George W. Bush's qualifications to be President

Nobel Prize winners endorse Kerry
August 26, 2004 - 8:54AMConcerned over Republican President George W Bush's handling of the US economy, 10 Nobel laureates in economics announced in a public letter their endorsement of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry.The Nobel winners include 1970 laureate Paul Samuelson from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and 2001 laureate Joseph Stiglitz from Columbia University, a former chief economist at the World Bank and former adviser to president Bill Clinton.According to the letter, the Bush administration has "embarked on a reckless and extreme course that endangers the long-term economic health of our nation."Kerry "understands that sound economic policy requires a substantial change in direction, and we support him for president."The differences between Bush and Kerry regarding leadership on the economy "are wider than in any other presidential election in our experience.Bush believes "that tax cuts benefiting the most-wealthy Americans are the answer to almost every economic problem." But the tax cuts "were poorly designed and therefore have given insufficient stimulus to job creation."The main effect of Bush's fiscal policies "has been to turn budget surpluses into enormous budget deficits. President Bush's fiscal irresponsibility threatens the long-term economic security and prosperity of our nation."At a time when the country should be saving to pay for retirement benefits for the large post-World War II generation - known as the "baby boomers" - the US national debt "is swelling; the social contract that binds one generation to another is being threatened with unravelling."In contrast, the Nobel laureates believe that Kerry "will restore fiscal responsibility" and is committed to helping families meet rising the cost of higher education and health care, and is committed "to work with our allies and trading partners to promote global growth that lifts up workers around the world."The letter was also signed by George Akerlof (2001), Daniel McFadden (2000), Kenneth Arrow (1972), William F. Sharpe (1990), Daniel Kahneman (2002), Lawrence Klein (1980), Douglass North Washington (1993), and Robert Solow (1987). 2004 AFP

Since 2001, President Bush's tax cuts have shifted federal tax payments from the richest Americans to a wide swath of middle-class families, the Congressional Budget Office has found, a conclusion likely to roil the presidential election campaign.
The CBO study, due to be released today, found that the wealthiest 20 percent, whose incomes averaged $182,700 in 2001, saw their share of federal taxes drop from 64.4 percent of total tax payments in 2001 to 63.5 percent this year. The top 1 percent, earning $1.1 million, saw their share fall to 20.1 percent of the total, from 22.2 percent.
Over that same period, taxpayers with incomes from around $51,500 to around $75,600 saw their share of federal tax payments increase. Households earning around $75,600 saw their tax burden jump the most, from 18.7 percent of all taxes to 19.5 percent.

Since 2001, President Bush's tax cuts have shifted federal tax payments from the richest Americans to a wide swath of middle-class families, the Congressional Budget Office has found, a conclusion likely to roil the presidential election campaign.
The CBO study, due to be released today, found that the wealthiest 20 percent, whose incomes averaged $182,700 in 2001, saw their share of federal taxes drop from 64.4 percent of total tax payments in 2001 to 63.5 percent this year. The top 1 percent, earning $1.1 million, saw their share fall to 20.1 percent of the total, from 22.2 percent.
Over that same period, taxpayers with incomes from around $51,500 to around $75,600 saw their share of federal tax payments increase. Households earning around $75,600 saw their tax burden jump the most, from 18.7 percent of all taxes to 19.5 percent.

Since 2001, President Bush's tax cuts have shifted federal tax payments from the richest Americans to a wide swath of middle-class families, the Congressional Budget Office has found, a conclusion likely to roil the presidential election campaign.
The CBO study, due to be released today, found that the wealthiest 20 percent, whose incomes averaged $182,700 in 2001, saw their share of federal taxes drop from 64.4 percent of total tax payments in 2001 to 63.5 percent this year. The top 1 percent, earning $1.1 million, saw their share fall to 20.1 percent of the total, from 22.2 percent.
Over that same period, taxpayers with incomes from around $51,500 to around $75,600 saw their share of federal tax payments increase. Households earning around $75,600 saw their tax burden jump the most, from 18.7 percent of all taxes to 19.5 percent.

Since 2001, President Bush's tax cuts have shifted federal tax payments from the richest Americans to a wide swath of middle-class families, the Congressional Budget Office has found, a conclusion likely to roil the presidential election campaign.
The CBO study, due to be released today, found that the wealthiest 20 percent, whose incomes averaged $182,700 in 2001, saw their share of federal taxes drop from 64.4 percent of total tax payments in 2001 to 63.5 percent this year. The top 1 percent, earning $1.1 million, saw their share fall to 20.1 percent of the total, from 22.2 percent.
Over that same period, taxpayers with incomes from around $51,500 to around $75,600 saw their share of federal tax payments increase. Households earning around $75,600 saw their tax burden jump the most, from 18.7 percent of all taxes to 19.5 percent.