Blog | GOP predictably sings new tune: “Obama Economy” becomes “Republican Recovery” as Obamacare further cuts uninsured rate
Shortly after the November elections, I said the GOP would begin taking credit for the strengthening economy and joked about it in a series of tweets (follow me at @ijbailey), tongue firmly in cheek, giving credit to the new GOP-controlled Congress every time another report kept confirming what has been obvious for several months - to those paying attention, any way - that economic and job growth were picking up.
Before the election, the GOP claimed the economy sucked and it was all President Obama’s fault, while Democrats were too scared to mention the turnaround because things weren't yet perfect - as if they ever have been or ever will be. That remains one of the most politically tin-eared developments in a long time, a party being so cowed it refused to take credit for the good after years of being blamed for the bad.
Speaking up about the improving economy may not have changed the outcome of the election, but not speaking up about it guaranteed that it wouldn’t.
As I predicted, here comes new Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell:
"After so many years of sluggish growth, we're finally starting to see some economic data that can provide a glimmer of hope; the uptick appears to coincide with the biggest political change of the Obama administration's long tenure in Washington: the expectation of a new Republican Congress," McConnell said on Wednesday. "So this is precisely the right time to advance a positive, pro-growth agenda."
All Democrats could do to respond to McConnell wass send out a snarky tweet laughing at him. That’ll learn ‘em!
They get to take credit for a snarky tweet while McConnell gets to run the Senate. I suspect he is quite happy with that trade.
Also, the great conservative stalwart Grover cut-taxes-’til-government-is-small-enough-to-drown-in-a-bathtub Norquist has also gotten in on the act:
WASHINGTON -- Grover Norquist would like Republicans to shut up about how bad the economy is, and instead take credit for the recovery.
The prominent anti-tax crusader hasn't turned into a bullhorn for President Barack Obama's economic policies; he still thinks they're a drag on jobs and wages. But he's also grown critical of his fellow Republicans for making poor strategic and messaging decisions on several key issues. Rather than tying the economic recovery to spending cuts ushered in by the sequester and to the continuation of 85 percent of the Bush tax cuts, he said, some in the party have insisted their own leaders fumbled those items.
"There were outside voices advising Republicans on what to do. They missed both calls," Norquist said in an interview with The Huffington Post. "I object as much as some of the guys on the right who are never satisfied in the moment. I’m never satisfied over time. But they go, 'This was a disaster.’ No it wasn’t. We played our hand as well as you could and better than we had any reason to expect we would be able to."
And let us not forget a recent lesson. Remember when we were discussing the fiscal cliff in 2012? Remember when we were told any increase in taxes would kill the economy? Remember when we were told the same thing about the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare? Well, since those claims, economic growth has only gotten stronger, we’ve only created more jobs, the deficit has only continued to fall, and the mid-term debt outlook has improved.
If Friday’s monthly jobs report comes in as expected, extending a record of 200,000-plus monthly job creation, who will be the next to change from bashing the “Obama Economy” to bragging about the “Republican Recovery”?
Any guesses?
In the mean time ...
ADP reported that monthly private-sector job creation picked up in December, which saw an another 241,000 jobs added.
The uninsured rate falls to another all-time-low as the GOP boogeyman Obamacare continues to save lives and improve the country’s fiscal health.
This story was originally published January 7, 2015 at 1:43 PM with the headline "Blog | GOP predictably sings new tune: “Obama Economy” becomes “Republican Recovery” as Obamacare further cuts uninsured rate."