[hyteckit]

The biggest deficit spenders are obviously Republicans like Pres. Reagan and Pres. Bush II.

Government spending has risen the slowest under Pres. Obama than any other president since the 1950s.

Obama spending binge never happened - MarketWatch

[chabig]

This is a few days old and I think it's already been debunked. Trick 1 was awarding most of Obama's first year spending to Bush. Trick 2 was representing total spending by plotting the growth. As I saw someone comment elsewhere, suppose President A spends wildly. If President B takes over and not only continues the wild spending but increases it (even by a small amount) can you really say that he's cut spending? Of course not.

Wouldn't a picture like this better represent the truth?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:USDebt.png

[hyteckit]

Originally Posted by chabig 

This is a few days old and I think it's already been debunked. Trick 1 was awarding most of Obama's first year spending to Bush. Trick 2 was representing total spending by plotting the growth. As I saw someone comment elsewhere, suppose President A spends wildly. If President B takes over and not only continues the wild spending but increases it (even by a small amount) can you really say that he's cut spending? Of course not.

Pres. Bush pass the 2009 budget in Oct. 2008. You do know that right?

You see the little blue part in the 2009 budget? That's what Pres. Obama added to Pres. Bush 2009 budget.

[chabig]

Obama is responsible for much more than little blue part. Do you really think Obama came into office and just accepted Bush's budget for the entire year?

[reader50]

I wasn't aware Presidents spent at all - Congress passes all budgets.

hmm ... perhaps he does do the actual purchases. I haven't seen him myself in any stores. That would be one impressive CC to whip out, with a credit limit in the 100s of Billions.

[Wiskedjak]

Originally Posted by chabig 

Obama is responsible for much more than little blue part. Do you really think Obama came into office and just accepted Bush's budget for the entire year?

Can a new president simply cancel out the budget for that year that had been passed through Congress by the previous president? It seems to me that would be no small matter.

[P]

Originally Posted by reader50 

That would be one impressive CC to whip out, with a credit limit in the 100s of Billions.

He should get one with frequent flyer miles, so he can retire the Air Force One.

[Shaddim]

Originally Posted by Wiskedjak 

Can a new president simply cancel out the budget for that year that had been passed through Congress by the previous president? It seems to me that would be no small matter.

Well, it hadn't been signed yet, he could have just said, "Ya know, I don't like this. I'm just gonna veto it and we can take another run at it. What ya say?"

If I didn't agree with something that important there wouldn't be any way in hell I'd put my name on it.

[The Final Dakar]

Is there some kind of Pro-Obama full court press going on I should be aware about?

[Big Mac]

It isn't too hard to show a slowed pace of spending increases when you massively ballooned the budget in previous years.

I'm also assuming this kind of stat covers just discretionary spending. Right or wrong?

[hyteckit]

Originally Posted by Big Mac 

It isn't too hard to show a slowed pace of spending increases when you massively ballooned the budget in previous years.

I'm also assuming this kind of stat covers just discretionary spending. Right or wrong?

You can't figure that out just by looking at the amounts in the bar graph?

[ebuddy]

As long as you attribute most of the Obama spending to Bush (only 2 of 12 appropriations bills for FY2009 were signed by Bush), you can make the numbers sing whatever dishonest tune you want them to. Maybe our next President will push the Senate a little harder to produce a budget on time... or at least produce one at all.

[Waragainstsleep]

Originally Posted by reader50 

That would be one impressive CC to whip out, with a credit limit in the 100s of Billions.

Bush probably lost it. Maybe left it at a pretzel stand or something. With the pin number was written on the back in Sharpie.

[hyteckit]

Originally Posted by ebuddy 

As long as you attribute most of the Obama spending to Bush (only 2 of 12 appropriations bills for FY2009 were signed by Bush), you can make the numbers sing whatever dishonest tune you want them to. Maybe our next President will push the Senate a little harder to produce a budget on time... or at least produce one at all.

So you are still ignoring the fact that spending went down in 2010 and spending in 2011 and 2012 isn't much different than 2009?

Still doesn't change the fact that Pres. Bush and Pres. Reagan increase spending greatly and were big deficit spenders.

How do you think Pres. Reagan tripled the national debt?

[besson3c]

hyteckit: shouldn't your line of questioning start from the premise that ebuddy and the others think that Reagan, by today's standards, was some model of spending restraint?

[Athens]

I like this chart that sums up what happened over the last decade

In '01, The U.S. Budget Picture Was Rosy. What Happened? : Planet Money : NPR

[Wiskedjak]

Originally Posted by ebuddy 

As long as you attribute most of the Obama spending to Bush (only 2 of 12 appropriations bills for FY2009 were signed by Bush), you can make the numbers sing whatever dishonest tune you want them to. Maybe our next President will push the Senate a little harder to produce a budget on time... or at least produce one at all.

So, Obama is a clear example of the stereotypical big spending liberal because he didn't undo the 2009 budget set in motion by the previous conservative president?

[subego]

I thought Bush was a liberal.

[Shaddim]

Originally Posted by subego 

I thought Bush was a liberal.

Negative, just an idiot.

[chabig]

Originally Posted by Shaddim 

Negative, just an idiot.

...according to a liberal.

[Athens]

Originally Posted by subego 

I thought Bush was a liberal.

A War Criminal

[Shaddim]

Originally Posted by chabig 

...according to a liberal.

I'm liberal? Really? I'm so fiscally conservative I make Ron Paul look like a commie.

Bush was/is an idiot, no sense in trying to defend the man.