In response to the editorial in Sunday's paper:
We, the undersigned (educators, farmers, business people and others), have lived through the Bush years and the Obama presidency. We feel that President Barack Obama has done so much more for us. For example, Obama has:
Created 122,000 jobs that were added in Ohio over a 25-month period.
Made the difficult decision to rescue U.S. automakers, saving more than 1 million jobs across America, protecting an industry that supports 484,000 Ohio jobs (by the way, Ohio's unemployment rate is 7.8).
Created a new tax credit for up to $10,000 over four years, helping 9 million middle-class families.
Campaigned for and signed the VOW to Hire Heroes Act, providing tax breaks to businesses that hire veterans!
Created or extended 18 tax cuts for small businesses.
Fought to eliminate tax loopholes to stop outsourcing and creating incentives to bring American jobs back home.
Now, about that deficit!
Obama inherited quite a deficit from his predecessor, President George W. Bush:
Bush spent $1.46 billion on wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; awarded $1,812 billion in tax cuts; spent $608 billion on non-descriptives; $224 billion on TARP and other bailouts; $180 billion on Medicare and drug benefits; and $773 billion on the 2008 stimulus and other charges.
Obama spent $711 billion on stimulus spending; $278 billion on non-defense; $424 billion on stimulus tax cuts; and $152 billion on health reform and entitlement changes.
Total cost of new policies:
Bush: $5.07 trillion
Obama: $1.44 trillion
(Some stats from The Washington Post).
Also important, but not evident by these list of expenditures is that Obama's major expenditures were temporary - the stimulus is over. Bush's were effectively recurring. Bush's tax cuts were for not just 10 years, but indefinitely! The Medicare drug benefit is costing money in perpetuity, not just for two or three years. Paul Ryan and John Boehner voted for these laws and in some cases helped to craft and pass them.
The debt ceiling debate - we're not raising the debt ceiling because of our policies passed in the last two years; we're raising the debt ceiling because of policies passed in recent decades, many under Republicans! When a party is not in office, it's convenient to blame the debt ceiling on the party in power. But it just is not true!
If you would like to know more, Democrats, Republicans or independents, please stop by our Democratic office at 112 S. Washington St., Tiffin. See you there!
Patricia Buskirk, Dylan Poe, Deborah J. Hoepf, Mary Russell, Jody Strong, Joanne Widman, Leslie Rohr Scherer, Janet Booth, Sandra J. Kimmel, J. Huffman Dobbs (U.S. Navy veteran), Joe and Eloise Granata, Jackie Fletcher, Pat and Warren Reinbolt, Barb Gooding, Mary Lilly, Marlene Reino, Eleanor M. Aldan, Jane L. Morgan, Jaimie Ortiz, Kathleen Ortiz, Aran Reinhart, Kathy Green, Judy Vroman, Jim Hunker and Nellie Alsys
