Liberal Democrats Dither as the American Economy Burns...

In October 2008, the candidate Barack Obama delivered a major economic speech in Toledo, Ohio, in which he said: “Right now, we face an immediate economic emergency, and that requires urgent action. We can’t wait to help workers and families and communities who are struggling right now — who don’t know if their job or their retirement will be there tomorrow; who don’t know if next week’s paycheck will cover this month’s bills. ... We need to pass an economic rescue plan for the middle-class, and we need to do it not five years from now, not next year, we need to do it right now.

“So today I’m proposing a number of steps that we should take immediately to stabilize our financial system, provide relief to families and communities and help struggling homeowners.”

Just about a year later, and a full ten months into Barack Obama’s first term, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released unemployment figures for October 2009 this past Friday (11-6-09). The official rate is now a staggering 10.2 percent, up more than 50 percent from the time that candidate Obama gave that speech.

(Worse still, the underemployment rate, which includes part-time workers who want to work full time and those who’ve given up searching, is a staggering 17.5 percent.)

President Obama has been reduced to asking the people for patience and offering excuses. He’s even tried to sell the view that at least things are getting worse at a slower pace, but his subtext is always, “Don’t blame me, blame Bush.”

The global credit crisis was a bipartisan disaster, although the crisis took hold on Bush’s watch, but that pain hasn’t been reduced, it’s increased under the Obama administration.

For better or worse, this is now Obama’s crisis, it’s HIS economy and that fact carries some serious political realities along with it. And THIS is the comparison Barack Obama is faced with, for better or worse, he'll be compared to the last President who took office during a major economic downturn, Ronald Reagan. Reagan inherited the real "worst U.S. economy since the Great Depression," with rising unemployment and high inflation rates wreaking havoc. When he took office, the Misery Index (the combined inflation and unemployment rates) stood at 21 (20.8) with an inflation rate of 13.6% and an unemployment rate of 7.2%, at the end of Reagan's first year the Misery Index was dropped to 18 (17.97) with an inflation rate of 10.3% and an unemployment rate of 7.6 AND the Supply Side policies that administration brought in continued to drop the Misery Index and improve the economy over the next five years until the Misery Index reached single digits for the first time in 14 years! By 1986, the Misery Index hadn't seen single digits since 1972.

But, the economy and JOBS aren’t high on the Democratic agenda, even though that’s the NUMBER 1 issue with the vast majority of Americans!

Even David Rockefeller (D-WV) has recently wondered aloud whether the Democrat’s agenda of Healthcare and Cap and Trade is out of step with the American people’s concerns over the economy and JOBS.

When David Rockefeller is questioning his Party’s conventional wisdom, something’s very wrong.

But let’s look at the costs of the Democrat’s big government agenda;

Actual 10-year Cost of Pelosi Healthcare Plan: $1.8 Trillion

The CBO reports that, in their true first 10 years, the House bill would cost $1.8 trillion, and the Senate bill would cost $1.7 trillion. Pelosi would raise Americans’ taxes by $1.1 trillion over that period, while Reid would hike them by $1 trillion. In other words, the Democrats have relied on accounting gimmicks to lie about the true costs of the bills.

OK, there’s a TRILLION USD in new taxes piled on an already over-taxed nation.

How about Cap and Trade? What will that cost?

The Projected Costs of Cap and Trade

http://blog.heritage.org/2009/06/22/cbo-grossly-underestimates-costs-of-cap-and-trade/

“The Heritage Foundation’s analysis of the Waxman-Markey climate change legislation, the GDP hit in 2020 was $161 billion (2009 dollars). For a family of four, that is $1,870 that even the CBO ignore.

“Higher energy costs create a significantly slower economy and reduce America’s growth potential. Heritage analysis finds that by 2035, a projected 2.5 million jobs are lost below the baseline (without a cap and trade bill). The average Gross Domestic Product (GDP) lost is $393 billion, hitting a high of $662 billion in 2035. The negative economic impacts accumulate, and the national debt is no exception. The increase in family-of-four debt, solely because of Waxman-Markey, hits an almost unbelievable $114,915 by 2035.

“Whatever the costs, we will get almost nothing in exchange. According to climatologist Chip Knappenberger, Waxman-Markey would moderate temperatures by only hundredths of a degree in 2050 and no more than two-tenths of a degree at the end of the century.”

So, while nearly 1 out of every 5 Americans is looking for a better economy and MORE jobs (which requires more investment), the Democrats seem intent on adding an unmanageable and ill-conceived healthcare overhaul and a tremendously expensive Cap and trade that will deliver negligible results at BEST!

Yes, the Liberals in government want to add over $2 TRILLION in taxes over the next decade, while at the same time saddling the average American family of four with an incredible $114,915 by 2035!

The Blue Dog Democrats CAN help avert these disasters, but ONLY IF they remain true to their Conservative ideology!