I, and others who write thousands of articles denouncing Trump and his hypocritical party may be misleading you just a little. Although Trump’s illegitimate presidency is the low point in the history of the Republican Party, this all began nearly three decades in the past. Today’s Republican Party is owned by the unconstitutional Christian Religious Right, the NRA gun lobby, and big oil.

As right wing extremists began to take control of the once Grand Old Party, it lost all of its principles and morality. These traitorous politicians began to support special interests as they ignored the majority of the American people.

But let’s get to the core, the truth about Democrats vs Republicans. First of all, I am an Independent. I have multiple criticisms of both parties. However, as the Republican Party began to morph into an organization of greedy, old, white men, a billionaire, Rupert Murdoch, decided to create a propaganda machine for the right wing in support of his agenda and those of other members of the one-percent. In 1996, after hiring Roger Ailes, Murdoch launched FOX Noise.

It was obvious from day one that the function of this new network was to praise all right wing politicians, regardless of their crimes and immoral actions, and to attack all liberals with falsehoods and misleading statements. Their fake-journalists made false claims about the positions of Democrats on issues including the economy, gun control, and immigration, just to name a few.

Let’s set the record straight and offer something the right wing fears; facts.

America’s economy fares far better under Democratic leadership. Let’s go back to 1980. The policies created by Ronald Reagan produced a downturn in our economy. By his second term, ‘trickle down economics’ proved to be a disaster. When Reagan left office in 1989, the unemployment rate was 10 percent, and our nation was one-trillion dollars in debt.

Next came George H.W. Bush. Mr. Bush is, and was, a good man, but his refusal to initially raise taxes forced our nation’s economy into an even deeper slump. When he was forced to raise taxes, fake-conservatives refused to support his reelection, and he served but a single term.

Bill Clinton was elected in 1992. He inherited a deficit, an unacceptable unemployment rate, and a sagging economy. When Mr. Clinton left office in 2001, our economy was flourishing and the deficit was replaced with a surplus. His programs helped raise our nation’s overall quality of life to a level not seen since the administration of FDR.

George W. Bush unwisely placed our nation into two unwinnable wars, once again instituted a policy of trickle down economics, and led our nation with the use of fear tactics. When he left office in 2009, our nation was once again in trillions of dollars in debt, and the two wars he began continued to cost our nation lives and billions of dollars each year.

Barrack Obama took office on January 20, 2009. He inherited the worst possible conditions of any president in modern history. Two wars, an economy in a near depression, and unemployment rising with every month were challenges not faced by any president in recent history. He left office in 2017. We were no longer in Iraq, and our nation was in full recovery. The stock market had risen to new levels, and unemployment decreased with every month. The latter two fact continue today thanks to his foresight.

Now we have Trump. His sole “accomplishment” in nearly 17 months in office is a “tax reform bill.” This bill gives permanent tax breaks to the wealthy and corporations, while the relief for the middle class will end next year. This dangerous law will result in an increase in the deficit of at least $1.8 trillion. His policy is once again trickle down economics. His unilateral decision to renew tariffs on imports  will greatly harm American business.

More mass shootings have occurred under Trump’s watch in a very short period of time than at any other period in history. These tragedies took place in our schools, churches, a music festival in Las Vegas, and other public gatherings. Polls show that the majority of Americans favor sensible changes to our gun laws. It is a blatant lie that Democrats want to ‘take your guns away.’ The real difference between Democrats and Republicans is that liberals refuse to beg the NRA for campaign contributions, and they care about the safety of all Americans. Ten percent of Americans own 90 percent of the guns in our nation.

The biggest lie about immigration is that our southern border experiences large numbers of illegal immigrants every day. The truth is that it has been at an all time low for a decade. Republicans are racists, and Trump is the leader of the white supremacy movement in America. This is the truth about immigration. All aspects of the system were working well until Trump made it a campaign issue. Trump created a problem which did not exist to win votes from his fellow racists.

These are incontrovertible facts. Our nation is better in every way under Democratic leadership, and our nation is far more respected when the left wing sets policy for international relations.

Don’t believe Republican liars, and never watch FOX unless you enjoy being lied to.

Op-ed by James Turnage

My novels are available on Amazon; CLICK HERE