We Didn’t Dereg the System (But We Let It Burn)

An Economic History of the Modern American Wreckage Cycle, Set to Rage and Rhythm

Context: While researching the OBBB, a conversation arose regarding the themes of budgets and values, which led to an examination of what the last few administrations valued based on their budgets. Naturally, this resulted in the inescapable pattern of every modern Republican inheriting a decent economy and torching it with tax cuts for the wealthy and military spending, followed by a Democrat coming in to a fiscal crisis and playing clean up. It starts with Reagan, because of course it does. Naturally, we took this notion to ChatGPT and accidentally spawned a parody song. Don’t blame us. AI made us do it. ;)

First, it generated this when we mentioned that this pattern reminded us of “We Didn’t Start the Fire”.

Reagan, tax cuts, airline strike
Dereg bank rules, debt spike
Contra funds, Gipper grin
Budget holes we’re still stuck in

Clinton tries to fix the mess
Glass-Steagall dies under press
Bush the Second, tax again
Two wars and a housing scam

Obama catches Wall Street’s fall
Stimulus but not for all
Trump returns with trickle lies
COVID hits, the market cries

We didn’t start the fire / But Reagan fanned it higher / It’s been burning since the ’80s / And now it’s eating babies...

So, of course, when it offered to make an expanded version, who were we to say no? Here’s the result.

You are welcome.

Reagan busts the unions, tax cuts for the millionaires
Trickle-down begins its run, safety net's in disrepair
Savings & Loans collapse, Star Wars, budget caps
Tripled debt, rich get fed, public goods left for dead

Bush the First, war and oil, economy begins to spoil
"No new taxes" broke his word, still the trickle never worked
Recession hits, Dems reclaim, Clinton plays the centrist game
Welfare cut, surpluses climb, Glass-Steagall dies in '99

Bush the Second, tax again, Wall Street’s house built on sand
Two wars, no plan, Katrina drowns New Orleans land
Housing crash, bailout spree, Main Street gets no guarantee
Jobless pain, Obama wins, inherits Wall Street’s sins

Rescue bill, ACA, stimulus kept banks at bay
GOP cries "too much debt," slashes spending, stalls the Fed
Occupy, Tea Party, "Where’s my job?" economy
Gridlock rules, hope fades, Wall Street still gets paid

Trump tweets, tax breaks, border walls and market fakes
Covid hits, testing fails, checks go out, but systems pale
Uninsured, evictions rise, billionaires balloon in size
2020 ends in grief, Biden takes the wheel — and beef

Rescue Plan, child aid, infrastructure finally paid
Student loans, courts block, climate funds go into shock
Debt ceiling, GOP, blocks the care economy
OBBB on the floor, ICE and tanks, and cuts to poor...

We didn’t dereg the system
But we let it burn / and it won’t return / till we finally learn
We didn’t start the fire
But we watched it grow / through each status quo

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ANNOTATIONS

Reagan busts the unions...
→ Reference to the 1981 PATCO strike and Reagan’s foundational assault on labor protections, launching the modern wage-stagnation era.

Savings & Loans collapse...
→ The S&L crisis of the late ’80s — early sign of financial deregulation consequences.

Clinton plays the centrist game...
→ Emphasizes triangulation: embracing welfare reform and NAFTA, while also overseeing economic growth and balancing the budget.

Glass-Steagall dies in '99...
→ The 1999 repeal of banking regulation separating commercial and investment banks — a key precursor to the 2008 crash.

Wall Street’s house built on sand...
→ Subprime mortgage collapse and the housing bubble that burst under Bush II.

Jobless pain, Obama wins...
→ Obama took office amid the Great Recession, with 800,000 jobs lost per month.

Gridlock rules, hope fades...
→ The GOP’s austerity push post-2010 midterms limited recovery efforts despite economic need.

Covid hits, testing fails...
→ Trump’s mishandling of pandemic preparedness and response.

Billionaires balloon in size...
→ Wealth inequality exploded during the pandemic, with top earners gaining billions as millions fell into poverty.

OBBB on the floor...
→ Refers to the One Big Beautiful Bill and its tradeoffs: cuts to care programs in favor of tax breaks and militarization.

Disclaimer

These parody lyrics are based on the song “We Didn’t Start the Fire” by Billy Joel. All original song rights belong to their respective copyright holders. This adaptation is offered under fair use as a work of parody for the purposes of commentary, criticism, and education. No commercial reproduction or performance is intended.