“It Wasn’t Me” (Fact Check)
During his last prime time press conference, President Obama said, “We inherited a $1.3 trillion deficit… That wasn’t me.”
Actually, he did play a part in it. While President Obama opposed the Iraq War, he sure didn’t have a problem funding it. In fact, he only voted against one bill that included money for the war. Democrats have controlled Congress since 2006 and during this time war spending continued to go up. President Obama also voted for the Wall Street bailout. Ultimately, it’s Congress that holds the purse strings of our country but he has refused to accept some responsibility. So next time he tries to blame his administration’s problems on someone else, just remember he might not be telling you the whole truth.
Obama’s Voting History:
May 2005: Congress approved an $82 billion bill to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and international anti-terrorism efforts. Obama voted yes.
June 2006: Congress cleared a $94.5 billion bill to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as provide aid to hurricane victims. Obama voted yes.
September 2006: Congress cleared a $448 billion Pentagon funding bill that included $70 billion for U.S. military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Obama voted yes.
April 2007: Congress cleared a $124 billion spending bill that provided $90 billion for war costs. Obama voted yes.
June 2008: Congress approved a measure to spend $162 billion for war costs as well as other domestic projects. Obama voted yes.
Tags: Bush, Congress, deficit, fact check, Government Spending, Iraq War, Obama
May 2nd, 2009 at 5:32 pm
Don’t expect him to ever take the blame for anything.
May 2nd, 2009 at 11:15 pm
is 2009 not finalized yet?
May 3rd, 2009 at 11:16 am
It’s an old graph. The point is that the budget was approved by the democrat controlled Congress.
May 4th, 2009 at 2:56 am
Hi, interesting post. I have been thinking about this issue,so thanks for writing. I will definitely be subscribing to your blog.
May 10th, 2009 at 7:50 pm
Why is the chart labeled the “Iraq War Spending”? It is not - according to the Obama voting record quoted above the chart, the spending on the wars has fluctuated between $70B and $94B per year. The cart doesn’t appear to be the federal budget either nor the deficit nor the national debt.
In the don’t blame me department - more lies by Mr. Obama - Bush’s projected deficit was $611B - not Obama’s $1.3T that he and his congressional lackies are spending.
Don’t ever forget that a budget is just that - a budget. What is actually spent by congress and the current president may be very different than what was projected by the preceding president. The money spent is absolutely square on the shoulders of Mr. Obama and the current Congress. It has nothing to do with what President Bush budgeted.
May 10th, 2009 at 9:51 pm
You are correct, Bud - I mislabeled the chart. It should be labeled ‘Military Spending Approved by Congress.’ Thanks for the catch.
May 10th, 2009 at 9:56 pm
The data was from http://www.fcnl.org/ by the way. That may not be a reliable source, admittedly. They are quite biased against the Republican Party.