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Lets compare years in which there was a balanced budget with control of congress and the Presidency since the last time a Republican president balanced the budget:
In both the cases of LBJ and Clinton a mix of tax increases and spending cuts resulted in balanced budget. A one sided approach such as just cutting taxes and signing crazy pledges to such effect, which is the current dogma of Republicans, just won't cut it.
GOP icon Reagan with 2/3 control of congress for 6 of his 8 years never managed to balance the budget.
Except LBJ put welfare in place. Clinton was on the road to Carterville, except he did a 180° and colluded with those nasty Republicans on the Contract With America... and the Inet bubble is what sent him to positive GDP.
Fast forward to 2000... whooomp, bubble burst. Didn't hear a damn thing about Clinton from GWB, unlike Oh (Cry Me a River) bama.
And HELL YEA! I'm in the 75% on this poll! Maybe there's hope yet!
Lets compare years in which there was a balanced budget with control of congress and the Presidency since the last time a Republican president balanced the budget:
In both the cases of LBJ and Clinton a mix of tax increases and spending cuts resulted in balanced budget. A one sided approach such as just cutting taxes and signing crazy pledges to such effect, which is the current dogma of Republicans, just won't cut it.
GOP icon Reagan with 2/3 control of congress for 6 of his 8 years never managed to balance the budget.
Here is a free civic lesson for you, Presidents do not balance budgets. That Congress' job, specifically the House, and no Congress between 1950 and 1998 ever had a balanced budget. From 1954 through 1994 the Democrat controlled House gave us nothing but 40 years of deficit spending.
"I believe in self-sufficiency and smaller government, and not in a welfare-type state."
It's telling that 75% of the votes went to that option, when in reality, there are oh-so-many Republican voters who are not truly "self-sufficient (who is? Such a loaded phrase...), nor do they support "smaller government" when it comes to the military and defense, homeland security, criminal justice, corporate and farm subsidies, religion (specifically, right-wing variants of Christianity) in the public sphere...not to mention, the many Republican voters who depend on Social Security and Medicare and do not want to see their benefits cut.
I suppose the Republican Party voter base has never cared much for honesty, eh?
"I believe in self-sufficiency and smaller government, and not in a welfare-type state."
It's telling that 75% of the votes went to that option, when in reality, there are oh-so-many Republican voters who are not truly "self-sufficient (who is? Such a loaded phrase...), nor do they support "smaller government" when it comes to the military and defense, homeland security, criminal justice, corporate and farm subsidies, religion (specifically, right-wing variants of Christianity) in the public sphere...not to mention, the many Republican voters who depend on Social Security and Medicare and do not want to see their benefits cut.
I suppose the Republican Party voter base has never cared much for honesty, eh?
I understand your point. There are many poor people who draw from the state that vote Republican but if you break it down, the majority of those who draw from the state (i.e. "the 47%") do support the Democrats. I would think that the poor who support the Republicans do so for other reasons like social or religious reasons. I am not that type of Republican.
Ha ha...which would make sense if the GOP actually did address the deficits and balance the budget when they control the presidency/government...something which they haven't done since EISENHOWER IN THE 50s! Hence its all talking points from the GOP on balanced budgets and deficits.
Macro level economic growth is obviously more important than addressing a deficit....
These results of this poll are interesting thus far. Even though I know this is a small poll, it is interesting that the results are contrary to the media reports and everyday sterotypes about Republicans: gun tooting, bible thumping, eliminate all taxes, overzealous military protection for the US, etc. Leaner and smaller government is always on the list as well but gets lost with the other reasons.
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