Quiz Time! Can You Tell Bachmann From Ryan?

Yesterday we discussed the State of the Union speech and the two Republican responses. I linked to. Piece by Joan Walsh showing how Bachmann and Ryan basically said the same debunked lies with different styles. Ryan is more polished and professional. Bachmann is more crazy and a more transparent liar. As these two fact checks show – Ryan fact check, Bachmann fact check – they both repeated lies about the causes of the economic crisis and the effect of the stimulus. Jonathan Chait put together a clever post about the similarities between the two messages. Can you tell which speaker is Ryan and which one is Bachmann?

Here is both Bachmann and Ryan discussing the national debt:

“Two years ago, when Barack Obama became our president, unemployment was 7.8 percent and our national debt stood at what seemed like a staggering $10.6 trillion dollars. We wondered whether the president would cut spending, reduce the deficit and implement real job-creating policies. Unfortunately, the president’s strategy for recovery was to spend a trillion dollars on a failed stimulus program, fueled by borrowed money…Deficits were unacceptably high under President Bush, but they exploded under President Obama’s direction, growing the national debt by an astounding $3.1 trillion.

“A few years ago, reducing spending was important. Today, it’s imperative. Here’s why: We face a crushing burden of debt. The debt will soon eclipse our entire economy and grow to catastrophic levels in the years ahead…Unfortunately, instead of restoring the fundamentals of economic growth, he engaged in a stimulus spending spree that not only failed to deliver on its promise to create jobs but also plunged us even deeper into debt.The facts areclear: Since taking office, President Obama has signed into law spending increases of nearly 25 percent for domestic government agencies – an 84 percent increase when you include the failed
stimulus.”

Their statements of principals:

“We believe a renewed commitment to limited government will unshackle our economy and create millions of new jobs and opportunities for all people, of every background, to succeed and prosper. Under this approach, the spirit of initiative – not political clout – determines who succeeds…We need to reclaim our American system of limited government, low taxes, reasonable regulations and sound money, which has blessed us with unprecedented prosperity. And it has done more to help the poor than any other economic system ever designed. That’s the real secret to job creation – not borrowing and spending more money in Washington. Limited government and free enterprise have helped make America the greatest nation on earth. These are not easy times, but America is an exceptional nation.”

“We need to start making things again in this country, and we can do that by reducing the tax and regulatory burdens on job creators…Because of you, Congress is responding and we are just starting to undo the damage that’s been done the last few years. Because we believe in lower taxes. We believe in a limited view of government, and exceptionalism in America. And I believe that America is the indispensable nation of the world.”

There’s several more at the link. How did you do? I got 3 out of 6, which is what you’d get by guessing.