Stalin's Sermon: Incompetence
Today's sermon is dedicated to incompetence - specifically, to republican incompetence.
Let's review.
We were told that we needed to invade Iraq because Saddam, Rummy's old buddy and the guy who got stared down by Valerie Plame's husband after he invaded Kuwait, was a danger and had WMDs. We were told about drones capable of attacking the U.S. mainland with chemical and biological agents. We were told they were one year away from getting nukes.
Wasn't true.
We were told that Iraq's oil revenues would pay for what was likely to be a short occupation of less than six months. That wasn't true, either.
Then, we were told - after the WMDs weren't found and the torture chamber argument collapsed subsequently to Abu Ghraib - that we were in Iraq to promote democracy. Sounds like a good idea, except that what is now emerging is a constitution that will create a loosely structured Shi'ite theocracy that significantly restricts the rights of the female half of the population. Maybe that's Wolfowitz's payback for those females failing to come out and shower our troops with flowers? Payback of a sort? Or just a favor to the heirs of Ayatollah Khomeini, who are the real beneficiaries of Bush's war, and have now been handed the victory in Iraq that eluded them in the Persian Gulf war?
On the budget and taxes, we were told that the Bush tax cuts would still leave over plenty of the budget surplus amassed by the Clinton administration. We were also told they would create six million new jobs.
Well, no.
With the exception of that other economic genius' tenure, Ronnie's, Bush is running deficits that are at a historic high - higher than in most years after WWII. The U.S. government in 2004 had revenues of $1.862 trillion, and expenditures of $2.338 trillion, leaving us with a budget deficit of a cool $476 billion. In other words, for every four dollars it took in, the government borrowed another dollar. Considering that much of that borrowing was from China, basically, out of every dollar George Bush spent last year, a dime came from the commies in Beijing.
Cons will note that the figures for fiscal 2005 are somewhat less disastrous - but that's because of front-loaded tax payments by corporations that will cost more down the line. There's no hope in that argument, sorry.
In the economic arena generally, as we have since Ronnie's tenure, we performed miserably in 2004. We imported $1.476 trillion worth of goods, and exported $795 billion, for a cumultive deficit of $646.5 billion. Note that the trade deficit isn't that much smaller than the total value of our exports. But then again, the dollar has declined about 40% against the Euro since Bush was declared the winner by his daddy's judges, so it could be worse.
The list goes on: we were told there were 62 stem cell lines for research, when in fact there are four. We were told that 'No Child Left Behind' would save the education system; today, the State of Connecticut, led by a republican governor, filed suit to enjoin that law. We were told that mouthing anti-choice phrases would lower the number of abortions; they have, in fact, risen. Basically, Bush isn't just a liar and a slobbering idiot - he also kills babies.
And the cons wonder why they couldn't sell their social security gimmickry. And still they wonder, as Dear Leader's job approval numbers tumble into the thirties. No wonder - the failure of con policies to live up to their marketing is so spectacular that even Faux "News" can't redeem the debacle.
Let's review.
We were told that we needed to invade Iraq because Saddam, Rummy's old buddy and the guy who got stared down by Valerie Plame's husband after he invaded Kuwait, was a danger and had WMDs. We were told about drones capable of attacking the U.S. mainland with chemical and biological agents. We were told they were one year away from getting nukes.
Wasn't true.
We were told that Iraq's oil revenues would pay for what was likely to be a short occupation of less than six months. That wasn't true, either.
Then, we were told - after the WMDs weren't found and the torture chamber argument collapsed subsequently to Abu Ghraib - that we were in Iraq to promote democracy. Sounds like a good idea, except that what is now emerging is a constitution that will create a loosely structured Shi'ite theocracy that significantly restricts the rights of the female half of the population. Maybe that's Wolfowitz's payback for those females failing to come out and shower our troops with flowers? Payback of a sort? Or just a favor to the heirs of Ayatollah Khomeini, who are the real beneficiaries of Bush's war, and have now been handed the victory in Iraq that eluded them in the Persian Gulf war?
On the budget and taxes, we were told that the Bush tax cuts would still leave over plenty of the budget surplus amassed by the Clinton administration. We were also told they would create six million new jobs.
Well, no.
With the exception of that other economic genius' tenure, Ronnie's, Bush is running deficits that are at a historic high - higher than in most years after WWII. The U.S. government in 2004 had revenues of $1.862 trillion, and expenditures of $2.338 trillion, leaving us with a budget deficit of a cool $476 billion. In other words, for every four dollars it took in, the government borrowed another dollar. Considering that much of that borrowing was from China, basically, out of every dollar George Bush spent last year, a dime came from the commies in Beijing.
Cons will note that the figures for fiscal 2005 are somewhat less disastrous - but that's because of front-loaded tax payments by corporations that will cost more down the line. There's no hope in that argument, sorry.
In the economic arena generally, as we have since Ronnie's tenure, we performed miserably in 2004. We imported $1.476 trillion worth of goods, and exported $795 billion, for a cumultive deficit of $646.5 billion. Note that the trade deficit isn't that much smaller than the total value of our exports. But then again, the dollar has declined about 40% against the Euro since Bush was declared the winner by his daddy's judges, so it could be worse.
The list goes on: we were told there were 62 stem cell lines for research, when in fact there are four. We were told that 'No Child Left Behind' would save the education system; today, the State of Connecticut, led by a republican governor, filed suit to enjoin that law. We were told that mouthing anti-choice phrases would lower the number of abortions; they have, in fact, risen. Basically, Bush isn't just a liar and a slobbering idiot - he also kills babies.
And the cons wonder why they couldn't sell their social security gimmickry. And still they wonder, as Dear Leader's job approval numbers tumble into the thirties. No wonder - the failure of con policies to live up to their marketing is so spectacular that even Faux "News" can't redeem the debacle.
posted by Michael at 12:59 AM
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