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ARBUTUS, MARYLAND -- Mitt Romney said Wednesday that former President George W. Bush deserves credit for averting total economic collapse, not President Obama.
Romney delivered a passionate defense of the 2008 bank bailouts at a town hall here, aligning himself with the still-unpopular former president in the process.
"I keep hearing the president say that he's responsible for keeping America from going into a Great Depression," Romney said. "No, no, no. That was President George W. Bush and [then-Treasury Secretary] Hank Paulson."
Though Romney has previously spoken in support of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the full-throated defense, and the credit he gave to Bush, were surprising and seemed to open a new front in what's likely to be a major theme of the general election -- the relitigating of Bush's record in office. Democrats frequently point to Bush's policies as the source of the economy's continued tribulations, while Republicans say Obama hasn't done enough, or hasn't done the right things, to turn it around.
During the 2008 crash, Romney said, "President Bush and Hank Paulson said, 'We've got to do something to show we're not going to let the whole system go out of business.' I think they were right. I know some people disagree with me, but I think they were right to do that."
Romney: Bush, Not Obama, Saved the Economy - Molly Ball - Politics - The Atlantic
Romney: Bush, Not Obama, Saved the Economy
January 13, 2008
"The recession-deniers were muzzled by a horrendous last two weeks of December, and the gloom-and-doomers are now out in force. Their key arguments:
* Plummeting housing will now drag down the rest of the economy.
*The "bad debt" problem is not just "sub-prime" folks who should never have have taken out mortgages in the first place. It includes credit card debt, "high quality" mortgages, car loans, and other leverage that have recently become a consumer way of life.
*Pressure on consumers is leading to a reduction in consumer spending (70% of economy), which, in turn, will lead to a reduction in spending by companies that sell stuff to consumers.
*The question now is not "will there be a recession?" but "how bad will it get?"
*The most optimistic forecasts in a NYT gloom-and-doom round-up are for three crappy quarters, regardless of what the Fed does. Less optimistic forecasts suggest that we are, well, screwed.
After blowing the last downturn, we've been worried this one since last summer (see below). We also suspect that, given the importance of housing to the economy and debt to consumer spending, the recession will be deeper and more prolonged than people think."
The second leg of that fantasy will be that everything bad that happened was all Obama's fault.
The second leg of that fantasy will be that everything bad that happened was all Obama's fault.
Obama has been practicing mind (what little mind Bush had make it easy) control over Bush for some time. Obama made George Buxsh do things like crawl around on the floor and bark like a dog.
Amazing what Obama can do. Tanking the economy while Bush was President was easy. Obama made him do it. So that when Obama became President he could fix what Bush screwed up.
Yea that's what happened. It all Obamas fault.
Who's economy got "saved" ? China ? Brazil ?
I'm confused ?
I know it goes counter to the progressive "mantra" that Obama's stimulus prevented a second Great Depression but Romney is correct in his analysis that it was TARP that kept us from going into a deeper recession...and TARP was W's program.
Who's economy got "saved" ? China ? Brazil ?
I'm confused ?
I know it goes counter to the progressive "mantra" that Obama's stimulus prevented a second Great Depression but Romney is correct in his analysis that it was TARP that kept us from going into a deeper recession...and TARP was W's program.
True..and it went to help the wealthy..keep their wealth.
The Stimulus was for everyone else.
I know it goes counter to the progressive "mantra" that Obama's stimulus prevented a second Great Depression but Romney is correct in his analysis that it was TARP that kept us from going into a deeper recession...and TARP was W's program.
I know it goes counter to the progressive "mantra" that Obama's stimulus prevented a second Great Depression but Romney is correct in his analysis that it was TARP that kept us from going into a deeper recession...and TARP was W's program.
True..and it went to help the wealthy..keep their wealth.
The Stimulus was for everyone else.
Gee, Sallow...since the banks paid BACK the money they got from TARP I don't really have a problem with that. On the other hand, I'm not so happy with the billions that we gave to GM to save Barry's union friends benefits that we haven't gotten back or will get back for what looks like a long long time.
As far as what the "stimulus" was for? It protected public sector employees and left those of us in the private sector twisting in the wind. You saying it was for "everyone" is rather amusing.
I hear they are still trading derivatives, so much for making sure the economic crisis never happens again. If I was a pessimist, I would say a depression is just waiting to happen.Essantially the decision to SAVE THE BANKS started DURING the Bush Administration.
Obama's Treasury and FED continue to RECAPITALIZE the BANKS even to date.
Nothing has been "fixed" by Bush or Obama. It's called inflation, and it kicks the can down the road too. All Obama has managed doing is making that $14 trillion LOOK smaller. Bush made it look bigger. It is all just a shell game. And Nobody will ever fix it, because the fix would bring this country to its knees.
