CONNECT
Campaign for America's Future / Guide
Published: Tuesday 30 August 2011
These things really matter. We all want to fix the terrible problems the country has. But it is so important to know just what the problems are before you decide how to fix them.
Three Charts To Email To Your Right-Wing Brother-In-Law
Problem: Your right-wing brother-in-law is plugged into the FOX-Limbaugh lie machine, and keeps sending you emails about "Obama spending" and "Obama deficits" and how the "Stimulus" just made things worse.
Solution: Here are three "reality-based" charts to send to him. These charts show what actually happened.
Spending
Government spending increased dramatically under Bush. It has not increased much under Obama. Note that this chart does not reflect any spending cuts resulting from deficit-cutting deals.
Deficits
Notes, this chart includes Clinton's last budget year for comparison.
The numbers in these two charts come from Budget of the United States Government: Historical Tables Fiscal Year 2012. They are just the amounts that the government spent and borrowed, period. Anyone can go look them up. People who claim that Obama "tripled the deficit" are either misled or are trying to mislead.
The Stimulus and Job
In this chart, the RED lines on the left side -- the ones that keep doing DOWN -- show what happened to jobs under the policies of Bush and the Republicans. We were losing lots and lots of jobs every month, and it was getting worse and worse. The BLUE lines -- the ones that just go UP -- show what happened to jobs when the stimulus was in effect. We stopped losing jobs and started gaining jobs, and it was getting better and better. The leveling off on the right side of the chart shows what happened as the stimulus started to wind down: job creation leveled off at too low a level.
It looks a lot like the stimulus reversed what was going on before the stimulus.
Conclusion: THE STIMULUS WORKED BUT WAS NOT ENOUGH!
More False Things
These are just three of the false things that everyone "knows." Some others are (click through): Obama bailed out the banks, businesses will hire if they get tax cuts, health care reform cost $1 trillion, Social Security is a Ponzi Scheme or is "going broke", government spending "takes money out of the economy."
Why This Matters
These things really matter. We all want to fix the terrible problems the country has. But it is so important to know just what the problems are before you decide how to fix them. Otherwise the things you do to try to solve those problems might just make them worse. If you get tricked into thinking that Obama has made things worse and that we should go back to what we were doing before Obama -- tax cuts for the rich, giving giant corporations and Wall Street everything they want -- when those are the things that caused the problems in the first place, then we will be in real trouble.
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54 comments on "Three Charts To Email To Your Right-Wing Brother-In-Law"
April 11, 2012 7:18am
Do you care to explain? By my information, trade with China accounts for only 7.5% of our imports.
September 08, 2011 2:26pm
Most people in the US are slaves to their debit. They might have better living conditions than your ancestors and don't have to deal with the same physical abuse, but they are slaves none the less. People are enslaved by their cars, the need to buy gas, the need to protect the sources of the oil for the gas, the debt that they are in to buy the car and they are so busy trying to keep their job they can't see past the short term issues to vote to resolve the underlying issue that create the conditions that make them slaves. Debt and oil are just the tip of the iceberg, health care is the real biggie.
September 08, 2011 2:25pm
Most people in the US are slaves to their debit. They might have better living conditions than your ancestors and don't have to deal with the same physical abuse, but they are slaves none the less. People are enslaved by their cars, the need to buy gas, the need to protect the sources of the oil for the gas, the debt that they are in to buy the car and they are so busy trying to keep their job they can't see past the short term issues to vote to resolve the underlying issue that create the conditions that make them slaves. Debt and oil are just the tip of the iceberg, health care is the real biggie.
September 08, 2011 2:24pm
Most people in the US are slaves to their debit. They might have better living conditions than your ancestors and don't have to deal with the same physical abuse, but they are slaves none the less. People are enslaved by their cars, the need to buy gas, the need to protect the sources of the oil for the gas, the debt that they are in to buy the car and they are so busy trying to keep their job they can't see past the short term issues to vote to resolve the underlying issue that create the conditions that make them slaves. Debt and oil are just the tip of the iceberg, health care is the real biggie.
September 08, 2011 9:25am
Of course, Obama is better for America. I do think it's cute though, the fact that you imagine anybody's right-wing brother-in-law would be swayed by a bunch of left-wing-commie charts. LMAO
September 03, 2011 6:29am
fab
September 01, 2011 12:59am
Rightwing, leftwing. pulling against the wind.But it's the tail feathers missingthat makes the eagle spin.Bald eagle flying,turkey on the ground.The dance of many colors,will bring the eagle down.
August 31, 2011 5:39am
Amen brother!! Time to re-enact Glass-Steagall!
August 31, 2011 5:22am
These charts dont mean a damn thing. Just a simplistic comparison of Obama vs Bush. It plays it the same old game of my team vs yours, that Bushians are better of worse than Obamians. It doesnt reflect what is really wrong: That most of American budget deficit could be solved if military misadventures were over. That when housing bubble burst and people could not paid their loans back and banks were at the verge of bankruptcy and the whole economic was shambles and etc... until now, could have been prevented if a tiny portion of the TARPs, Stimulus's, bail-outs and the rest were given to the people and NOT the banks... so that they could pay their loans back, so that banks get their money back that way, the wheels of economy start sniping again and in a more natural and just way... instead the biggest financial rubbery of our time happened, trillions not billions were paid to selective group of banks who later had their executives take home all time high bonuses and the real economy, the one that produces and manufactures and hires, suffered, collapsed and was shipped overseas. No these charts do not reflect any of that... they also do not tell you that both Bush and now Obama administrations are full of wall street people... the same people who are supposed to regulate these giants, will not s... where they used to or still do eat. These charts wont tell you why when banks got their trillions, GM and the likes barely got a few billions with a ton conditions... these charts wont tell you why the real economy is not getting bailed out... they wont tell you in reality and at the end of the day there is no difference in grand economic, social, foreign and political policies... because both parties are bought and paid for by giant multinational corporations in every major industry... from pharmaceuticals to oil and gas, from military industrial complex to the likes of Monsanto... nothing changes because average you and me keep scratching the surface
August 31, 2011 12:25am
To call yourself a "slave" takes away from my ancestors plights and suffering who were actually slaves in this Country. Only a spoiled, entitled person would have the gall to actually equate their modern-day experiences to slavery. You don't seem to understand American history in the slightest if you feel that way. By entitled, I don't mean wealthy, though I do mean what the average American STILL has and are STILL able to accomplish or obtain in this Country. Get over yourself and refocus on a positive agenda. Don't allow yourself to accept this pitiful view of yourself. I don't feel sorry for you - or me for that matter - and I'm currently unemployed with a family to try and feed. Though I feel nothing like a slave, because I understand what my ancestors went through in a thorough way. And no, I'm not a Democrat. Any logical and reasonably educated Black person in this Country shouldn't dare be a Democrat, or a Republican. Woman up and get strong. You are only a "slave" in your own mind. Poor thing.
August 30, 2011 8:40pm
How could you miss posting about the Chinese trade deficit? That's another BIG problem (root of all problems) that would DEFINITELY bolster the positions supported by the charts.
August 30, 2011 8:10pm
Sure they went up, but why?Because Bush spent trillions invading Iraq and spending money on supporting fossil fuel industries and givin g tax breaks to wealthy Americans and ignoring the collapse of the housing market and Wall Street investment Ponzi schemes by downplaying and ignoring regulations in agencies run byhis cronies(remember Homeland Security's Katrina disaster?) . Nice try...
August 30, 2011 7:24pm
With shared, you mean 21 days vs 344 days? Frankly both are same shits.
August 30, 2011 6:21pm
Thank you for the charts.
August 30, 2011 3:44pm
Good to see the things we know to be true represented graphically. Unfortunately, it won't be facts that convince people, but emotion, and that will be swayed by slick media manipulation.
August 30, 2011 3:12pm
Wow my post got censored because I criticized the author. Nice journalism guys!
August 30, 2011 3:29pm
We don't censor posts, Ted. It may have been our automatic spam filters that picked up your comment. Feel free to try to post again. If you're still having issues, please contact us: http://www.nationofchange.org/contact
August 30, 2011 2:31pm
Have a look at this chart from a Harvard Economics professor to see why everyone is concerned with how much we are spending. He shows non-defense discretionary spending as a % of GDP. This is a much better metric of how much your government is spending (as compared to total spending in chart 1) since mandatory spending (entitlements) and defense (a primary function of the federal government) aren't included.
http://gregmankiw.blogspot.com/2011/08/federal-nondefense-spending-of-gd...
August 30, 2011 2:20pm
Some comments have challenged the charts as misleading and selective so as to promote a left leaning agenda.Where is the author of this piece when comments seem to raise legitimate issues about how time periods were selected, etc.? Anyone suggesting we send charts, when those charts are questioned, ought to step up. The conservatives always want to argue, so if you, Dave Johnson, don't answer your critics, I have little confidence in your methodology.I would like to, but now hesitate, to share the piece with my right wing friends unless the author steps up and defends his chart selection and time frames.
August 30, 2011 2:14pm
Don't despair. If your brother-in-law is a committed tea-partier, than yes, he won't change his mind. If he's run-of-the mill right wingish, he may call it a lie, but it will be there now, in the back of his head. Obtaining a reason to doubt is a necessary step towards opening a closed mind. And when it comes down to it, committed right wingers are a small minority with a big bullhorn. Getting facts to the masses is always a worthy endeavor. It takes a lot more energy to push the boulder uphill, hence the need for the Fox News to reinforce lies they are trying to maintain in the face of reality. But have some confidence that truth does set you free. Information is power.
August 30, 2011 2:34pm
I will also say that in my mini research done today, I have had an open mind and seen that Bush did in fact spend quite a bit more than he took in. So did Reagan. There are extenuating circumstances in both cases but both so called conservatives believed only in tax cuts for growth, and didn't follow up with spending reductions... hence, large deficits. How open is your mind to facts that challenge beliefs you hold?
August 30, 2011 2:28pm
I'll ask you to name a lie told by Fox News
August 30, 2011 4:41pm
Here's a start:
http://foxnewslies.net/
August 30, 2011 1:52pm
Chart #2 is misleading because FY 2009 was shared between Bush and Obama. It is very large because it has TARP as at outlay that year which was considered revenue when it was repaid (in FY 09 and 10). Obama also passed the stimulus in FY 09 and much of the spending occurred in that FY. There was also a substantial increase in spending for programs such as Medicaid and unemployment benefits that rose due to the recession. Also, do not forget that democrats controlled both houses of Congress from FY 07 to FY 10 and I'm sure you all know that Congress passes budgets, presidents just sign them. The last budget passed by a GOP Congress and President was FY 06 - a deficit of 168 B I believe.
Washington, California
August 31, 2011 6:29am
No, 2009 was not shared. Follow the lins in the post, you will find that Cato Institute explains this.
1/3 of stimulus "spending" was tax cuts, which do not show up as "spending" in the budget.
August 31, 2011 8:54am
Much of the "tax cuts" you are referring to were refundable tax credits to people who paid no taxes to begin with. How is that not a handout or spending?
August 30, 2011 1:44pm
Didnt anyone hear that the Federal Reserve was audited and 16 trillion was passed under the table to corporate pigs? Now your solution is MORE stimulus? Makes sense to me.
Washington, California
August 31, 2011 6:33am
Stimulus is spending on infrastructure, jobs, things like that, NOT anything given to banks. Bush did those bailouts, giving that money directly to banks, no strings attached. Spending on infrastructure to create jobs is a very different thing, and when it is done yo have the infrastructure helping businesses and the economy, instead of tax cuts which leave behind debt.
August 30, 2011 2:37pm
I haven't seen that 16 T figure but I believe it. I did read that a lot of it went to foreign banks. I do know that the monetary base (amount of money out on the table so to speak) has gone up about 27% in the past 3 years. Significant inflation cannot be far away. This is a major contributor to the increase in oil/gas prices.
August 30, 2011 1:42pm
Your "deficit" chart shows Obama tied with Bush, then "projections" that show a decrease in deficit, with a big arrow. Nice flashy chart dude! So, let me get this straight, they are tied but your going to draw a big arrow next to "projections". YOU LOST ME! I'm leaving your website. Your just a cheerleader for your team; which really means your just a STATIST caught up in the left/right paradigm- the illusion of choice. Way to divide and conquer. Jerk.
Washington, California
August 31, 2011 6:35am
When a new CEO comes into a company that is losing money, the changes take time. You can't just have the company making money the next year, and you can't blame the new CEO if it is not.
You can't say that Obama has done anything to create these deficits, when Bush left us with a $1.4 TRILLION deficit. That was Obama's starting point.
August 30, 2011 1:41pm
From a Right wing perspective. No one says these charts are lies. But Chart #3 is completely misleading in that the timeline starts as the beginning of the recession. If you made of chart of any recession, the change in employment will obviously go down, bottom out and then come back up. Starting from Bush's first term, private employment went up 1 million, with 52 consecutive months of job growth, the longest post war. That figure includes the nearly 7 mil jobs lost as part of the recession. As of right now, 2 mil private sector jobs have been lost under Obama.
September 03, 2011 6:40pm
No, actually the BIGGEST employer during Bush?
The GOVERNMENT!!!!
Washington, California
August 31, 2011 6:36am
Compare Bush's record of job creation to any other President, and see what happens. And that is not even counting the disaster he caused at the end.
August 30, 2011 1:34pm
right on.
August 30, 2011 1:33pm
After reading the artical and the comments, becomes obvious no matter what I have to say will be contentious. My political views are not set in any one party. For example I voted in protest for the nut Ross Parod. Our politial system is totally corrupt. The exclusionist tactic in our political system, is that unless you have millions an or have friends wth deep pockets the average joe regardless of intellect can not run for office. The media can not make money unless the politician can command attention to attract the public . Our political system has been transformed into an Enterprise .Classic example Sarah Palin, knows perfectly well she does not stand a prayer in hell of winning, but she commands attention, the media loves it and public suck it right up. She is making a mockery of our political system and the public. In a short period she became a millioners. So ask youself, is our political system an Enterprise or not?
August 30, 2011 12:26pm
I make charts just like that all the time in Microsoft Publisher, it's easy, you can make the numbers say anything you want, just have to spin it your way. All the parties are trash...the Left gives our money to people who don't contribute, and the Right gives it to people who don't need it.... how do you win... put somebody in who is a working stiff... actually works 12 hours a day to feed his family and we might just fix this dang country...
August 30, 2011 12:25pm
I make charts just like that all the time in Microsoft Publisher, it's easy, you can make the numbers say anything you want, just have to spin it your way. All the parties are trash...the Left gives our money to people who don't contribute, and the Right gives it to people who don't need it.... how do you win... put somebody in who is a working stiff... actually works 12 hours a day to feed his family and we might just fix this dang country...
August 30, 2011 12:13pm
Propaganda works in different ways depending on who it's being applied to. It is particularly effective if applied correctly. For example, the religious right has been conditioned since birth to accept things that make no logical sense "on faith", so they will believe whatever is told to them by those they've been programmed to trust regardless of evidence to the contrary. Such evidence is labeled as coming from sources contrary to theirs (liberals, comunists, socialists, satanists, etc). Once so labeled, arguments are automatically rejected regardless of how effective or well supported with evidence they are.
Extremists to the left are also vulnerable, but to different sorts of propaganda. Leftists will tend to be accepting of arguments that are supported with charts, data and statistics, which can be manipulated or slanted. It is important for everyone, including us here, to understand when they are being propagandized to. But with the breakdown of public education, critical thinking skills are on the verge of extinction amongst most of the population. So, these fact and figure based arguments will fare no better convincing republicans they are wrong than when they quote preachers or mangle and mis-interpret the intentions of our founding fathers.
August 30, 2011 12:11pm
For every person that doesn't believe these charts and say that right wing are good for them and this country. They really need to watch the movie: Capitalism, a love story. It is sickening and makes me feel hopeless - since we are just modern day slaves (really). To know we have people running this country down the drain for the love of Capitalism - free enterprise which means get it for the lowest price available. Is that really what is good for this country? Simple NO! While they are making over 100% profits most of the time, still don't create jobs rather are being laid off? Furthermore, these are the same people that would sell their mother for a buck but why do that? Thats when the corporate media comes into play. Pay them lots of money to keep people misinformed or plugged into stupid reality shows and to add insult to injury, close schools down so people can just be plain stupid! Stupid people don't ask questions, simple as that...Now thats great for a Nation?! right? NOT!!!! People are gonna wake up (I hope!!) one day and realize all this finger pointing was a waste of time and by the time people realize it, we will have nothing. Only the rich. Doesn't matter how many people have lost their jobs, homes, or self worth. It doesn't matter to them you'll be making them money in other ways like buying antidepressants or just going to jail. 90% jails are profit only jails so you are worth more to them locked up than them trying to give you a job!!! Now tell that to a republican. They won't want to believe it nor will they research the fact. Immigration isn't the problem, it is asses in politics, banks and corps that are guilty of all this wrong doing. These banks are even putting life policies on their employees cause you are worth more to them dead then alive!!!
August 30, 2011 12:07pm
The charts are great but right wing brother-in-law will just say it is more liberal lies. How do you present the truth to people who are disconnected from reality?
Anyone who believes that the solution to anything is shutter the EPA, NLRB, medicaid, medicare, OSHA and so on is not even worth speaking to. Frankly, I believe the time for charts and talking is about over. I don't believe anything short of another civil war will fix this. We are still talking to the same class of people who thought it was God's will that white people should own black slaves.
August 30, 2011 1:30pm
Really, what party did Lincoln help start? Which party admitted to starting the Ku Klux Klan? Which party passed Jim Crow laws? What party was against the Civil Rights Act?
I'd bet you'd be wrong on each answer
August 30, 2011 11:59am
Who made up the charts? The data source is located at the bottom of each chart -- US Govt Budget Office. Voting blindly is what landed us into 8 years of Bush spending away our surplus on wars. I would urge you to take a long view of what is good for the country as a whole and not what is fervent in an election cycle.
August 30, 2011 11:53am
The real problem is that clueless right-wingers don't CARE whether these are lies or not. They're all just cheerleaders for their team - my party, right or wrong. Facts are of no importance to morons. None of this is to say that Obama is any good either, or that left-wingers who support Democrats are any less stupid than their right-wing counterparts. Anyone who continues to support ANY Republicrat is a low-grade imbecile, period.
August 30, 2011 11:45am
WOW! These charts reveal the lies the Republicans are telling. Will they do and say anything to get a few votes? Do they think we are as stupid as they are crooked?
August 30, 2011 11:37am
What do you do when the response from these charts is : "These (charts) are just more lies from those commie liberals!" ???
August 30, 2011 11:36am
Who made up these charts? My Income and life has always been betterr under right wing,and I belong to no party I just vote for the person. next election I'll vote for anything against oloser
August 30, 2011 11:59am
You must be living in a different planet than the rest of us!
August 30, 2011 11:47am
I lost my job thanks to GW Bush's disasterous domestic (AND foreign policies... and I found a new and better-paying job under President Obama's watch.
If the Right can see its way to nominating a rational and center-leaning candidate like John Huntsman, than that would show some hope that the Right has some credibility left.
August 30, 2011 11:33am
I'd send this to all my right-wing family, but they'd all say it was a "liberal contrivance", or "left-wing propoganda", etc., etc.
And THAT is the problem with the country today. "Facts" and "Truth" are all relative to the right-wing now. They won't believe anything other than what they want to believe.
So, it's no use! In my experience, at least.