At the candidates presidential debate (MSNBC - Politico), the Republican contenders will vie to reclaim the mantle of the Ronald Reagan legacy. Here it is, in a surprise image:
It should be framed in gilt. The decade of the 80s begat the RR tax-cut and job-export policies (the notorious "twin deficits" of trade and federal budgeting) that flipped the US abruptly to net debtor nation status.
This was the natural outcome of "less is more" tax optimism ideology.
The roaring 80s was the first modern time when the country wasn't at war that the U.S. turned to finance the economy by giving foreigners ownership of more assets of ours than we had a stake in theirs.
The chart comes from an article in Fortune by Warren Buffett - 2003 (graph is viewable also here (PDF) or here.)
The huge 2001 and 2003 tax cuts under Bush didn't help (way cool graphic),
Supply siders, take note.
"Less" has not become more -- except more debt.
[cross posted at politicalcortex]