Brit Hume Predicts Which Party Will Get Blamed For Government Shutdown

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  Politics and Government on Tue, Sep 30th, 2025 by The Daily Caller

Brit Hume Predicts Which Party Will Bear the Blame for America’s Economic Collapse

In a scathing take that has already sparked debate among political pundits and casual observers alike, former White House correspondent and Fox News anchor Brit Hume declared that the party most likely to be held accountable for the 2008‑2009 financial collapse will be the Republicans—at least, according to the former U.S. President’s political instincts.

The article—published on January 5, 2009 on AOL News—draws on Hume’s long history of skeptical commentary about Washington’s “liberal” agenda. In the piece, Hume argues that the Republican Party will “pin the blame” on Democrats, citing the long‑standing conservative belief that the deregulation policies championed by the Bush administration were a direct cause of the crisis.

A Look Back at the Crisis

Hume opens the story by recapping the timeline of the crisis. He explains how the housing boom, fueled by lax lending standards and a flurry of mortgage‑backed securities, eventually collapsed in late 2007, leading to a global credit crunch. He points out that, in the immediate aftermath, “the Republicans were the first to criticize the Democratic Party’s handling of the economy,” saying that “the Democrats’ embrace of stimulus and bail‑outs was a sign of political opportunism, not fiscal responsibility.”

The article includes a link to a CNBC feature that outlines the regulatory failures that led to the collapse, and to a Washington Post editorial that warns of “the danger of unchecked government interference in financial markets.” Hume cites both as evidence that the Republicans’ “pro‑market” stance was not a mere slogan but a policy that directly contributed to the crisis.

The “Who’s Fault” Debate

Hume’s central thesis is that the party blamed will inevitably be the one that is perceived as having mismanaged the economy. He points out that the Republican Party’s emphasis on free‑market principles and limited regulation, while ostensibly pro‑business, created the conditions that allowed “subprime mortgage issuers to flood the market with risk.” He further argues that the Democrats’ “political posturing” during the crisis—promising “bailouts” and “stimulus packages” that ultimately increased the federal debt—has made them a convenient target for Republican criticism.

The article quotes Hume as saying, “In the next few months, you’re going to see the Republicans point the finger at the Democrats, not only on the economic front but also on the moral side. They’ll claim that the Democrats’ ‘wishful thinking’ caused the crisis.” Hume suggests that the Republican Party will use the crisis to reinforce its anti‑government stance, framing Democrats as “the party of the big banks and the rich.”

Public Opinion and the Media

Hume also references a Pew Research Center poll that shows a fairly even split in public opinion about who should bear the blame. “About 48 percent of Americans say the crisis is the fault of the Democrats, while 45 percent blame the Republicans,” Hume reports. He interprets the poll as a signal that the Republicans have a chance to win the blame narrative if they can convince voters that “the Democrats’ policies were reckless.”

The article links to a New York Times opinion piece that argues the public is largely skeptical of the Republicans’ “market‑only” philosophy. Hume counters that skepticism is misplaced and that “the Democrats’ interventionist policies are exactly what caused the crisis.”

A Call to Action

In its conclusion, Hume urges readers to pay attention to how the “party blamed” will shape the next election cycle. He warns that “the blame game is just the beginning. It’s a political tool that the Republicans will use to rally their base and to paint the Democrats as corrupt.” Hume signs off with a grim prediction that the next presidential election will revolve around “who is responsible for the economy” rather than policy substance.

The article ends with a “Related Links” section that includes the full CNBC interview with Hume, a link to the Washington Post editorial, and a link to the Pew Research Center’s poll. It also contains a brief sidebar about the historical context of “blame politics” in American elections, referencing the 1980s “Reagan Revolution” and the 1994 “Contract with America.”

In sum, Brit Hume’s piece on AOL News is a call to readers that the Republicans will likely take the blame for the 2008 financial crisis, and that this narrative will have ripple effects on the forthcoming political landscape. By drawing on contemporary reports, polling data, and historical precedents, Hume provides a concise yet forceful argument about the inevitable political backlash that follows an economic calamity. The story serves as a reminder that, in American politics, the party blamed is often as politically useful as it is morally accurate.