I love to give this link out to republicans ad nauseam because it maps out the years Republicans controlled all branches of govt. and it comes from a libertarian web site.
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Bush the Budget Buster
When it comes to spending, Bush is no Reagan. Alas, he is also no Clinton and not even Nixon.
October 19, 2005
After five years of Republican reign, it's time for small-government conservatives to acknowledge that the GOP has forfeited its credibility when it comes to spending restraint.
*snip*
Table 1 compares the percentage change in inflation-adjusted discretionary, defense and nondefense spending over the first five budgets of Johnson, Nixon, Reagan, Clinton, and Bush 43 (the figures for the latter incorporate the recent mid-session review estimates). Table 1 makes it clear that Bush has been a big spender across the board.
Total real discretionary outlays will increase about 35.8 percent under Bush (FY2001-06) while they increased by 25.2 percent under LBJ (FY1964-69) and 11.9 percent under Reagan (FY1981-86). By contrast, they decreased by 16.5 under Nixon (FY1969-74) and by 8.2 percent under Clinton (FY1993-98). Comparing Bush to his predecessors is instructive. Bush and Reagan both substantially increased defense spending (by 44.5 and 34.8 percent respectively). However, Reagan cut real nondefense discretionary outlays by 11.1 percent while Bush increased them by 27.9 percent. Clinton and Nixon both raised nondefense spending (by 1.9 percent and 23.1 respectively), but they both cut defense spending substantially (by 16.8 and 32.2 percent).
Bush and LBJ alone massively increased defense and nondefense spending. Perhaps not coincidentally, Bush and LBJ also shared control of the federal purse with congressional majorities from their own political parties. Which only makes Bush's performance more troubling.
http://reason.com/archives/2005/10/19/bush-the-budget-buster
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