:
In his first two years in office (2003 debt amount less 2001 debt amount), Bush increased the national debt by more than all the presidents from Washington through Carter’s 3rd year combined.In his first two years in office (1995 debt less 1993 debt), Clinton increased the national debt by more than all the presidents from Washington through Nixon combined.
In his first two years in office (1983 debt amount less 1981 debt amount), Reagan increased the national debt by more than all the presidents from Washington through Nixon combined.
(h/t rjsigmund)
-“The implication that the entire increase in the debt since January 20, 2009 is Obama’s fault is ridiculous.”
Yep………and all the foreign policy and economic problems between 2001 and 2008 being blamed entirely on Bush is ridiculious, but never seemed to bother you at all!
-“Obama Added More to National Debt in First 19 Months Than All Presidents from Washington Through Reagan Combined, Says Gov’t Data.”
What exactly is incorrect about the headline?
AW Geez, MG. Why did you have bring up simple facts that Obama has no plan to change the direction of our Federal deficit and/or publicly held debt.
“Bush foreign policy was deliberate walking the nation into fictious swamps and getting stuck.”
Most Democrats including Hillary Clinton voted to go to war in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“It is all his fault and he will be judged on the deaths he and his cabal caused.”
Is that kinda like you judge FDR on the deaths he caused in WWII….
“who wrote the expenditure plans from Oct 08 to Sep 09? I help here GW Bush.”
The President doesn’t have that authority. The Congress was controlled by Democrats, and they changed Bush’s Budget for 2009….It is the Demcrat Congress with the Approval of Obama’s fault.