The Democratic Party is the Party of fiscal responsibility, committed to
promoting long-term economic growth. Under President Clinton, this country
experienced the longest economic expansion in history, creating 22 million new
jobs and going from record budget deficits to record surpluses. Now, as America
faces the challenge of the first recession in 10 years, Democrats are fighting
to provide real economic stimulus that follow key principles: any stimulus
efforts be immediate, temporary and targeted. Democrats have proposed immediate
tax relief for businesses to spur job creation and capital investment and tax
relief for middle and lower income workers (the people most likely to put the
money back into the economy). Democrats also believe in helping laid off workers
and families struggling to make ends meet and health coverage assistance for
laid off workers.
In just one year, President Bush and congressional Republicans have managed to
undo eight years of hard work and fiscal discipline. Bush's policies have
already wiped out our hard gained surpluses, returned the nation to deficit
spending, put Social Security in danger and slowed down efforts to pay down the
national debt. One year into the Bush Administration, more than one million jobs
were lost, the unemployment rate increased by 1.8 percent and about 2.6 million
more people became unemployed. Now that the country is in a recession, President
Bush and Republicans have proposed an economic plan that does little to
stimulate the economy and consists mostly of giving profitable corporations and
wealthy individuals $100 billion in tax cuts.