Why republicans lost in 2006 and 2008

The republicans lost in 2006 and 2008 because the party has become a big central government and big spending party.

The lesson to learn is that the republicans won the house in 1994 with the Contract with America. The one part of the Contract with America that was not passed (term limits) is the one part which has resulted in the party failing.

The Federal government was meant to be a short term job by the founding fathers. The concept of Career Politician was a foreign concept to them.

The failure to instill term limits on the congress has resulted in the republican party getting corrupted by the concept of getting re-elected and not doing what is right for the long term of the country. Elected officials are meant to serve for a short term in public office and returning to the private sector. Going to a lobbying firm, the speech circuit or becoming a TV analyst is not the private sector. Get out of the spot light and DC, go back to the home district, get a job, start a business do anything but be in the public spotlight.

There was fiscal discipline (growing government at a slow pace) in 1995 t0 2000 which gave way to expansive growth of the federal government and higher spending as the republican party had control of congress and the presidency. This was done to try and gain re-election by growing the federal government at a huge rate instead of staying true to the principles that got them elected in the first place.

From 1995 to 2000 federal spending was between 18% and 19% of GDP. The federal government has grown to 23.5% of GDP between 2001 and 2006 under the Republican controlled federal government.

In 2001 the federal budget was $1.86 Trillion, in 2006 it was $2.65 Trillion.
Federal taxes collected in 2001 were $1.99 Trillion, in 2006 there was $2.47 Trillion collected.
source http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0104753.html

The republican party is now the party of big spending.

America has been punishing the Republican party in 2006 and 2008 for failing to live up to its promises of the late 90s. Despite what the media and politicians think we do have long memories.

If the federal budget could have been kept at 18.5% GDP during the years of 2001 to 2006 the federal government would have spent $2.36 trillion less than it actually did. The debt would have gone down by $0.81 trillion dollars instead of increasing by $1.54 trillion.

I do not think most Americans know the realities of these numbers but we are unhappy with the federal government. We do not know why, we just know something is not right in our collective gut.

We just know that the government is not being responsible with our money and might as well give the democrats a chance.

This is the message of the 2006 and 2008 elections.