And if you didn’t expect this, you weren’t paying attention. To the degree that the republican party ever sincerely cared about deficit reduction, they stopped after the 2000 election. After that point, it was, at best, a cudgel to hit the democrats with, then immediately renege on as soon as they had power.
All in all I agree with most of what you’re saying, and it’s a good post, but… c’mon man, you’re a smart guy. If you want a party sincerely interested in deficit reduction, the republican party is not your friend.
Back in 1988 I kept thinking: “I almost hope that Bush wins the election. The economy is about to smash. If the Democrats are in office they will be blamed for Reagan’s idiocy and they won’t win another election for 20 years.”
It happened right on cue. Bush’s approval dropped from 89% to 38% in a year. Democrats won the popular vote in six of the next seven elections. Clinton actually ran a surplus, which was such a slap in the face to Republicans that Dick Chaney had to declare that deficits don’t matter. There is no such thing as Republican orthodoxy except on social issues that involve various forms of bigotry. Republican economic claims have been fantasy throughout the adult lives of virtually every voter.
Why do they keep getting away with it? Because voters do not understand what an economy is. They especially don’t understand lag times. Bush got the blame for Reagan’s economy, but at least that stayed in the party. Obama got the blame for Bush II’s economy. Trump is getting the praise for Obama’s economy. That’s helped along by a second form of Republican orthodoxy. Believe all the lies coming out of Republican mouths despite any set of facts that contradict them.
Every fact-based person has seen this for a generation. The core problem is that fact-based people simply cannot wrap their heads around the notion that others will ignore the facts and believe the lies. Nothing has stunned liberals more than the realization that the more lies Trump tells the greater his support grows. It’s like being trampled by unicorns. But it’s a fact and that means liberals have to learn to build a unicorn gun.
Or maybe this is a rerun of the Bush movie. Trade wars, tariffs, and increased inflation may sink the economy before 2020. Trump’s 85% approval among Republicans just has to fall to 50% to doom him and the party. Heh. We had to destroy the economy to save it. Remember that movie?