The Republicans in Congress will do anything to fight the deficit -- except repeal the Bush-era policies that created it.

From 2001-2006, the Republicans controlled all three branches of government. In this time, they created the biggest-spending American government ever and the largest deficits of any government in history. The minute President Obama was sworn in, the Republicans changed their tune, declaring unacceptable the huge deficits they'd spent the last several years creating. John Boehner and Mitch McConnell propose to reduce the deficit and raise revenues by doing the same things that created it: by cutting taxes for billionaires.

Articles

Doublethink:
A Comparison of Republican Party Principles With What Republicans Do When They're In Power
"We have now sunk to a depth at which restatement of the obvious is the first duty of intelligent men." - George Orwell, 1939

Capitalist Fools
Nobel prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz details how the United States got into this economic mess.

Why Congress Must End Bush Tax Breaks for the Rich
" Let's recall that while the Clinton-era tax rates applied to the rich in the 1990's, the economy created more than 22.5 million jobs in less than eight years -- the most jobs ever created under a single administration.
Moreover, the Federal deficit had turned into a surplus...
"The number of private sector jobs created during the Bush years: zero." -- Robert Creamer

The GOP Plot to Screw the Economy and the Middle Class
"Any effort made by the Democrats to stimulate the economy has been filibustered by the Republicans. They say it's because of the deficit and debt. And yet.. the Republicans want to spend $678 billion in further [tax cuts] for the wealthiest two percent, and they don't care whether it increases the deficit." -- Bob Cesca

Attacks on Regulation Run Afoul of Lessons Learned from BP and Katrina
Professor Sidney Shapiro explains why regulation makes sense: Bailouts cost far more.

Hey, Small Spender
Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman demonstrates that spending and taxes have both gone down under President Obama.

What do Republicans Really Stand For?
Often the only reason to vote for Democrats is that they're the lesser evil -- but this article by Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine is exactly right. The Republicans claim that they can save Social Security and Medicare by phasing them out, claim that the Bush-era policies that created the deficit will magically fix it, and claim they can reduce the size of government by enlarging it.

Falling Into the Economic Chasm
"America needed a much stronger [stimulus] program than what it actually got -- a modest rise in federal spending that was barely enough to offset cutbacks at the state and local level. .. The resurgent Republicans have learned nothing from the economic crisis, except that doing everything they can to undermine Mr. Obama is a winning political strategy." -- Paul Krugman

Republican Tax Cuts and Economic Failure
David Fiderer demonstrates that cutting taxes for billionaires doesn't work, and never has.

Top 10 Shocking Attacks from the GOP's War on Women
The Republican Party has declared war on family values, and the first casualty will be women's rights and health. MoveOn.org has compiled this list exposing Republican attacks -- you have to read it to believe it.

The Republican Shakedown
"The reason the economy continues to be lousy for most Americans is: so much income and wealth have been going to the [richest 5%] that the vast majority no longer has the purchasing power to lift the economy out of its doldrums." - former Labor Secretary Robert Reich

Impeach Justice Clarence Thomas
Earl Hutchinson reports that Justice Thomas didn't pay taxes on nearly a million dollars in earnings between 2003 and 2007.

Guess Which Companies Aren't Paying Their Share
According to Senator Bernie Sanders and MoveOn.Org: Together, ExxonMobil, Bank of America, General Electric, Chevron, Boeing, Valero, and Citigroup made over $130 billion last year -- and didn't pay a cent in taxes.

Letter to Congressman George Miller on Foreclosures
"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." - Martin Luther King, Jr.

Big Mike Breaks the Deficit Down
This video blog explains how the Republicans want to abolish Planned Parenthood, Medicare and public television -- to give billionaires another tax cut.

How I Paid Only 1% of My Income in Federal Income Tax
Professor Eric Schoenberg explains that average Americans pay about 5% of their income in taxes. He only paid 1% - because he made over $200,000 last year. "I consider it both unwise and unfair," he wrote, "that a former investment banker like myself pays less in taxes than working Americans with far lower incomes... Under our current tax system, the rich don't need high-priced lawyers who exploit obscure loopholes; I wasn't even trying to minimize my taxes..."

How the GOP Became the Party of the Rich
"Do you think the millionaire ought to pay more in taxes than the bus driver - or less?" - Ronald Reagan, 1985

The Un-American War on Science
The Republican "candidates ought to be ashamed. America didn't keep the world safe for democracy by pandering to ideological dark-agers -- we got ahead by using hard-headed science. It's time we get back to it, and start putting America first again." - Shawn Otto

Republican Economic Policy Doesn't Work
Professor Geoffrey Stone shows that, since the 1970s, Republican presidents have cut taxes for rich people, believing this will stimulate the economy. Instead, this has slowed the economy and created enormous deficits. Contrariwise, Democratic presidents - who have made millionaires pay their fair share - have cut the deficit and stimulated the economy.

An Unserious Man
According to Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman, "Ryanomics is and always has been a con game... What Mr. Ryan actually offers... are specific proposals that would sharply increase the deficit, plus an assertion that he has secret tax and spending plans that he refuses to share with us, but which will turn his overall plan into deficit reduction. If this sounds like a joke, that's because it is."

Letter to Congressman Steve King
"I myself have never been able to find out precisely what feminism is: I only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that differentiate me from a door mat or a prostitute." - Rebecca West, 1913

Ban Election Officials' Conflict of Interest
"All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident." - Arthur Schopenhauer

The Red Equals Sign
"First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me." - Pastor Martin Niemoller, 1946

Matt Walsh Gets The Facts Wrong
"With ignorance comes fear - from fear comes bigotry. Education is the key to acceptance." - Kathleen Patel