Tea Party Blame Misplaced

Protesters at the “Tea Party” in Washington yesterday (see our video here [1]) had a jumbled message against everything from taxes, government spending, Obama, and pork. As I walked amongst the crowd, the anger and outrage against the recession were real and palpable. What was baffling though, were protesters’ chants assigning the blame for crises to Obama and Democrats, when conservative policies are at fault.

1) “Stop taxing the ‘average Joe.’” The truth is, conservative policies skewed the tax structure, burdening the working and middle class, while handsomely benefiting the very wealthy. The top 1 percent of households—with an average income of $1.3 million—have seen their tax burden shrink by one-third [2] since 1986. Over those same years, the top 1 percent doubled their share of the nation's income, from 11 percent to 22 percent. Bush’s tax cuts gave the top 1 percent a percentage reduction in after-tax income that was 17 times greater [3] than that provided the lowest 20 percent households. In dollar terms, the top 1 percent pocketed an average $44,622, people in the middle gained $746 and the bottom 20 percent received all of $22.

2) “Work harder to gain wealth!” But Americans have been working harder and gaining little in return. American workers are the most productive in the world [4]. American productivity has grown 83 percent [5] from 1973 to 2007. Meanwhile, from 1979 to 2007, the top 5 percent of income earners saw wages increase over 36 percent. while the middle quintile saw a paltry 7.8 percent increase, the bottom quintile averaged a meager 3%.

3) “I had to transfer colleges because the government took my money!” Government absence is the cause, not the remedy. With less funding, colleges are forced to hike tuition. The average tuition at a public four-year university has increased 29% [6] between 2000 and 2007. Private college tuition increased by 13% [6] over the same period. A December 2008 study by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education showed 49 states received a grade of F (failing) on college affordability [7].

4) “Obama-Pelosi spending will saddle future generations with debt.” Where was the outcry against Bush policies that largely contributed to deficits? The cost of Bush tax cuts for the wealthy left the country $1.5 trillion in the red [8]. The total cost of the Iraq War is estimated to be nearly $3 trillion [9]. Defense spending—excluding wars—skyrocketed, more than doubling [10] since 2001.

The Tea Party rage against Obama and government is just plain wrong. Conservative policies of the past are to blame: “trickle-down” economics, less government and deregulation were the disastrous cocktail causing the crises faced today. To solve our problems, government investment and progressive taxation can not only pull our country out of crisis, but place America on a stronger foundation to move forward in the 21st century with quality education, health care, cleaner energy and modern infrastructure.