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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (518798)	1/3/2004 10:21:24 AM
From: tonto	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 769670

I do not suppport democrats or republicans or anyone who taxes and wastes too much. Dean in Denial About His Big Spending From Americans for Tax Reform Howard Dean Says He Limited Vermont Budget Increases to Economic Growth... But One Year He Signed a Budget Increase FOUR Times That Large! WASHINGTON - Today's [8/7/03] Washington Times quotes presidential hopeful Howard Dean (D) saying that, as Governor of Vermont, he limited state budget increases to the rate of gross state product (GSP) growth. But four of his annual budget increases exceeded GSP growth, including one whopping 23.7% increase, more than four times that year's GSP rise. Overall, Vermont state spending grew 83% under Dean from 1992 through 2001, 58% faster than the state's economy. Howard Dean Says: "[My fiscal policy as president] will be to limit the federal budget's rate of growth to the rate of growth in the economy… That's what we did in Vermont. You never let the budget grow faster than the economy." But Under Howard Dean: Year Vermont GSP Growth State Spending Growth 1995 1.7% 5.3% 1998 5.1% 8.1% 1999 5.3% 13.4% 2000 5.6% 23.7% "Howard Dean likes to call himself a 'fiscal conservative,' and maybe he would have been one in 1970s Sweden," said Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reform (ATR). "But here in America, growing your state budget at 23.7% isn't fiscally conservative-it's fiscally insane. It's no wonder Dean is so ashamed of his tax-and-spend record he has to hide it-I wouldn't want to admit it either." Dean's claim about the Vermont budget isn't the first tall tale he's told on the campaign trail. Today's San Jose Mercury News reports that Dean claimed never to have supported raising the Social Security retirement age to 70, even though he endorsed such a move in 1995; he also said he opposed raising the age to 68, despite saying he would consider doing so just two months ago. "Can we believe anything Howard Dean says?" asked Norquist. "Maybe next he'll tell us that, during his service as Vermont Governor, he took initiative in creating the Internet." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fact Check: Dean Is Not A Fiscal Conservative From Americans for Tax Reform Irresponsible Spending Record As Governor Completely Contradicts Recent Media Reports WASHINGTON - [8/15/03] Presidential candidate Howard Dean has recently been touted as a fiscal conservative as Vermont's governor. In fact, Dean claims, based on his record, he will be a better keeper of taxpayer's money than President Bush. Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) has conducted an analysis, based on Howard Dean's criteria, which demonstrates Dean as fiscally irresponsible. The analysis below examines Howard Dean and then Governor Bush's spending records from calendar year 1994 - 2000, years in which both men were governors of their respective states. Howard Dean Says: "[My fiscal policy as president] will be to limit the federal budget's rate of growth to the rate of growth in the economy… That's what we did in Vermont. You never let the budget grow faster than the economy." But The Real Facts: Total state spending increased faster than Vermont's economy by 24.5 percent during the years of the study. Spending increased at an annual rate of 9 percent, while the state's economy was growing at just 5.5 percent. As a result, the average Vermont resident needed to work an additional 14.3 days in 2000 to pay for state spending than in 1994. All told, State Spending Freedom Day (SSFD) did not reach the average Vermont resident until March 14th in 2000. By contrast, the average Texas resident needed to work 2.4 less days in 2000 than in 1994 under Governor Bush, while the US average was a slight increase of 1.7 days for the same study period. As such, the true cost of state spending increased nearly 8 times faster than the national average under Governor Dean. The chart below demonstrates the magnitude of these spending increases. State 1994 SFD 2000 SFD Days Change Percent Change Vermont 58.3 Days 72.6 Days 14.3 Days 24.5% Increase Texas 36.2 Days 33.8 Days -2.4 Days 6.6% Decrease U.S. Average 47.6 Days 49.3 Days 1.7 Days 3.6 % Increase Data Sources: Census Bureau, Bureau of Economic Analysis, and Americans for Tax Reform -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Americans for Tax Reform is a non-partisan coalition of taxpayers and taxpayer groups who oppose all federal and state tax increases. For more information or to arrange an interview please contact Jonathan Collegio at (202) 785-0266 or by email at jcollegio@atr.org.