Democrats wrong about Bush tax cuts

The Congressional Budget Office reports that the federal deficit for fiscal 2007 fell 35 percent. Since 2004 the deficit has fallen by $251 billion -- the most in any three- year period in U.S. history.

Federal taxes taken from all Americans in 2007 amounted to $2.568 trillion, or about 18.8 percent of GDP. (Over the past 40 years it's averaged 18.2 percent.) Individual taxes increased about 11.3 percent, twice what our GDP increased. Since Bush's tax cuts, taxes have increased by $785 billion -- the most in any four-period in U.S. history. Taxes paid by the "rich" account for most of the increase. The federal deficit's percentage of total GDP in 2007 is 1.2 percent. The average in the past 50 years has been 2.4 percent. In fiscal 2007 federal spending of your income (which is where taxes come from) increased only 2.8 percent.

So, the facts disprove the Democrats' claim that Bush's tax cuts reduced tax revenue, raised the deficit and lessened the amount of taxes the wealthy pay. And now they want to end Bush's tax cuts, raise taxes, and spend a lot more. That's called increasing the tax rate, and as economists know, that reduces the amount of total tax dollars the government takes in since it takes money from what increases the economy and gives it to what decreases the economy. From that we all suffer.

So, despite the fact that the housing market's decline is threatening a recession, Democrats want to do what is bad for the economy. Why do some people support them?

Janice Shadley

Oakbrook Terrace