How far we’ve come

To the editor:

Watching the State of the Union, I was thinking about how the recession of 2008 seems so long ago. It is even harder to remember when the Iraq and Afghanistan wars were started. Looking even further back, in 2000 we weren’t really worried about any of that: our budget was balanced, unemployment was low, and we weren’t trapped in foreign wars.

America’s been on a roller coaster this century, from prosperity and balanced budgets during the Clinton administration to massive deficits, foreign wars, torture, and a massive recession during the Bush administration.

We’ve spent the last six years recovering from a very deep recession, but the good news is our economy is growing again and we’re creating jobs faster than at any point since 1999. Our national deficit has been cut by more than 60 percent. More Americans and Alaskans have health coverage, and we’ve miraculously begun to make progress toward stopping the rise in health care costs.

What a difference a president makes.

It’s a shame that so many members of Congress have stood on the sidelines. Back in 2009 Congressional Republicans led by John Boehner made a fateful decision: They would oppose everything Obama did, even if it was their own idea. They opposed economic recovery legislation. They opposed Wall Street reform. They opposed health reform and climate change legislation even though those bill were written based on Republican legislative models.

They opposed everything cynically, knowing that if they could make Congress dysfunctional that voters would punish the president. And that happened, when Republicans won seats in Congress in 2014.

Years later, the very real consequences of Boehner’s cynicism have become apparent. Yes, Obama has helped lead a remarkable economic recovery. But it was slower than it needed to be because Republicans blocked stronger recovery legislation that could have accelerated job creation. Yes, health reform was a big improvement. But it could have been even stronger if Republicans hadn’t sat on the sidelines and tried to sabotage it for political reasons. Yes, Wall Street reform legislation was positive and necessary, but even this January Republicans are trying to unravel it as they take marching orders from banking lobbyists.

How far we have come, despite Congressional Republicans’ cynicism and obstructionism.

During the State of the Union, Republican flacks tried to find any piece of bad news about the economy to discredit the president. Their cynicism knows no bounds.

It’s time for John Boehner and Republicans in Congress to stop rooting against America. This economic recovery is a good thing, and voters know it. Republicans can’t stand on the sidelines trying to sabotage progress for six years and then blame Obama because the recovery takes time.

Let’s be proud of the progress we’ve made, and hold our Congressional representatives accountable. Now is the time to stop betting against America and to stop sabotaging progress. They should support the economic recovery, not undercut it with more special interest Wall Street lobbyist bills that risk returning us to the Bush era of recession and debt.

Beverly Serrano

Wasilla