Bush Economy Benefits His Friends But Leaves the Rest Behind
January 12, 2006
Washington, DC - President Bush today launched a new effort to paint a rosy picture of the nation's economic outlook. Unfortunately, the American people can already see that the picture presented by the President stands in stark contrast to the harsh economic realities facing most Americans. While the President's policies have benefited special interests and his friends in a few favored industries, working Americans are falling further and further behind and the President's disastrous fiscal policies have produced record deficits as far as the eye can see. This explains why recent polls show that 59% of Americans disapprove of the job President Bush is doing on the economy. [American Research Group, 12/19/05]
In addition to President Bush's speech in Chicago, today the Vice President, the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Secretary of the Treasury all gave speeches across the country to try to convince Americans that the economy is rolling.
Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean today issued the following statement:
"President Bush is working hard to push a rosy economic outlook that simply does not match the harsh realities confronting the American people. Every time working Americans sit down to pay the bills and balance their checkbooks, they can see that wages have fallen, while home heating bills, health insurance premiums, and college tuition are all skyrocketing. Instead of helping American families confront these challenges, President Bush has been busy putting the American economy to work for his millionaire friends in the oil and gas industry.
"Worse still, the President's reckless fiscal policies have produced record deficits as far as the eye can see. Instead of restoring the fiscally responsible policies pursued by Democrats and seeking tax fairness for the middle class, President Bush is insisting on extending his irresponsible tax cuts and corporate giveaways for his special interest friends.
"Together, America can do better. Democrats are committed to doing everything we can to increase wages for America's workers, cut out of control health care costs, give every American the opportunity to get a college education, help Americans heat their homes this winter, and end the culture of corruption that for too long has kept the government from helping Americans confront these challenges. The time has come for President Bush and the Republicans in Washington to join Democrats in putting the economy back to work for the American people."
The Bush Economy Rolls for a Few...
Oil Companies Recorded Enormous 3rd Quarter Profits. Exxon Mobil Corp.'s 2005 third quarter earnings climbed 75% from the third quarter of 2004 to $10 billion. Exxon's profit was the highest in the company's history, surpassing the record it set in the 2004 fourth quarter. Meanwhile profits at ConocoPhillips (the third-largest U.S. oil producer) jumped 89%, profits at Amerada Hess rose 53% to $272 million, BP reported a 34 percent rise in quarterly profit, and Kerr-McGee enjoyed at 48-fold increase in quarterly profits. [Washington Post, 10/27/05, Associated Press, 10/25/05]
Big Oil Has Recorded $34 Billion in Profits Since Bush Took Office. Record gasoline prices cost the American consumer a net of over $25 billion during Bush's first term in office, money that went directly from consumers pocketbooks into the hands of oil companies and oil producers, including OPEC. The big three oil companies in America have profited $33.6 billion over the past three years alone. [Based on EIA Monthly Energy Review; ExxonMobil, ChevronTexaco and ConocoPhillips Company Financial Reports]
As Ordinary Workers Struggle, Oil CEOs Make Record Salaries. According to the Associated Press, Exxon Mobil Corp. chairman and chief executive Lee R. Raymond received a $38 million compensation package in 2004, including $7.5 million in salary and bonus and restricted stock worth $28 million. [AP, 4/13/05] ChevronTexaco Corp. Chief Executive David O'Reilly was paid $9.98 million [Los Angeles Times, 3/22/05; Securities and Exchange Commission, ChevronTexaco Proxy Statement]
Halliburton Still Pays Cheney Three Time the Average Household Income. While the average American household income has fallen below $44,000 under the Bush/Cheney Administration, Vice President Cheney continues to receive approximately $150,000 a year in deferred income from Halliburton. [CNN, 10/25/03]
...Leaves The Rest In The Dust.
Health Care Premiums Up More Than 50% Since Bush Took Office. The cost of family health insurance has skyrocketed 57% since President Bush took office. The typical American family must now pay $9,950 per year for health insurance compared with $6,348 in 2000. [Kaiser Family Foundation]
Number of Uninsured Americans Has Increased Each Year. Almost 46 million Americans are living without health insurance. After decreasing at the end of the 1990s, the number of Americans without health insurance has increased from 39.8 million in 2000 to 45.8 million in 2004. [Census Bureau]
Winter Heating Costs Have Risen by $438, or 79%. The cost of heating fuels has skyrocketed, leaving American families unprepared to deal with unprecedented increases in heating bills. The cost of heating a home for the winter has increased by $438, or 79%, since the winter of 2001-2002. [Energy Information Administration, Short Term Energy Outlook, 12/6/05]
College Tuition On The Rise. Tuition and fees at four-year private universities have increased by almost $1,200 or 5.9% in 2005 and 32 percent since 2001. The increase has been even more dramatic at four-year public universities, where tuition and fees increased by 7.1% this past year and 57% since President Bush took office. [College Board, 10/05]
While Working Families Work Harder, Their Wages Continue to Decline. Working families are working harder and earning less today than they were at the start of this Administration. Average household income for working families when adjusted for inflation was $46,058 in 2000 and has declined to $44,389 today. At the same time Americans have seen their real wages decline, the productivity of the American worker is up 13.5%. Americans have worked harder - and better - over the past five years and received none of the benefits for their hard work. [Census Bureau; Bureau of Labor Statistics]
Bush Economy Bleeding Manufacturing Jobs. The manufacturing sector, often the source of jobs with good pay and benefits, has lost almost 3 million jobs since the beginning of 2001. This lack of job growth is particularly troubling given that we are so far into the economic recovery. [Economic Policy Institute, The Boom That Wasn't, 12/19/05.]
More American Families and Children Live in Poverty. The number of Americans who are living in poverty has increased each year President Bush has been in office and is nearly 20% higher today than in 2000. 37 million Americans were living in poverty at the end of 2004 - an increase of 5.4 million over the 2000 level. [U.S. Census Bureau]
