Obama speech gets high marks

[Pandora]

Ummm, where did Mr. Sham-man go?

He complained that I hadn't posted figures to back up the fact that we hadn't run a surplus. I immediately posted them, in detail, with link and references.

And suddenly Mr. Sham-man has become very quiet. I thought he wanted to discuss the topic here?

Anybody seen him around?

My boss often tells me that clinton left office with a surplus and bush spent it

I dont agree but I dont know how to prove it to him, Ill check out your numbers

 

[Little-Acorn]

My boss often tells me that clinton left office with a surplus and bush spent it

I dont agree but I dont know how to prove it to him, Ill check out your numbers

Please do. I gave one reference, there are others showing the annual National Debt. If you can find one showing the National Debt went DOWN for any of the years in question, I'd be very interested to know.

When the Natl Debt goes UP from one year to the next, that means you ran a deficit (didn't have enough money to pay the bills), and so you borrowed to make ends meet.

That has happened every year since 1957. Including every year of the Clinton and Bush presidencies.

 

[Pandora]

Please do. I gave one reference, there are others showing the annual National Debt. If you can find one showing the National Debt went DOWN for any of the years in question, I'd be very interested to know.

When the Natl Debt goes UP from one year to the next, that means you ran a deficit (didn't have enough money to pay the bills), and so you borrowed to make ends meet.

That has happened every year since 1957. Including every year of the Clinton and Bush presidencies.

I agree with you but why do dems, and even educated dems keep saying Clinton paid off the debt and we had a surplus of money when Bush took office?

 

[Depeche Toad]

Clinton lucked into a Republican Congress that held his feet to the fire with regard to budgets. George Bush and his Republican Congress damaged the brand.

Barack Obama is good at reading off a teleprompter, I'll give you that.

 

[pocketfullofshells]

So, CNN says we ran surpluses for several years... while the U.S. Treasury Dept. says we went further into debt, every one of those years.

Have you ever wondered why?

(Hint: Check out how the govt treats the money it takes in for the Social Security Trust fund and other such trust funds it controls. They count SS "contributions" as revenue to the govt. Then it borrows the money from those trust funds... and counts it as revenue again. But then when they figure the National Debt, they can't show a surplus... because they had to borrow to make ends meet. If any private business or corporation tried this kind of fancy accounting, the CFO would go to jail for a very long time. Only the government is allowed to do this kind of "creative bookkeeping" (known elsewhere as "committing fraud".)

The U.S. government has never run a surplus since 1957 - the national debt has gone up every year since then, without exception.

The statement that George W. Bush "inherited a surplus", is false. If and when CNN ever begins doing investigative reporting of matters that favor Democrats, this will become starkly clear.

I'm not holding my breath for that, though.

yes cnn said it, damn liberal media...of course the actual numbers are from the congressional budget office....CNN simply posted them...but you ignore that fact. Don't be mad that for 8 years, Clinton was more fiscally responsible the Bush. the Republican. I miss the 90's people actuy had hope back then....then was the dark 8 years.....

 

[pocketfullofshells]

Clinton lucked into a Republican Congress that held his feet to the fire with regard to budgets. George Bush and his Republican Congress damaged the brand.

Barack Obama is good at reading off a teleprompter, I'll give you that.

being that its hard to tell if Bush could read...that would still be a improvement.