This past weekend, former Vermont Governor Howard Dean traveled to Milwaukee attempting to garner votes for the upcoming Wisconsin primary. Although no longer the front-runner for the nomination, his strategy in Wisconsin follows standard Democratic campaign procedure.

Dean and other Democrats have worked tirelessly to spin good economic news and convince middle-class Americans, especially minorities, that President George W. Bush has ruined all chances for success. While meeting with several local African American leaders and attending church services, Dean emphasized the high unemployment rates among the African American population and other minorities in the state. As an alternative, Dean and Democratic front-runner Senator John Kerry promise to repeal the Bush tax cuts and increase spending on social programs.

In order to understand the current economic condition, one must look at recent economic history. The 2003 third-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 8.2 percent occurred two years after President Bush’s tax cuts and was the largest GDP growth rate since the first quarter of 1984 — approximately two years after President Ronald Reagan’s tax cuts. Amid this great economic news, Democrats have found one last piece of bad news to run with: unemployment rates. In particular, Democrats target cities with manufacturing economies and high minority jobless rates.

If history repeats itself, Democrats may soon experience a rude awakening. As GDP growth generally lags tax cuts, job growth usually lags GDP growth. Bruce Bartlett, a senior fellow with the National Center for Policy Analysis, provides excellent analysis on this. Writing in the Washington Times Aug. 11, 2003, he notes that after the early 1990s recession, job growth did not occur until 1994, a full three years after the recession ended. A similar trend transpired in the 1980s.

Bartlett also notes that productivity is an extremely important statistic. Productivity has increased by 6.5 percent since the end of the 2001 recession, and Bartlett cites two studies from the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco that prove higher productivity increases employment in the long run. It only makes sense. Eventually, at some point, associates at a company begin falling behind with demand, necessitating hiring. In fact, recent data showing consistent declines in new unemployment claims would suggest that this trend has already restarted.

Democrats have criticized President Bush’s tax cuts for benefiting the wealthy few, but they fail to understand that those individuals create the jobs in this country, something these individuals cannot do under confiscatory tax and redistribution policies. Furthermore, historical trends indicate that as the economic recovery comes to full fruition, all Americans, regardless of race or status, will benefit from a stronger job market.

Unlike most Democrats, President Bush understands that jobs are best created not through affirmative action or social programs, but rather by encouraging economic growth that forces businesses to hire truly qualified associates in order to remain competitive.

Finally, besides the tax cut, one other important factor has kept the economy growing, namely, strong national security. In a recent CBS/ New York Times poll, 68 percent of Americans give President Bush high marks in his campaign against terrorism, as they should. In addition to ridding the world of several dangerous terrorists and dictators, this administration has prevented any major terrorist attack from occurring on United States soil since Sept. 11, 2001, undoubtedly boosting business and consumer confidence.

In this coming election, instead of simply voting for the candidate endorsed by their organization or union, Americans, regardless of race, should make a careful decision and start by asking these three questions: Who do we trust to keep us safe from terrorism? Who will allow us to keep more of our own earnings? Who will ensure that economic growth continues? After careful consideration of one, two, or all three of these questions, the contrast between President Bush and the front-running Democratic candidates becomes clear.

Mark Baumgardner ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in electrical engineering.