Paul Ryan's Mental Problem On Cutting The Federal Budget

It is time for Congressman Paul Ryan to resign and go back to civilian life.  His mental faculty concerning budget cuts leaves a lot to be desired and his hypocrisy on the subject matter is matched by the Sunday news shows, CNN's economic reports, most cable news networks, especially Fox news and CNBC's Larry Kudlow, the worst of them all.

This writer will fill in Ryan's problem when he talks about federal spending and budget cuts and how the news media entertains his fairy tale rhetoric and misleads the American people.  Myth is alive and well when republicans get together with the Sunday media programs.  Lets examine the facts and put the myths to bed, its getting tiresome.

When it comes to controlling and cutting federal spending democratic administrations have the best record since 1980, thats a 33 year period and the administrations of Bill Clinton and Barack Obama did a much better job by far controlling and cutting federal spending than Reagan, Bush 41 and Bush 43.  Those three republican Presidents did a good job of saying they would reduce federal spending and balance the budget but they hold the distinction of having the largest increase in federal spending in that 33 year period.  (See notes below.)  President Obama's administration has the smallest increase in federal spending in his first three fiscal years in office and President Clinton has the second smallest increase in that 33 year period.  Federal spending under Reagan, Bush 41 and Bush 43 increased dramatically and by a wide margin over Clinton and Obama.  I use this 33 year period because that is the time frame republicans use to talk about federal spending.  It should also be noted that Reagan, Bush 41 and Bush 43 never balanced one federal budget in the 20 years they ran the country. 

Ryan's problem mentally is his lies about federal spending increases under the Obama administration and the fact that Ryan and the republicans who controlled both houses of congress the first 6 years Bush 43 was President was silent while they over spent and turned Clinton's surpluses and balanced budgets into deficit spending the very first year of Bush's fiscal budget and for all of Bush's 8 years in office.  Not once did they reduce federal spending or object to raising the debt ceiling.  And at the end of Bush's last fiscal year the national debt had increased 105% on Bush's watch and he was the first President ever to have a single year deficit to top one trillion dollars and still holds the single year record of $1.4 trillion deficit.

Ryan and his party had a great opportunity to cut and reduce federal spending and balance the federal budget on their watch with Bush 43 at the helm and failed to keep the federal government's fiscal house in order as President Clinton did.  Deficit spending, balanced budgets, the national debt and a small increase in federal spending was not a problem when Clinton left office.  George W. Bush and the republicans in congress turned that into a national tragedy in just 8 short years and the American people are still feeling the effects.

So how did Ryan and the republicans deal with the disaster they left Obama and the people with.  They vowed not to work with the President because they wanted him to be a one term President and did not want to see America do well again on the watch of a democratic President.  Listening to Ryan and the republicans one would never know that no republican President has balanced the federal budget since "Ike" in 1960 but two democratic Presidents have balanced 5 federal budgets since that time. 

Mr. Ryan and his party are not only the champs at unbalanced federal budgets but take the gold star for increased federal spending.  And try this on for size:  Reagan presided over the very first trillion dollar budget.  Bush 43 presided over the first two and three trillion dollar budgets.  It took the country 15 years to go from a one trillion dollar budget to a two trillion dollar budget, but it only took Bush 43 seven years to go from a two trillion dollar budget to a three trillion dollar budget.  Is it any worder why Ryan and the republicans try to lie about the so called big spending democrats.  When you are a phony, you are a phony, as simple as that.

Note:  See the below past commentaries by this writer.

          The National Debt:  Betryal and Devastation   dated 12/6/09

          Federal Spending:  Facts vs. Myths    dated 10/31/09

          President Obama's First Term in Office Has Been Positive  dated 10/27/12

This commentary was written by John Lucia