There is an email going around that says a coup is underway to oust John Boehner as Speaker of the House and replace him with Paul Ryan. (Hmmm...I actually thought it would be Eric Cantor who would lead the revolt.) I'm no big fan of John Boehner, but I feel like he would be someone who could/would negotiate with the Democrats.
Paul Ryan is a headline-grabbing "my way or the highway" kinda guy. Bad move, Republicans! The Tea Party-ers apparently didn't get the message: The People have repudiated extreme politics. They want our leaders to work together to get something done and not throw us all under the bus.
My concern is that if this is true and Ryan (or Cantor) does become Speaker, we're going over the "fiscal cliff" next year. Sequestration (across-the-board spending cuts) will automatically kick in, cutting not only fat from government (good) but meat, too (bad). And we can ALL see our paychecks reduced when the "Bush tax cuts" expire and we go back to our previous tax rates. Ouch! Ryan has said, and I believe him, that he will NEVER allow taxes to go up on the wealthy.
"If my friends can't get their tax cut, then none of you can, either."
Ryan says the wealthy are the "job creators", which is a half-truth at best. While the wealthy might be "incubators" of new businesses, they depend on middle class consumers to actually buy whatever the new businesses are selling in order to succeed. If the middle-class has their take-home pay reduced due to higher taxes, they'll buy less. New businesses will stagnate or even fail, perhaps taking us into another recession. How would that create any new jobs?
Whatever the two sides can negotiate regarding tax rates for the wealthy, so be it, but don't hold the middle class hostage in the process. The election is over. Now we need leaders, not ideologues.
S
I think like many people I watched the Veep debate last night expecting to see a personable Joe Biden yap and on que say something funny that Saturday Night Live can take and make into a hilarious skit. That SNL skit may still happen, but what I actually witnessed was an informed, powerful, very combative, stand-his-ground candidate Biden.
Specifically, here's what I saw: Biden probably said the words "middle class" 20 times. Same with "level playing field", and "a fair shake". He came across as the populist defender of The People, something I think will play well with blue-collar voters. And what is THE most critical state still in play? Ohio....gritty, blue-collar Ohio. Eighteen electoral vote Ohio.
Biden got so worked up on several occasions I fully expected to see him start foaming at the mouth. But again, that much passion is probably appreciated by the blue-collar types. Just go into a bar in Ohio and bring up Michigan, or vice versa. You'll see lots of "mouth foaming"!
And Biden had something for war-weary voters, too, when he promised we would be out of Afghanistan by 2014. "Sure, the Afghans would be happy to let us keep doing their fighting for them forever. That's why we put them on notice. 'You'd better be ready to defend YOUR country come 2014.'" I think that struck a popular chord and will be well received.
In this case at least I think Biden's age and experience trumped Ryan's youth and vigor. How could Ryan compete with Biden's "I was right there with Ronald Reagan and Tip O'Neil (and a bottle of scotch?) during their epic budget battles"? Or, "I was on an hour-long conference call with Bibi Netanyahu (Israeli PM) and the President and we're all in complete agreement...."
I think that "complete agreement with Israel" reference probably reassured the Jewish community, too. And correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't Florida have a sizable Jewish community? Twenty nine electoral vote Florida. Smooth.
Paul Ryan is a numbers man; a budget, Medicare and Social Security expert. While very important stuff, it's also very boring to talk about. It's all based on "projections" and "assumptions", and with accounting being such a fraudulent practice today, can easily be refuted. It's a "He said, She said" argument that politicians have been throwing at us for so long they're hardly believable any more. "Projections" are a tough sell.
Most awkward exchange: Ryan sharing Gov. Romney's compassion for a family who had suffered through a horrible car crash, while Biden explained he WAS the family that suffered through a horrible car crash. OUCH!
Best zingers: When Ryan mentioned that Jack Kennedy cut taxes, Biden chimed in, "Oh, so now you're Jack Kennedy?" Also, when Ryan explained how Romney mis-spoke when talking about the 47% quip, saying, "I'm sure you know what it's like to have your words come out not the way you meant for them to." Haha!
While the red states are still red and the blue states are still blue, I think Joe Biden's performance probably picked up quite a few net votes for the Democrats. This is going to make for an interesting finish come November.
S
For the life of me I just can't figure out Mitt Romney's economic logic. I've enjoyed a pretty good formal education and nearly 40 years of business experience, but more than anything I am most proud of my common sense. Mitt is a brilliant man, no doubt, but his plan to create jobs and grow the economy just defies (my) common sense.
He says he wants to cut taxes for the rich, or at least include them in the extension of the soon-to-expire Bush tax cuts, and that they (the rich) will then use this increased wealth to create jobs. But from all I've read, including in the Wall Street Journal (hardly a leftist rag), there is somewhere between one and two TRILLION dollars in capital sitting on the sidelines waiting to be invested long-term. What's missing is consumer demand to buy more of the stuff these new businesses/jobs would produce. If there's no demand, why produce it?
Because of their vast numbers, estimated to be 50% of all Americans, the middle class drives our consumer-based economy. The poor can't buy enough to create jobs because they, by definition, have no money. The rich have plenty of money, but there aren't enough of them to buy in the mass quantities needed to drive industry. That leaves the middle class to "spend, baby, spend".
When the middle class has enough money (and is confident enough to part with some of it), then demand will increase, businesses will produce more goods and services to satisfy the demand, and jobs will be created, in that order. To think you can create jobs and THEN wait for demand to catch up defies common sense. No business is going to pay employees to just sit around and wait.
I'm sick of hearing about how the rich need more money. I'm not saying they shouldn't have more money. What I am saying is what we ALL need right now is for the MIDDLE CLASS to have more money, for it is they, not the rich, who will return us to prosperity. That's just common sense.
S
I recently saw a short 5-minute video presentation by Nick Hanauer, a mega-millionaire capitalist. He had an interesting perspective that really got me to thinking. You can see it here if you're interested. His position is that the rich will benefit more in the long run if we raise taxes on them now and in effect subsidize the middle class. Huh?
He disputes the idea that raising taxes on the rich will kill job creation. He says entrepreneurs do create a few new jobs initially, but unless the middle class has enough disposable income to buy what the new companies are selling, the new businesses will stagnate or even fail. Only when a company has more customers than it can comfortably serve will it expand and hire and thrive. Why would a company hire new people unless they had enough customers to keep them busy? The 1% can't buy enough to compensate for the millions of unemployed/underemployed who can't buy much of anything. It's a simple numbers game.
Then the next day I read a news article that said the Big Three automakers are booming, running their factories at near 100% capacity, and are adding more shifts and hiring new people, just like Mr. Hanauer suggested they would. I doubt the 1% are buying very many Chevys, Fords, or Chryslers. (They're more the Mercedes / Lexus / BMW type.) This is all due to middle class demand.
The middle class and only the middle class have the numbers to be able to consume in the quantities necessary to stimulate the economy and create jobs. And when the companies they own thrive and become hugely profitable, the 1% will benefit handsomely. Give up a little today (higher taxes) to get a lot more tomorrow (higher profits). It's called "priming the pump."
It's just like the business advice my dad gave me decades ago: "A fast nickel is better than a slow dime." Think about it.
S
(For the record, I'm a moderate Independent, distrustful of both political parties.)
