During Budget Battle, Remember The Republicans Are Primarily At Fault For Spending Increases

As Barack Obama takes the role of the party serious about a long-term solution to the budget problem, it is worth remembering who is primarily responsible for for the problem. Business Insider has tracked recent government spending, agreeing with multiple other sources which attribute the problem more to George Bush and the Republicans.

The above chart tracks government spending (click on it if you need to increase its size). Business Insider explains:

As you can see, from 2000 to 2008, under President Bush, Federal spending rose by $1.3 trillion, from $1.9 trillion a year to $3.2 trillion a year.

From 2009 to 2011, meanwhile, under President Obama, federal spending has risen by $600 billion, from $3.2 trillion a year to $3.8 trillion a year.  It has also now begun to decline.

In other words, federal government spending under President Bush increased 2X as much as it has under President Obama.

It is also important to remember that George Bush fought two wars off the books while passing tax cuts designed to place the greatest burden in later years, allowing Republicans to falsely blame his successor for the consequences. Bush also passed the unfunded Medicare prescription drug plan while threatening to fire the chief Medicare actuary if he testified before Congress about the plans true cost.

As Steve Benen and Adam Serwer pointed out today, it makes no sense to refer to the Republican Party as being fiscally conservative.