Anyone remember the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 aka as the Deficit Reduction Act of 1993?
Not one Republican supported it or voted for it. In fact, what the legislation did, in part, was raise tax rates, oh so slightly, for individuals in the top 1.2% of earners. It was attacked continuously and repeatedly by Republicans as a job killer that would wreck havoc on the US economy, sending the US into an economic tail spin.
What happened? We had the largest, sustained peace time expansion of our economy in American history.
Here's where the rubber meets the road. I'm not going to contend, as some people do, that this legislation led to the economic expansion, but it's clear that it helped set the stage for an eventual surplus. But that's not even the point.
The POINT is that all that GOP doom 'n' gloom about what would happen to the economy if taxes were modestly raised on top earners turned out to be nothing but scare tactics reminiscent of the Chicken Little story from childhood.
Now, I don't know how many Republicans then (and now) believe(d) their own hype, and how many were/are just serving their wealthy campaign donors' wishes to fight any tax increase, but it's clear that their stated fears were clearly not justified.
Not one Republican supported it or voted for it. In fact, what the legislation did, in part, was raise tax rates, oh so slightly, for individuals in the top 1.2% of earners. It was attacked continuously and repeatedly by Republicans as a job killer that would wreck havoc on the US economy, sending the US into an economic tail spin.
What happened? We had the largest, sustained peace time expansion of our economy in American history.
Here's where the rubber meets the road. I'm not going to contend, as some people do, that this legislation led to the economic expansion, but it's clear that it helped set the stage for an eventual surplus. But that's not even the point.
The POINT is that all that GOP doom 'n' gloom about what would happen to the economy if taxes were modestly raised on top earners turned out to be nothing but scare tactics reminiscent of the Chicken Little story from childhood.
Now, I don't know how many Republicans then (and now) believe(d) their own hype, and how many were/are just serving their wealthy campaign donors' wishes to fight any tax increase, but it's clear that their stated fears were clearly not justified.
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