The Progressive: Recession Coming - Bad For Bush, Worse For The American People

[Hissyspit]

http://www.progressive.org/mag_wx010208

Recession Coming: Bad for Bush, Worse for the American People
By Matthew Rothschild, January 2, 2008

George Bush has been lucky, in one way.

Well, he’s been lucky all his life.

But he’s been especially lucky for the past six years to have presided over an economy that was growing.

Of course, it wasn’t growing very strongly.

And the fruits of that growth were not distributed equally by any means. “The increase in income inequality . . . was greater from 2003 to 2005 than over any other two-year period” in the past 25 years, according to Jared Bernstein of the Economic Policy Institute. In 2005, the top 1% hoarded 18.1% of household income, up from 14.3% in 2003. During the same three years, 80% of households saw their share of the nation’s income drop.

But at least we weren’t in a recession.

Now it looks like a recession’s coming.

- snip -

For Bush, this is more bad news. His approval rating has been below freezing even while the economy was growing.

In a recession, his approval is likely to go into the deep freeze.

And that’s where it belongs.

Unfortunately, lots of Americans will needlessly suffer along the way.

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[sjdnb]

1. And, just why we need someone like

Edwards ... the FDR of 2008.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

2. This mess started a LONG time ago.

The economy started going to hell back in the 80s. It didn't hit me personally or the people I knew till the mid 90s, and then it got horrendous...the lack of good middle class jobs where you'd get raises and promotions if you were skilled and did well.

It started for me in the Clinton years.