No. In fact he had very little to do with it. However, he will have played a large part in the future recession that occurs when the day of reckoning comes on our national debt. He will most certainly go down as one of the most inept Presidents of all time, but the recession was not his doing.
One cannot prove a specific causal relationship in a multi-variable environment like the economy. However, an argument can be made that the policies Bush promoted contributed to the housing bubble and subsequent recession it caused. These would include the policies he promoted to increase home ownership at a time when housing prices were already well above historical norms, a laizzes-faire "industry can police itself" attitude toward regulation that resulted in lax enforcement efforts by relevant regulatory bodies, and his opposition to laws to regulate Fannie and Freddie if they did not effectively privatize these entities. Also, an argument can be made that the investment tax cut he decreased by 25% (to a 15% top rate)further fueled a speculative bubble where the tax code now greatly favored speculative investment over earning and production.
That is true. His blame is not a direct one. There is nothing he did specifically to cause the recession, but the policies he (and others in both parties) supported created an environment where everyone could run amok. I also think he was uniquely unable to see what was going on and hence could never have made moves that would have reduced the impact. In a time of coming or actual crisis it is best to have someone far more intelligent in charge.
I agree. Bush (unlike, say, Reagan) was not a pragmatist but a true believer in conservative orthodoxy. Reagan could compromise and change policies when it was evident they were not working (e.g. several tax increases when he saw the huge deficits his policies made). But could or would not.
He is not alone in that. It's not like he had a bunch of people trying to warn him. He was a hands off business kind of guy. And that worked out great.
Bush was a scapegoat. No one brings up the fact that W warned Congress years before the collapse about the impending danger, but his concerns were brushed under the rug. I'm not implying that W was a great president, but he didn't deserve a lot out the blame that was thrown at him.
As with many things about Bush, what he said and what he did were completely opposite things. While he warned about housing, in his actions, Mr. "Ownership Society" promoted policies that increased home ownership and fueled housing prices. And he opposed the one and only bill ever passed by the Republican controlled Congress to increase regulation of Fannie and Freddie.
There's already a Thread blaming the entire Economic Collapse on Freddie and Fannie. Oh and I forgot ... The Democrats allow deregulation of Freddie and Fannie.
You can not blame the collapse of a nation's economy on one man because the banks had loans people couldn't pay back and the fall of the housing market. Bush did his best to keep the nation from entering another Great Depression, and I feel like we were able to avoid such a situation thanks to him. A lot of people disapprove of Bush because of his actions following 9/11 and the fact he was in office when the recession hit. Bush took the right course of action in my opinion.
It's easy to point fingers in hindsight, I agree. And I do credit Bush and Paulson for being brave enough to stand up to their own party to do what had to be done when the financial markets collapsed in passing TARP. However, it cannot be denied that the housing bubble blew up completely while Bush was in the WH and Republicans controlled congress. There steadfast, unwavering adherence to policies like anti-regulation, promotion of home ownership, and cutting investment taxes helped to allow a crisis to be created that could have been adverted.
Yes, his actions and more to the point his lack of action and lack of enforcement were a huge factor in the bush recession.
Nope. It was Bush and the Republicans. Baseless opinionating is fun and easy, isn't it. You conservatives do is so well.
I think it is hard to tell exactly. I think he - more then any other world leader that comes to mind - contributed to the housing boom/bust and economic collapse. It was GWB's 'baby' to get the low income housing program going. And he got HUD to give Fannie/Freddie the funds to kick start it. And this clearly had a very large part to play in the whole saga. Though personally, I think the Fed was more at fault then any other single entity. BTW - I think Obama is the number one world politician to blame as to why the US economky still generally stinks. (in case some foaming at the mouth Bush lover thinks I am an Obama fan)
According to conservative "experts" here at PF you are quite incorrect and Obama is responsible for the economy.
No. By definition, the United States was in a recession when Bush took office. And by definition, it was NOT in a recession when he left office.
Who told you this? Sean? Rush? By official definition, the economy was not in recession when Bush took office. http://www.nber.org/cycles/november2001/ By official definition, the economy most definitely WAS in a recession when Bush left office. http://www.nber.org/cycles/dec2008.html
If you charge up 4 credit cards to the max, then have trouble making the monthly payments, WHEN did the problem occur? When you couldn't make the payments, or when you were buying stuff you shouldn't have been buying in the first place? If you want to talk about the collapse of the Housing Market, you need look no further than Community Reinvestment Act that President Clinton pushed.