USA - Economic outlook isn't quite so rosy as Bush says it is - by Molly Ivins
When Bush took over in 2001, he had predicted a surplus of $516 billion for fiscal year 2006. Last week, the administration announced a 2006 deficit of $248 billion, missing its projection for this year by $764 billion. Bush said the numbers are "proof that pro-growth economic policies work" and are "an example of sound fiscal policies here in Washington." This is highly reminiscent of Vice President Dick Cheney's recent observation about the Iraqi government: "If you look at the general overall situation, they're doing remarkably well." If Bush manages to make the tax cuts permanent, it will add more than $3 trillion to the national debt over the next 10 years. The budget would be virtually in balance if there had been no tax cuts.
Meanwhile, what we see in the economy as a whole is an immense shift of wealth from the poor and middle class to the very rich. It seems a little painful to have to point this out yet again after six solid years of it, but these are lies, damn lies and statistics."
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