Obama's Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel, has said that an economic crisis offers the Democrats an opportunity to push through changes that would otherwise not have a chance. Will they delay that recovery to achieve their ends?
Many economists and Wall Street experts are now agreeing that Obama's economic plan will only bring trillions of dollars more deficit, the greatest in history, over the near future and likely to continue well beyond that. The amount of federal dollars poured into AIG, the banks, and the auto industry is already well over many times what their stock would be worth in a total buyout. The actual effect of making these companies so in debt to the government has in fact been to render their stocks virtually if not absolutely worthless.
The amount of government intervention into the markets is so much that it no longer matters how good or efficient a service or product a particular company offers but rather if it is favored by one or another government program. Warren Buffett's recent declaration that the economy is in shambles reflects that fact that even good companies are beginning to struggle. This is why the stock market is in abatement.
President Obama and the liberal Congressional Democrats believe they were elected with a mandate. Their imperative is not to recover the economy but rather to assuage the mal distribution of wealth and inequality of income that exists in America. They want to bring about total government control of education, health, commerce, income and markets into being. Mr. Obama, it appears, believes like Karl Marx that there can be no profit without worker exploitation so no profit should be allowed. Is his plan to modernize the grid system of the United States really his GOELRO plan?
The Wall Street Journal rightly pointed out that the the economy has continued to fall over the past two months with no real new bad news other than the continued announcements of the Obama economic plan. Rather then recognize that it was time for AIG and the others that were receiving handouts to declare bankruptcy, the Obama administration is continuing to keep the dead on life support. The result has been that they are actually slowing down the economic recovery. Again as pointed out by the Wall Street Journal and others the length of previous recessions would suggest that if this one had been allowed to bottom out then already we would be seeing some signs of recovery instead of only turbulent murkiness on the horizon.
Most of the government stimulus program went to into social programs rather then infrastructure projects that could create jobs. The Obama administration has abandoned the idea of building any new oil facilities either drilling or refining or nuclear power plants which could not only add to national security by making the country more independent but also create wealth and jobs. Those involved in medical research and development are holding their breath, because a new government mandate is coming that the government and not your doctor will decide whether you will get new treatments or any treatments.
Everyone agrees that the majority of new jobs in the recovery of the recession will need to come from small business. Yet the plan to severely increase the taxes of individuals and business at incomes over $250,000 will severely curtail this potential growth. Additionally proposed taxes on energy will be disproportionately applied to small businesses who are not as efficient in transportation and energy use as larger corporations.
Conservatives should sound the alarm that it may not be that Obama and his team do not know what they are doing to help the economy, but that there is a much more dreadful reality, that they know exactly what are they are doing.
Dr. Tony Magana was raised in McAllen Texas, attended Texas A&M;University, and holds a doctorate from Harvard University. He has served in the United States Army Reserve. He is a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
