Although I agree with almost every single point the author made, I don’t think it’s fair to single out Obama with being the only confidence-breaker in U.S. history with his tax pledge. Has the author forgotten about George H.W. Bush’s infamous “read my lips” pledge?
Recent history shows Reagan and Bush Sr. both promised sweeping tax cuts when becoming president but then, within a year or two, they quickly realized doing this wasn’t wise or sustainable. The federal and state governments were quickly losing their cushions of money, surplus was becoming deficit. They changed their tunes, going back on bold promises to the American people and eventually raised taxes.
Like it or not: we NEED to pay taxes. Without this revenue, countless services and programs would stop. Our country would shut down. People here grumble about Uncle Sam taking their hard earned money, that they should be allowed to keep more if not all of it, but these critics continue to avoid seeing the truth. Don’t get me wrong: I don’t believe more/higher taxes are the answer. I believe fiscal responsibility is key (e.g. low taxes and limited government budgets). It’s fiscal recklessness that’s brought us to this point and the journey took just under eight years.
Bush Jr. was no ordinary Republican president. He promised similar tax cuts before taking office but nothing truly bold like his father. When he took office this country had a huge surplus thanks to the Clinton administration (yes, Clinton did achieve this on his watch) but then Bush Jr. left us with a staggering deficit. How? Why?
Well, the reasons are simple enough: sweeping tax cuts, signing off on EVERY spending bill from 2000 – 2006 (when Republicans controlled Congress), fighting two wars in the Middle East, and approving Medicare Part D, one of the largest entitlement programs in our history. The last item is surprising, no? It looks like a socialist program (and it is), like something a Democratic president would support, not a Republican one. The motivation behind Bush’s approval for this bill is simple enough too: securing the elderly vote for his 2004 reelection. The elderly make up a large percentage of the population and are a critical voter base a presidential hopeful. Bush didn’t pass this bill because it was right, nor did he do it because it was in the country’s best interests. He did it purely for political reasons. Shocking!
*Yawn*
The lesson learned from all this is simply that every presidential candidate will promise the world to voters so he/she can secure as many votes as possible. This shouldn’t be news to anyone. The author pointing the finger of blame only at Obama is dishonest, especially when so many other Republican president have done it too. But is Obama really no different than the rest?
I suppose the only difference is now we have a president who is aggressively taxing the people in new and different ways more so than previous presidents. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (“stimulus” bill), Cap-and-Trade, Wall St. bailout, GM bailout, Obamacare and now a VAT on the horizon all add up to the most frightening assault on the incomes and savings of American citizens in our nation’s history. The tax pledge isn’t new but the methods of going back on that promise are very, very different.