With just four days left in his administration, President George W. Bush transmitted to Congress the "Economic Report of the President". Included with his report is the Annual Report of the Council of Economic Advisors.
As we've come to expect from Bush, the report is filled with inaccuracies. That's to be expected from this president and this administration. The report, dated January 2009, reached it's most comical moment when I read the following snippet:
The actions taken by my Administration in response to the financial crisis
have laid the groundwork for a return to economic growth and job creation,
and they are beginning to show some early results. A measure of stability
has returned to the financial system.
Later in the report, Bush again -- with 4 days left in office -- tries to make the case for privatizing the Social Security program.
The greatest challenge to the fiscal health of the country remains
the unsustainable growth in entitlement programs such as Social Security,
Medicare, and Medicaid. I have laid out responsible, innovative solutions to
address these challenges, which will otherwise only grow more difficult to solve
over time. The Congress has an obligation to confront these issues.
Can you imagine what would have happened to the accounts balances of those who would have transferred funds from the Social Security system to individual accounts? There would have been riots!
The report doesn't get much better in the section from the Council.
Despite the risk that recent events may overshadow the many positive
developments of the past 8 years, there have been major policy advances that
have improved the long-term prospects of our economy and strengthened its
foundation.
And the jokes keep rolling down from on high.
The effort to create some legacy for Bush is laughable, and trying to convince us the economy will soon rebound because of his actions are contemptible.
We all wish he had been a better president. To take credit for things that clearly didn't happen, or that he isn't responsible for, will do much to ensure that history will treat his legacy as it deserves -- a joke and a disgrace.
