To the editor:

Regardless of how irresponsible the modern Republican Party might be, they consistently claim to be “fiscally conservative” — defined by Wikipedia as “prudent in government spending and debt.” In other words, Republicans claim to be the “adults in the room” where taxpayer money is involved.

While Republicans claim to be responsible with the nation’s money, and to be “deficit hawks” who oppose the accumulation of government debt, they have continually claimed that large tax cuts drive economic growth without increasing federal deficits or debt. Does the evidence support their claim?

Inflation (“a general increase in prices and fall in the purchasing value of money,” per Google) increased dramatically under Presidents Nixon-Ford-Carter in 1973-5 and 1977-81. The Federal Reserve increased the Federal Funds rate from 5% to nearly 17% during the late 1970s and 1980, deliberately suppressing the U.S. economy by raising the cost of borrowing to fight inflation of nearly 15%. High interest rates were a primary cause of the economic recession of 1981-2.

As our economy and then inflation declined, the Fed cut interest rates in half by 1985, contributing greatly to U.S. economic growth. The Republican President Ronald Reagan slashed federal taxes in 1981, but then increased taxes in 1982-4 in reaction to deficits that totaled $954 billion for 1982-6 after totaling only $302B during 1976-80.

Declining interest rates during the Reagan administration contributed much more to economic growth than the Reagan tax cuts, while deficits exploded. See https://www.thebalance.com/us-deficit-by-year-3306306 and https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2017/11/08/did-ronald-reagans-1981-tax-cut-supercharge-the-economy.

Tax cuts under President George W. Bush were again promised to grow the U.S. economy without growing federal deficits. Bush assumed the presidency in 2001 after Bill Clinton ran a cumulative budget SURPLUS of $63B during 1994-2001 while seeing annual economic growth rates of more than 4%. The Bush DEFICIT was $3,548B or $3.5 TRILLION during 2002-2009. Economic growth rates were below 4% under Bush prior to the Bush Great Recession, and then plummeted to negative 2.5%.

President Donald Trump also promised that his tax cuts would grow the U.S. economy without growing the deficit. The deficit under President Obama was $2.1T during 2013-16 but will grow by $10.76T under Trump during 2017-20. Economic growth was unimpressive under Trump relative to the second Obama term and has been a disaster since COVID. (See https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/09/05/trump-obama-economy.)

The bottom line? Republican tax cuts over the past 40 years have failed to deliver promised benefits to the national economy, but have massively grown federal deficits and debt. See https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/10/why-donald-trumps-economic-dream-crumbled/601153/.

Republicans’ claim of fiscal responsibility is a FRAUD. To vote for Donald Trump and his pal Rep. Elise Stefanik is to embrace and perpetuate that fraud. The North Country deserves better. Stefanik’s challenger Tedra Cobb will work with Joe Biden to restore principle, justice and rationality to our national government.

David Banks

Rockville, Maryland

Formerly of Lake Clear