George H. W. Bush: Difference between revisions

The U.S. economy had generally performed well since emerging from [[Early 1980s recession in the United States|recession in late 1982]], but it slipped into a mild [[Early 1990s recession in the United States|recession in 1990]]. The unemployment rate rose from 5.9 percent in 1989 to a high of 7.8 percent in mid-1991.<ref name="Accepting the Harsh Truth Of a Blue-Collar Recession, New York Times, Dec. 25, 1991">{{Cite news|last=Lohr|first=Steve|date=December 25, 1991|title=Accepting the Harsh Truth Of a Blue-Collar Recession|newspaper=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/12/25/business/accepting-the-harsh-truth-of-a-blue-collar-recession.html|access-date=January 5, 2022|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="Blue-collar Towns Have Highest Jobless Numbers, Hartford Courant, Sept. 1, 1991">[https://www.courant.com/1991/09/01/blue-collar-towns-have-highest-jobless-numbers/ Blue-collar Towns Have Highest Jobless Numbers], ''Hartford Courant'' [Connecticut], W. Joseph Campbell, September 1, 1991.</ref> Large [[United States public debt|federal deficits]], spawned during the Reagan years, rose from $152.1&nbsp;billion in 1989<ref>{{cite news| last=Redburn| first=Tom| title=Budget Deficit for 1989 Is Put at $152.1 Billion : Spending: Congress and the White House remain locked in a stalemate over a capital gains tax cut| date=October 28, 1989| url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-10-28-mn-697-story.html| work=[[Los Angeles Times]]| access-date=June 7, 2018}}</ref> to $220&nbsp;billion for 1990;<ref name=NYT10-27-90>{{cite news| last=Uchitelle| first=Louis| title=The Struggle in Congress; U.S. Deficit for 1990 Surged to Near-Record $220.4 Billion, but How Bad Is That?| date=October 27, 1990| url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/10/27/us/struggle-congress-us-deficit-for-1990-surged-near-record-220.4-billion-but-bad.html| work=The New York Times| access-date=June 7, 2018}}</ref> the $220&nbsp;billion deficit represented a threefold increase since 1980.{{sfn|Greene|2015|pp=72–73}} As the public became increasingly concerned about the economy and other domestic affairs, Bush's well-received handling of foreign affairs became less of an issue for most voters.{{sfn|Waterman|1996|pp=340–341}} Bush's top domestic priority was to end federal budget deficits, which he saw as a liability for the country's long-term economic health and standing in the world.{{sfn|Meacham|2015|pp=360–361}} As he was opposed to major defense spending cuts{{sfn|Patterson|2005|pp=228–229}} and had pledged not to raise taxes, the president had major difficulties in balancing the budget.<ref name="millercenterdomesticaffairs">{{cite web|url=http://millercenter.org/president/biography/bush-domestic-affairs|title=George H. W. Bush: Domestic Affairs|publisher=Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia|access-date=January 18, 2017|date=October 4, 2016}}</ref>