Republicans have repeated the lie that tax cuts are always good for the economy so often that all of Washington seems absolutely convinced that it’s true. The conventional wisdom is so established on this that all a Republican has to say is, “Everyone knows you don’t raise taxes in the middle of a recession …” Or in good times or in mediocre times or ever. All tax cuts are always good.

The thirty year old Conservative plan for the economy is known by many names; Supply Side, Reaganomics, but my favorite name for it is Trickle-Down economics. In case you don’t follow economic theories, Trickle-Down is the practice of giving advantage to the supply side of our economics system, the corporations, wealthy, and small businesses who create jobs, through tax breaks and incentives. The idea is that wealthy people flush with cash save that cash, and those savings are invested, through some means, back into the economy, which then through various ways, trickles down even to the poorest of Americans, either through innovations and efficiencies that make consumer goods less expensive to own, or through job creation due to increased demand.

Historically, this has been accomplished through tax breaks, especially for corporate America. In fact, about the only solution available to Supply-Siders is reducing taxes.

Thankfully, that’s as complicated as Republicans have made it, which makes my job much simpler. The idea of cutting taxes for corporate America and small businesses is that they will then use that money to create jobs in their own businesses. Only we’ve been using Bush’ Trickle-Down tax cuts for nine years, and we’re bleeding jobs. The best that can be said about Bush’ job creation record was that it was a positive record during his two terms. He averaged 49,000 jobs created per month. Economists say we need at least 150,000 to keep up with population growth. So Bush only fell about 101,000 jobs short per month with his Trickle-Down plan.

So much for tax cuts creating jobs.

I get asked repeatedly by clients and friends, “Pooper, when is the recovery going to happen?”

To which I answer, “Are you referring to the recession, or the actual beginning of the collapse of our economy?” I typically get blank stares.

Allow me to expound. What you are seeing in America today is not a recovery from anything; not from the “recession” (called so because we have to have a label for everything), not from jobs lost, not from jobs outsourced overseas…there has been no recovery and will be no recovery until we undo what Conservatives (and in some cases, Democrats) did to ruin the economy.

The Left finally makes an effort to debunk the historic “successes” of the Supply Side Economic theory.