Just as
businesses are held accountable by the stock market and are punished when
they perform poorly, political parties should be held accountable by the
American people. To evaluate government, we need a relevant set of metrics
which measure the most important aspects of performance. One of our
government's most important measurements is how much money the average
American worker is making. Let's take a look at the statistics.
Income for the
average male wage earner decreased under Republican administrations and
increased under Democrats.
Year |
Full-time male wage earner median income
(inflation adjusted) |
Growth / Loss in income |
Administration |
2004 |
39,725 |
- 4.4% |
Bush (2000 - 2004) |
2000 |
41,543 |
4.9% |
Clinton (1992 - 2000) |
1992 |
39,616 |
- 2.3% |
Reagan / Bush (1980 - 1992) |
1980 |
40,540 |
2.6% |
Carter (1976 - 1980) |
1976 |
39,498 |
|
|
Source: US Census Bureau
1.
Income for the full-time male wage earner has had essentially no increase
in the past 28 years.
2. Increases during Democratic administrations (2.6% under Carter and 4.9%
under Clinton) have been negated by losses during the Republican administrations
The Budget Deficit – further reducing our wealth
Another way to
evaluate government is how well it keeps it financial house in order. Having a
budget deficit is like borrowing against a national credit card – the money
eventually needs to be paid back by the American people with interest.
Under Republican
administrations, budget deficits have ballooned to over $5,000 per year per
full-time wage earner. Democratic administrations have reduced the deficit and
produced surpluses
Year |
Budget Deficit per full-time worker (inflation
adjusted) |
Administration |
2004 |
- 5,395 |
Bush (2000 - 2004) |
2000 |
910 |
Clinton (1992 - 2000) |
1992 |
- 5,345 |
Reagan / Bush (1980 - 1992) |
1980 |
- 2,383 |
Carter (1976 - 1980) |
Source:
Congressional Budget Office and US Census Bureau
How about lower taxes?
The Republican tax
cuts of 2001 did decrease taxes rates for all income brackets. But the dollar
amount of those tax cuts for the average American is small. For the average
American (40th to 60th percentile), the effective federal
tax rate declined from 16.7% in 2000 to 14.6% in 2004 (2.1% decrease). At the
median wage of $39,725 per year, the tax savings is $834 per year. So how does
this all add up?
In the last four
years, the decrease in median income and the ballooning deficit has led to a
$6,000 reduction in effective net income for the average male wage-earner (down
15% from 2000).
Between 2000
and 2004 |
|
Income change (median male full-time wage earner) |
- 1,818 |
Tax savings due to tax cuts |
834 |
Share of annual federal budget deficit |
- 5,395 |
Total Gain /
(Loss) per year |
- 6,379 |
% loss on compared to a $39,725 annual income |
- 15% |
What next?
It is our
responsibility as Democrats to get these performance metrics out in front of the
American people. These should become standard metrics for measuring any
administration. Once Americans understand the impact of the Bush Administration
policies, they can make an informed choice at the Congressional ballot box in
2006.