It must be hell when you are a conservative with a top rated T.V. show and you try to make a fool of your guest and the viewing public by misleading both concerning the facts of the subject matter. O'Reilly and Fox News think of themselves as elite and evidently enjoy the sad role they play. I can just hear them after the show saying, "we took our stupid viewers to the cleaners once again tonight, those fools."
O'Reilly on his show dated above told his guest Bill Maher and the audience that President Obama was the biggest spending President in the history of the United States. That was a blatant and out right lie and the numbers provided in this post below will prove so. What is behind the O'Reilly and Fox's failure to stand up for the truth? I have the answer, it chaps them both that the truth points our that Reagan, Bush 41 and Bush 43 were not only the biggest spending Presidents of their time, but also the biggest deficit spenders and creators of debt when they were in office. O'Reilly and his bunch do not have the character or courage to report the truth or facts.
Federal spending, the budget and the national debt are published by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the Treasury Department on line and contain the final actual numbers by fiscal years. The federal government's fiscal year is October 1 thru September 30 and that is how the CBO carries the budget numbers for each administration. All numbers below are taken from the CBO and Treasury. Now lets examine O'Reilly's false charge and lie.
Total federal spending for George W. Bush's last fiscal year budget
that ended 9/30/09 ..........................................................................................$3.52 Trillion
Bush's record deficit for that same fiscal year .................................................1.416 Trillion
Total federal spending for Barrack Obama's first fiscal year budget
that ended 9/30/10 .........................................................................................$3.46 Trillion
a decrease in federal spending of 1.6%. No Republican President has
had a decrease in spending over the previous year in the last 50 years.
Obama's deficit spending for that same fiscal year ........................................1.294 Trillion
The National Debt stood at $5.807 Trillion on 9/30/01 at the end of
President Clinton's last fiscal year budget.
The National Debt stood at $11.909 Trillion on 9/30/09 at the end of
President Bush's last fiscal year budget. An increase in the national debt
of $6.1 Trillion on Mr. Bush's watch. An increase of 105%.
It should be noted Bush handled the cost of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan outside the budget process so Bush's numbers are actually worse than shown. The bottom line is that the administration of George W. Bush as of this writing is still the biggest spending President in the history of the U.S., the biggest deficit spender and the biggest creator of debt. When you look at what Bush inherited when he took office, balanced budgets with record surpluses, record economy and job creation, lowest unemployment in over 30 years and compare that with the economic meltdown and record job losses that Obama inherited from Bush, it is easy to see that Obama has done a good job.
I would recommend that any one who is interested in the facts go to the CBO and Treasure site and you will find that only two Presidents have presided over a balance budget since 1969, Presidents Johnson and Clinton, both democrats. You will also find that since Reagan was elected, Reagan, Bush 41 and Bush 43 are responsible for the greater part of the national debt as it stands today. Those three Presidents served for 20 years and failed to balance one federal budget.
What also chaps O'Reilly and the conservatives is the fact that the economy is on the right track and that once again it is a democratic administration's policies that are working and that will put America back to work. The republicans have no hand in that. For more information concerning how Reagan, Bush 41 and Bush 43 has taken the middle class and our country to the cleaners with their massive spending and debt see my past commentaries listed below.
The National Debt: Betrayal and Devastation dated 12/06/09
Federal Spending: Facts vs. Myth dated 10/31/09
The Fiscal Legacy of George W. Bush dated 10/30/09
The Republican Cycle of Record Federal Deficits and Debt dated 8/3/08
The U.S. Economy: Which Party Performs Best Part I of III dated 1/27/08
