Health care presser lies, Pt. 4: Using deceptive economic numbers
During his health care press conference, President Obama really went off the rails when talking about the economy.
He used overly optimistic assumptions about the growth of the federal deficit, and he took credit for budget cuts made by President George W. Bush.
From the Association Press:
OBAMA: “If we had done nothing, if you had the same old budget as opposed to the changes we made in our budget, you’d have a $9.3 trillion deficit over the next 10 years. Because of the changes we’ve made, it’s going to be $7.1 trillion.”
THE FACTS: Obama’s numbers are based on figures compiled by his own budget office. But they rely on assumptions about economic growth that some economists find too optimistic. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, in its own analysis of the president’s budget numbers, concluded that the cumulative deficit over the next decade would be $9.1 trillion.
And from the New York Times:
The president continued to take credit for deficit reduction by making a claim that has been challenged by many experts.
“If we had done nothing, if you had the same old budget as opposed to the changes we made,” the deficit over the next 10 years would be $2.2 trillion greater, the president said.
In fact, $1.5 trillion of those “savings” are mainly based on an assumption that the United States would have had as many troops in Iraq in 10 years as it did when Mr. Obama took office. But before leaving office, President George W. Bush signed an agreement with Baghdad mandating the withdrawal of all American forces within three years.
So Mr. Obama is claiming credit for not spending money that, under the policy he inherited from Mr. Bush, would never have been spent in the first place.
Sources:
The Associated Press, July 22, 2009
FACT CHECK: Obama’s health care claims adrift?
The New York Times, July 22, 2009
Experts Dispute Some Points in Health Talk
The Washington Post, July 22, 2009
