Who's in charge, anyway?

The real power is NOT in the president of the United States! Power is in the Congress - the Senate and the House of Representatives. The authority of the president is in executing the laws passed by the Congress. He can veto, but the veto can be over-ridden. The president usually compromises to stay in a "working relationship" with the "powers that be."

Which brings us to the economy. Who "holds the purse strings"? The House of Representatives, the closest thing we have to "democracy" in this conglomerate of "sovereign" states. IF the federal books had to be balanced as do the individual states' books, then we would not be in the mess we are in right now. That being said, a few figures from the Americans for Tax Reform show that whereas things are "worse off" today than they were seven-and-a-half years ago, they did not get there under Republican control, but under Democratic:

The combined cost of staples (Bread, Eggs, and Milk) went from $4.84 to $5.77 in 6 years under the Republicans. That is a 19.2% rise, or 3.2% per year. In the two years since the Democrats were elected in November of 2006, that price has gone to $7.12. That's a 29.5 % rise, or a 15.3% per year. That is a rate of over FIVE times the Republican economy!

Inflation overall went from 3.7% when George W. Bush took office to only 2.1% as America was bamboozled into voting in the Democrats in November, 2006. Since then, inflation has gone to 5.4%. That's a 43% DECREASE in a "Republican" economy compared to a 61% INCREASE in a "Democratic" economy. Hmmm . . .

Unemployment went from 4.2% to 4.6% (+ .4%) in six years. In the two years under Democratic control it has risen to 6.1% (+ 1.5%). Almost FOUR times the increase -- or OVER ELEVEN TIMES when annualized! Even in the two months from election day to the new congress began, the unemployment rate went up .1% (.6% annualized, compared to a .07% per year for the six years previous!)

But then, those wage earners out there -- the "working men and women" ARE still better off than they were eight years ago! Our average wage went from $28,700 to $32,960 -- a steady rate of over $500 a year. That amount did not keep up with inflation, but across the board tax cuts in the six years, and to an extent even since under the veto threat of the president, helped to indeed leave the average man in better shape now than then!

And, finally, I challenge any liberal who might be reading this to name me one Republican/Bush policy that has effected the economy adversely.