“The Great Recession” and Obama debunked | Steve Bussey

Barack Obama (Photo credit: jamesomalley)

Want to compare Reagan to Obama, apples to apples?  Here it is, and Obama is no Reagan!  In fact, let’s look at the whole picture.

Excerpt…

President Obama is running an average annual unemployment rate of 9.3% for his first term, during most of which he had a completely Democrat controlled Congress at one time with a filibuster proof Senate, while President Reagan had an average annual unemployment rate of 8.85% in his first term while dealing with a split Congress at times and a Democrat controlled Congress during part of his first term.

President Reagan was forced to negotiate and deal with the opposing political party, especially since he never had a filibuster proof Senate, while President Obama enjoyed a super majority in the House and Senate for at least part of his first term during which time he could have done just about anything he wanted economically – and did.

And remember, President Reagan also had to contend with a collapse in the housing market, a collapse in the oil market and the collapse in the Savings and Loan industry as well as the dire economic situation bequeathed him by President Carter.

However, Presidents Reagan and Obama did have something in common. President Obama has pledged to fundamentally transform America – his words, and President Reagan did fundamentally transform the US economy from Keynesian to Supply-Side economics.

So, can we say that Obama’s persistent unemployment is due to the depth of the recession or his fundamental transformation since President Reagan did show us about how long it takes, at least through unemployment figures, to fundamentally transform an economy the size and scope of the U.S. economy?

But at the end of the day, President Obama is not even on a trajectory to decrease unemployment to manageable levels 2 ½ years into his presidency. In fact, he is most recently on an upward trajectory and our economy is slowing yet again from 3.1% growth in the 4th Quarter of 2010 to an anemic 1.8% in the 1st Quarter of 2011 (US Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis) .

Read on….

“The Great Recession” and Obama debunked | Steve Bussey.

Obama’s No Reagan

Ronald Reagan wearing cowboy hat at Rancho del Cielo. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

1980 was a very dark time.  The Iranians held Americans, we had gas lines, and the economy was a train wreak.  By 1984 it was Morning in America!  Ronald Reagan wasn’t blaming Carter for failing to turn things around.  He wasn’t blaming the Democrats in Congress either for his failure.  He did what he could and succeeded.  Reagan never had the supermajority that Obama enjoyed.  He never had the media bending over backwards to make him look good either.  With the Presidency and the Senate (under GOP from 1981until 1987) he was able to turn the economy around and restore America’s economy, military, and position in the world.

Makes you wonder how exactly Obama can go from blaming Bush to blaming the GOP House for his failure when Reagan managed to transform America with less.  The numbers just don’t add up.  As for charges of Republican obstructionism, that’s not obstructionism, it is democracy, it is checks and balances.  To expect the GOP to go against their views and the views of those who elected them is pure foolishness.  To blame the House for Obama’s failures is only to point out the man is no Ronald Reagan.  The one thing he proved, the one thing we see in the failure of the Soviet Union and European Socialism (they were crashing in Britain in the late ’70’s under the weight of failed socialism), the same we see in Obama’s failure, is big government control and socialism do not work.  It didn’t even work under FDR, but I’ll give the man far more credit than Obama, at least he did get people to work.

So are we better off now than we were $5,000,000,000.00+ dollars ago?  Shall we borrow another $5,000,000,000.00+ for more of the same?  After all, it’s not Obama’s fault.

 

An Open Rant

I am Christian.  I am conservative.  That alone is enough to throw out plenty of stereotypes.

I cast my first vote for Ronald Reagan and have voted Republican in every Presidential election except 1996, when I voted for and strongly supported Harry Browne, and in 2008.  Fact is in ’08 I simply could not stomach the idea of John McCain on any level.  That does not mean I voted for Barack Obama either.  For the first time I did not vote for President.  Some may argue that a vote taken from McCain was a vote for Obama, but I was sick and tired, as many of you are now, of the GOP putting forth RINOs and forcing us to vote for them.  Frankly I have reached the point where I no longer wish to choose the scenic route to socialism and the death of the Republic.  I suspect that many out there feel the same way.

I strongly support Ron Paul, and his campaign has revealed how far the establishment will go to shut out someone who reflects the values that made this nation great.  In seeing the numbers of people who Ron Paul has reached, I have tremendous hope that our future is not as decided as some may wish.  America still has a fight in her, and Americans are not ready to give up our inheritance.

The reasons why I am not now a registered Libertarian, even as I lean Libertarian, is  based on a few issues.  The first being the issue of illegal aliens.  All parties have ignored this issue for various reasons, but I do believe strongly that our nation holds a basic duty to secure our borders and control who can come in and be a citizen.  The negligence of our government to do that has created a huge mess that hurts illegals and Americans alike.

The Statue of Liberty is very cool, but that poem was never supposed to be public policy.  It is not a Constitutional amendment.  We never voted on it, and in fact when we have voted it has been clear; NO OPEN BORDERS.  If you are here because you wish to be an American, by all means come, but if you wish to transform this nation, to impose your language, customs, or religion on us, go home.  This is not your home.  We need to see that our own are taken care of first before we extend charity and open arms to others.  We do not allow 1.5 million illegals a year to flood our nation when so many Americans are out of work.  They should not come if they will never ascribe to American values or identity.  Out of many we are one people, and if we are not, our destruction is assured.

The LP position is as follows:

We support the removal of governmental impediments to free trade. Political freedom and escape from tyranny demand that individuals not be unreasonably constrained by government in the crossing of political boundaries. Economic freedom demands the unrestricted movement of human as well as financial capital across national borders. However, we support control over the entry into our country of foreign nationals who pose a credible threat to security, health or property.

As for free trade, I do not believe in unilateral free trade.  We have numbers and resources, and these should be utilized to create fair trade.  If a nation will not extend free trade with us, there is no reason we should allow them into our markets.  China, a communist tyranny that uses slave labor, often Christians imprisoned for their faith, a regime that does not extend free trade to the U.S., should not be producing our products or selling in our marketplace.  Therein is another reason I am not a big L libertarian.

The LP policy on abortion is as follows:

Recognizing that abortion is a sensitive issue and that people can hold good-faith views on all sides, we believe that government should be kept out of the matter, leaving the question to each person for their conscientious consideration.

I believe abortion is a grave sin, but that ultimately the issue should be left to the states to decide.  That is how our Republic was set up, and it works very well.  Of course government should have a say in the matter, but the choice should be determined locally, like most issues, not federally.  The same for homosexual marriage and other issues.  The granting of these rights by a state should not ever be used to deny anyone their First Amendment right by forcing people of faith to support or provide these things.  That was the real issue with the “War Against Women” and Sandra Fluke, it is an attempt to force people of faith to provide birth control and abortifacients to those who come to them.    Churches are threatened with law suits for not allowing gay marriage.  Who is cramming their views down everyone’s throats?

In a contest between God and man, God wins.

I’m not looking to write a book on the issue, but isn’t it time that there was someone who reflects the views of most Americans?  Isn’t it time to set the Republicrat – Demican lie aside and recognize that neither side is working in our best interests?  Liberals make up their own script, but there are some real issues.  In those issues why would they trust the government or even want the government to address those things?  Do they really believe that politicians (Obama included) paid for by the so called 1% are some how going to work for the people?  Big business and big government are two sides of the same coin.  Limit the power of the government and you directly limit the power of the elites over the masses.

The solution is with the people, not government.  The solution is in restoring the Republic, and liberty to the people, in securing our future, and not selling out our grandchildren to pay for Bill Ayers vision of America.

What party stands for that?

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Random Thoughts on the GOP

Image via Wikipedia

The first time I ever voted in an election was in 1984, and that vote was cast for Ronald Reagan.  Unfortunately I have not had the honor of voting for anyone even close to his caliber since.  In my mind, he was and is everything that Republican should be.  I wish that were the case to the GOP.  I’ve heard that the establishment never really liked Reagan, and have abandoned true conservatives since the defeat of Goldwater in ’64.

Since 1984, I have voted Republican except in 1996 and 2008.  In 1996 I voted for Harry Browne, Libertarian and author of the book “Why Government Doesn’t Work“.  I supported Harry Browne in 1996, and yes, I support Ron Paul now.

In 2008 I voted on every issue and every race except for President.  I loath John McCain.  I believe that Barack Obama won in 2008 not because he was such a great leader or speaker, but rather because McCain was so completely wrong.  The best thing McCain had going for him was Sarah Palin.  Conservatives did not like McCain, and although he won the nomination, he never had the support of the base.  The angry white RiNO was never going to win, and that was obvious when his campaign became one of defending Obama and not bringing real solutions to the table.

I would never have voted for Obama, and I will not in 2012.  The man had no experience, and when our nation needed leadership, he is what we got.  Of course his politics are pretty far removed from mine as well.  I am not liberal.  I lean libertarian, so there are issues I agree with liberals on, but my distrust of big government runs far too deep.

The primaries are going, and the race is down to Romney or Gingrich.  If Paul is still in I will vote for him in the primary, and in the general I will vote for Romney or Gingrich.  I’m not thrilled by either, and I am left wondering if the GOP isn’t going to see itself fall apart.

Simply put, the GOP has become Liberal Lite.  In the absence of the Soviet threat, and holding a disdain for Goldwater and Reagan, it is a party that has lost its soul.  You are not the party of vision when what you stand for is nothing more than “We aren’t them”.  Everything else is just lip service.  The party of small government and less regulation has grow government and increased regulation, but to a lesser degree than the Democrats.  Democrat Lite!!!

At a time when many in this country still subscribe to the Reagan Revolution, to the ideals of the Republic, it seems both parties are intent on growing government.  The Tea Party emerged not out of the GOP, but out of the people who observed a government that no longer reflected the will of the people.  Most Americans agree with the Tea Party.  In many ways the Occupy Movement reflects the same frustrations from the base of the other side.  Big government is rightly perceived as a threat, and a pawn to big business and big labor.  The people are betrayed, and it is time to reclaim our birthright.

Gingrich is the face of the post Reagan GOP, that gave lip service to the Gipper but followed corruption.  The GOP failed in their contract with America.  They did keep Clinton in check, thus his legacy is greater than it should have been, but for all the opportunity, the GOP went for power over principle.  In going after Clinton and not just keeping him in check, they laid the groundwork for what was later seen with the Democrats accusing Bush of masterminding 9-11.  Of course they also said he was the village idiot.  Politics doesn’t always make sense.

Romney is the face of the GOP today.  He is not a conservative.  I know what he says, but how much does it really mean?  I have no issue with the concept that what is fine at the state level is not fine on a federal level, and thus I can overlook RomneyCare.  I believe he will work to overturn ObamaCare.  He will not fulfill the ideals of the Reagan Revolution.  He will not work to restore our rights.  He will not work to scale back government.  He is better equipped to deal with our economic reality than our current president, but he is no Reagan.

So liberal lite, or conservative?  Conservatives are the single largest ideological group.  The future of the GOP hinges on that question, and if it is the former and not the latter, the GOP will go the way of the Whigs.