Are we starting to sense a pattern here? Let's see, since the Republicans took control of all branches of government in January 2001, we've had:*An extended bear market on Wall Street which, after this week's bloodbath, now has the Dow Jones at 10,087.51, a full 14% below its peak of 11,722.98 on January 14, 2000. Just this past week alone, the Dow lost 373.83 points, or 3.6%, on bad economic news, declining consumer confidence, and sky-high oil prices. (Note: The S&P 500 is even worse, down 385 points, or 25%, from its high of 1527.46 on March 24, 2000).
*A decline from a large budget surplus under Bill Clinton (+$236 billion in 2000) to an enormous and apparently unending deficit under Republican rule (-$412 billion in 2004; -$365 billion in 2005). Looking at a graph of the U.S. budget deficit since 1961 is fascinating. What it clearly illustrates is that DEMOCRATS are the budget balancing party, while REPUBLICANS are the "bust the budget" bunch. It's not even close.
*An increase in the price of oil (West Texas Intermediate) from $28 per barrel in December 2000, the last month Clinton was in office, to over $50 per barrel now. Is it a mere coincidence that this oil price spike has taken place while the Republican Congress has been utterly incapable of passing meaningful energy legislation that addresses both the supply and demand sides of the equation? A minor side-point that this Administration's energy policy was drawn up in secret by Dick Cheney, in coordination with his good friends in the energy industry (i.e., Enron, Halliburton)? A random confluence of events that the oil industry is making record high profits while American households suffer the consequences? Call us cynical, but we don't see how this is all just coincidental.
*A net loss of 384,000 jobs since President Bush took office in January 2001. According to the AFL-CIO, "By March 2005, 7.7 million [Americans] were officially jobless?but experts estimate the total number of unemployed and underemployed is nearly 13.6 million."
*A stagnation or even decline in real wages, following sharp increases during the 1990s.
*Increases in both the poverty rate and the percent of Americans who have no health insurance for three straight years now. Again, this is occurring under Republican control of all three branches of government.
What about Virginia? When Mark Warner was elected in November 2001, the Commonwealth was running a budget deficit -- the Gilmore Gap, we'll call it -- of $6 billion a year. For 2005, the projected SURPLUS -- the Warner Windfall, let's say -- is estimated at $1.2 billion! This represents a turnaround of $7.2 billion between the Gilmore Gap and the Warner Windfall, between fiscal insanity under Gilmore and responsibility under Warner/Kaine.
The point of all this? If you want to ruin the economy -- turn surpluses to deficits, increase unemployment rates, watch the numbers of people in poverty and/or uninsured skyrocket, get socked at the gas station -- then by all means vote Republican! If, on the other hand, you are weird like me and actually prefer a sound, well-run economy, with AAA bond ratings, balanced budgets, and awards for being the "best managed state in the country," then you should avoid Republicans like the plague. As the saying goes, "if you want to live like a Republican, vote Democratic!"
Tim Kaine vs. Jerry Gilmore...er, Kilgore, in 2005? This is not, as we've argued before, a difficult choice to make. That is, unless you don't care what happens to your job, your investments, or the economic future of our state.