[MD] Clinton vs. Bush

[Platt Holden]

Hi Ron, 

All lying aside:

 AP
Consumer Confidence Hits 6-Year High
Tuesday July 31, 5:27 pm ET
By Anne D'Innocenzio, AP Business Writer
Consumer Confidence Rebounds in July to 6-Year High Amid Healthy 
Employment Outlook 

Source:

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070731/consumer_confidence.html

Platt


[Ron]
> All lying aside,
> 
> THE CLINTON RECORD v. GEORGE W> BUSH 
> 
> (Last Update Spring 2005)
 
> Clinton Record  
> 
> Moved from record deficits to record  $236 billion surplus

>   Bush Record 
>  Budget
>  Moved from record surplus to record $331 billion deficit.  

> This had led the International Monetary Fund (which often bails out
> basket-case economies) to warn of a fiscal melt down with global
> repercussions.

>  Domestic Discretionary Spending*
> 
>  clinton
>  + 36.3%
 
>  bush
> (-11.5%)

>  Civilian Federal Workforce

>  clinton
> 22 million jobs created
> 
> bush
> Lowest unemployment rate in 30 years

>  Job Growth
> 
> clinton
>  0.3 million jobs  created (but net civilian job loss)
> 
> bush
> Highest unemployment rate in nine years

>  clinton
> Increased minimum wage from $4.25 to $5.15
> 
>  bush
>   Wages
>  Opposes wage increase
> 
> clinton
> Earned income tax credit for 15 million poorer working families
>  Taxes
> 
> bush
>  Tax cuts for the rich, increased audits for tax credits for working
> families
 
>  clinton
> Biggest expansion in college aid since GI bill
> 
>  bush
>  Education
>  Under-funds own education initiative
> 
> clinton 
> Largest expansion of national parks and monuments since Teddy Roosevelt,
> signed Safe Drinking Water Act, signed Kyoto Accord
> 
>  bush
>  Environment
>  Worst environmental President in history.  Used regulations to
> undermine Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act, rejected Kyoto Accord and
> expanded logging and oil drilling in national parks and monuments.
> 
> 
>  clinton
> Worked with UN, NATO and/or allies to bring peace to Kosovo, Bosnia,
> Northern Ireland, East Timor, promoted Middle East peace process,
> nuclear threat through Framework Agreement and saved Mexico from
> currency crisis.
> 
>  bush
>  Foreign Policy
>  Cowboy unilateralist diplomacy, unilateralist undermined war on
> terrorism with Iraq venture, increased North Korea threat through Axis of
> Evil Pigmy comments, antagonized our allies and ignored
> Argentinean-Brazilian currency crisis.

 
> "By any measure available, Clinton left office having given greater
> priority to terrorism than any president before him."  Washington Post.
> 
> 
> Paul Bremer (current Iraq administrator: "Clinton correctly focused on Bin
> Laden."                                     

>  Terrorism
>  In the words of Bush's own counter-terrorism director: "They did know
> better. We told them. The FBI told them. The CIA told them. They did know
> better. And the tragedy here is that Americans went to their deaths in Iraq
> thinking that they were avenging September 11 when Iraq had nothing to do
> with September 11. I think for a Commander in Chief and a Vice President to
> allow that to happen is unconscionable." 
> 
 
> The Bush administration focused instead on Star Wars and Iraq.

>  RELATED LINKS: Economic Statistics Briefing Room  (Pres. GW Bush)
> http://www.whitehouse.gov/fsbr/income.html; and Economic Statistics
> Briefing Room  (Pres. Clinton)  http://clinton4.nara.gov/fsbr/esbr.html