Political Rope

A Political Rope analysis of a CBO report concludes that only 12.1% of each dollar in recent debt is due to the Bush Tax Cuts.

Here is the breakdown: The total eleven year cost of all the Bush tax cuts (including cuts for the poor and middle class) is $1.829 trillion. This amounts to $13.86 billion per month spread through those years. By comparison, the total new debt accumulated in Fiscal Years 2009 through 2011 (including CBO projections) is $4.106 trillion. This amounts to $114.06 billion per month.

It doesn’t mean that the rest of the monthly debt is due to spending. The tax changes in the Stimulus bill and the 2010 Tax Act passed in the lame duck session, add another $17.88 billion per 36 of the above months.

All in all, only $31.74 billion (27%) of the average added $114.06 billion debt per month since the start of Fiscal Year 2009 is due to the tax changes enacted since President Clinton left office. (This includes the Bush 2001, 2003, and 2004 tax laws that helped many poor and middle class Americans; the Obama 2009 Stimulus tax changes for “95 percent working Americans;” and the Lame Duck 2010 tax changes supported by Democrats and Obama that also largely went for lower income Americans).

A PR strategist for Republicans notes that if Democrats want Republicans to compromise on tax rates; spending shall first be reduced to levels that add to the debt in balance that tax changes do, and only then can there be a discussion of raising taxes.