Have Republicans Abandoned the Ownership Society?
Encouraging people to buy a home was a hallmark of President George W. Bush’s economic policy. The new GOP tax bill marks a retreat from that philosophy.
“We want more people owning their own home. It is in our national interest that more people own their own home.” — President George W. Bush, December 16, 2003
Under the last Republican president, encouraging people to buy a home was an explicit government priority, a cornerstone of the Bush administration’s “ownership society.” Bush proposed new tax credits to incentivize home-buying, pushed for loan guarantees and easier lending standards, and signed legislation providing federal assistance for down-payments and closing costs for tens of thousands of Americans.
Nearly a decade-and-a-half later, that GOP mantra is no more. The sweeping tax overhaul House Republicans introduced on Thursday some of the biggest incentives for home-buying
