The bad-mouthing started during the 2000 presidential campaign. The economy really wasn't doing as well as the Dems claimed, lamented then candidate George W. Bush. Later, as president, Bush stepped up talk of a possible recession to help rally support for his much ballyhooed tax cuts. In recent weeks, Vice President Dick Cheney and others have loudly chimed in to express their own worries about the shaky state of affairs. Suddenly, Team Bush finds itself in the awkward position of having to admit that the big bad federal government may be forced to step in to help stem the slowdown.
Many economists think so.
Michael Borrus, co-director of the Berkeley Round Table on the International Economy agrees. It's helping the richest people. If we give Bill Gates more money, we're not going to affect his consumption very much. No one blames Bush for the current downturn. Borrus says the reality is that there's little the president can do in the short term.