Last Thursday, President Obama echoed Nancy Pelosi when she said, “We have to pass the bill so we can see what’s in it.”
Congress passed the Healthcare bill, and when we saw what was in it, we stood aghast and appalled at the monstrosity Congress created.
Obama said much the same thing last Thursday night in his much awaited address to Congress when he said, “I am sending this Congress a plan that you should pass right away.”
He went on to say, “It’s called the American Jobs Act. There should be nothing controversial about this piece of legislation. Everything in here is the kind of proposal that’s been supported by both Democrats and Republicans — including many who sit here tonight. And everything in this bill will be paid for. Everything.”
However, he failed to mention that Thursday’s speech was little more than a rehash of what he had already presented in 2009 when he had a Congress dominated by democrats. He also failed to mention that both houses had soundly rejected it at that time.
So he reworked some old, rejected ideas, shined them up a bit, and regifted them. He did a great job of campaigning as he set forth a list of broad proposals that he figured would have even broader appeal. And time and time again he admonished Congress to pass the bill right away, a bill that at the time didn’t exist.
The things that Obama has proposed to create jobs, don’t make sense in either the short- or long-term. As James H. “Smokey” Shott, a Daily Telegraph columnist wrote, “While Mr. Obama wants to fund things that are needed and useful, like transportation projects and infrastructure upgrades, these things provide short-term employment. The economy desperately needs to create long-term jobs, jobs that will be around many years hence, not jobs that last only several months. A bunch of short-term construction jobs, funded by government with money it doesn’t have, is a terrible plan.”
Obama said, “Pass this jobs bill, and companies will get a $4,000 tax credit if they hire anyone who has spent more than six months looking for a job.” Shott made a good point when he wrote, “... if a new job is going to last, it has to be in response to operations-related need, not government gimmickry. The average wage in the United States is about $50,000 a year, plus benefits. How many businesses of any size are going to take on that expense just to get a $4,000 tax credit?”
Once again, Obama showed us he just doesn’t understand the business of business.
Other proposals include such highlights as an extension of the payroll tax holiday, but only temporarily; eliminate “pages of loopholes and deductions, we can lower one of the highest corporate tax rates in the world;” revise the tax code so “everyone gets a fair shake and everybody pays their fair share;” “...clear the way for a series of trade agreements;” and clear out red tape in the regulatory process.
And we’ve heard it all before. All of which will amount to about a half a trillion dollars that we still don’t have. And the part about it all being paid for?
“And everything in this bill will be paid for. Everything.” Remember that?
Supposedly, we will pay for it over the next ten years, long after Obama and most of this Congress has retired, leaving no legal obligation for future Congresses to follow through. Future Congresses will be free to choose to pay for it or not.
The best thing Obama can do is to step back and let the American people take over the economy. Lower taxes across the board. Abolish most government programs--including Obamacare. Deregulate. Deregulate. Deregulate. Let us take our destiny within our own hands without government restraints and we will pull this economy up to the greatest heights yet. In the meantime, Obama might use his free time to learn how business really works.
