I think regarding the UK you are certaily right. I'm as well not too familiar with French politics, but as far as I know the last 13 years there was a conservative president in France and no radical gov elimination took place.

I would be as well interested what you think about http://www.shadowstats.com/
or would like to know from where you have your "real" GDP numbers. I think nominally F, D and the USA have about the same GDP/capita when one takes todays USD/Euro exchange. All the time people tell the Euro is overvalued against the USD. But isin't this mainly due to the pegging of many Asian countries?
You claim that France has ca. 80% of the real US GDP, and even only when one take the .1 % richest out. Wouldn't that mean, that our pricelevel is ca. 30% higher than the US one?
With oil, food and commodities traded internationally and only ca. 10% difference in VAT, it seems to me a bit unlikely, that the US and EU price levels are so different.
Due to that I would argue, that in the Bush years F and D did not only nearly as good as the USA, but actually better, which of course would not change your implications, but may even strengthen them.

Der Amerikaner ist die Orchidee unter den Menschen
Volker Pispers