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News & ArtsTuesday, April 13, 2010
Economy The Thinking Right Fear the New and Emerging Monster: Obamanomics
Posted by Charles Mudede on Tue, Apr 13, 2010 at 8:30 AM
Back to reality:
Sometimes you have to take out your political lenses and look at the actual statistics to get a true picture of the health of the American economy. Right now, those statistics are saying a modest cyclical rebound following a very deep downturn could actually be turning into a full-fledged, V-shaped recovery boom between now and year-end.It's not that I agree with Obamanomics, which is not at all different from Clintonian economics, and still has neoliberalism (hypercapitalism) as its ground, but that the GOP can not continue to act like it's anywhere near socialism. This crazy approach to Obamanomics is bound to backfire. And recovery from such a massive backfire will be long and slow.I'm aiming this thought especially at many of my conservative friends who seem to be trashing the improving economic outlook — largely, it would appear, to discredit the Obama administration.
Don't do it folks. It's a mistake. The numbers are the numbers. And prosperity is a welcome development for a nation that has suffered mightily.
Credibility is at issue here. Conservative credibility. Capitalist credibility.
Those currently dominating the right's political picture, the tea people, are simply stupid, and following their nonsense about socialism this and socialism that is politically dangerous. This fact is apparently lost on Palin (who has an eye for crowds but no ears for content) but not Scott Brown:
Scott Brown and Sarah Palin are the stars of the Republican Party, but you won't be seeing them together anytime soon.Obama needs to worry only about Scott Brown. Palin has gone over the cliff with the other buffaloes.Brown is passing on the opportunity to appear at a Tea Party rally this week in Boston along side the former Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin.
Michael Graham: show some courage, Scott Brown. Come to the Tea Party.
An earful of criticism from Boston conservative talk radio host Michael Graham and his supporters aimed at Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown following word that Brown will not be attending Wednesday's Tea Party rally on Boston Common - featuring Sarah Palin and expected to draw thousands of people.
1
Scott Brown is skipping out on a tea party rally, eh?
Awww, even Martha Croakley would pander more to the tea party than he has. Poor tea party dimwits, you got played.
Awww, even Martha Croakley would pander more to the tea party than he has. Poor tea party dimwits, you got played.
2
Scott Brown is an irrelevancy. Even the local MA Teabaggers are unhappy with him.
The economy is ALL that matters to many voters. If it's rebounding by September and does fine through 2012, it will be the worst nightmare for Republicans.
The economy is ALL that matters to many voters. If it's rebounding by September and does fine through 2012, it will be the worst nightmare for Republicans.
3
Did Charles just coin "tea people" as a stand-in for tea party supporter? I kind of like it. It's concise and a bit derisive.
4
Conservative credibility is isn't really on the table as an issue any more. No point in worrying about that now.
7
Wow, nice work, Charles. This is the most coherent, grounded, rational thing you've posted... maybe ever. Please keep it up.
There is an easy solution for the right: put their money where their mouth is. The RNC, large donors, prominent Republicans (hey, Palin made $12m in the past year, right?) should go massively short on an S&P500 index fund. They're confident that Obama is destroying the economy, so let them fund their "take back America" campaign with the profits they're sure to see by betting against the economy under Obama.
There is an easy solution for the right: put their money where their mouth is. The RNC, large donors, prominent Republicans (hey, Palin made $12m in the past year, right?) should go massively short on an S&P500 index fund. They're confident that Obama is destroying the economy, so let them fund their "take back America" campaign with the profits they're sure to see by betting against the economy under Obama.
8
Scott Brown -- this is great -- Scott Brown crossed the aisle to vote with the Democrats on extending unemployment benefits, did you see that? He's pro choice as well. He's the GOP's worse nightmare.
9
Romney won the RNC straw poll last week. I'm thinking there must be enough of the RNC faithful that see Palin for what she is--guaranteed defeat. Tough to be a social conservative these days--your best shot is a moderate Mormon with a pretty strong "socialist" record in MA.
11
@8, he's also the Democrat's worst nightmare -- a Republican who can attract moderate votes (i.e., most of them). Look out 2016 (Charles is 100% correct, a recovery spells death for the teaballers).
12
Referring to Kudlow as a 'thinker' is rich. The man still proclaims to believe in supply-side economics. Even the Chicago School wouldn't touch that.
13
Good Morning Charles,
As a rational Republican who didn't vote for Obama but who believes he is our President (I am assuming you're a US citizen and vote) and wishes him well (I would wish that for any American President, beginning with George Washington whether or not I voted for him or her should the case be in the future), I endeavor not to directly dismiss the efforts of the current Administration to remedy the economy. However, while the Market is improving (I believe it would improve under ANY administration) it remains a "jobless" recovery nonetheless (the unemployment rate remains at 9.7%). I believe this would happen under ANY administration. Consider this:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/na…
Look, any administration wants to embellish their accomplishments. And their opponents would accuse the Administration of sugar coating them. My genuine opinion is this nation is facing an intractable problem with unemployment. We're no longer producing manufactured goods like we did 50 years ago. Look at Detroit.
I am not a Tea Partier and I don't listen to Beck or Limbaugh. Dismissing them is easy. But finding solutions to our protracted unemployment is way more difficult. I credit any administration for trying.
As a rational Republican who didn't vote for Obama but who believes he is our President (I am assuming you're a US citizen and vote) and wishes him well (I would wish that for any American President, beginning with George Washington whether or not I voted for him or her should the case be in the future), I endeavor not to directly dismiss the efforts of the current Administration to remedy the economy. However, while the Market is improving (I believe it would improve under ANY administration) it remains a "jobless" recovery nonetheless (the unemployment rate remains at 9.7%). I believe this would happen under ANY administration. Consider this:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/na…
Look, any administration wants to embellish their accomplishments. And their opponents would accuse the Administration of sugar coating them. My genuine opinion is this nation is facing an intractable problem with unemployment. We're no longer producing manufactured goods like we did 50 years ago. Look at Detroit.
I am not a Tea Partier and I don't listen to Beck or Limbaugh. Dismissing them is easy. But finding solutions to our protracted unemployment is way more difficult. I credit any administration for trying.
14
The teabaggers have been the keystone kops of political movements right out of the gate - when they unknowingly adopted "teabagging" as their clarion call, and then went on to do many, many more unknowing things.
I think really what's going on here is political realignment: the smart libertarians and fiscal conservatives have become Democrats while the other libertarians have become the "Tea Party." Then there's all the Southern conservatives, who have been mostly shut out of politics under the new libertarian-progressive coalition that are just very angry about it.
If you think of things in terms of a libertarian-progressive coalition, a universal healthcare coverage bill that keeps the private insurance system in tact while reducing the deficit makes perfect sense.
I think really what's going on here is political realignment: the smart libertarians and fiscal conservatives have become Democrats while the other libertarians have become the "Tea Party." Then there's all the Southern conservatives, who have been mostly shut out of politics under the new libertarian-progressive coalition that are just very angry about it.
If you think of things in terms of a libertarian-progressive coalition, a universal healthcare coverage bill that keeps the private insurance system in tact while reducing the deficit makes perfect sense.
15
@13: I know what you're saying here, but a lot of modern Democrats' (aka libertarian-progressives') economic approach isn't exclusively about recovery.
It's mostly about turning back, as quickly as is realistically feasible, what Democrats see as a set of environmental conditions that created the economic collapse: everything from crumbling and inefficient infrastructure, to debt-generating foreign military conflicts, to a disastrously uncompetitive health care system, to an increasingly taxing dependence on foreign energy resources, to a massively over-speculative and opaque lending industry, and to, perhaps most importantly, switching away from taxes on production (income) and toward taxes on consumption.
This final element is critical to stemming the tide of converting America into a debt-service consumer economy and get back to producing things sustainably. It's what Steve Forbes, Robert Frank and David Frum intend when they advocate a consumption tax, and it's a large part of what environmentalists intend when we advocate carbon emissions taxes and/or cap-and-trade permits.
It's mostly about turning back, as quickly as is realistically feasible, what Democrats see as a set of environmental conditions that created the economic collapse: everything from crumbling and inefficient infrastructure, to debt-generating foreign military conflicts, to a disastrously uncompetitive health care system, to an increasingly taxing dependence on foreign energy resources, to a massively over-speculative and opaque lending industry, and to, perhaps most importantly, switching away from taxes on production (income) and toward taxes on consumption.
This final element is critical to stemming the tide of converting America into a debt-service consumer economy and get back to producing things sustainably. It's what Steve Forbes, Robert Frank and David Frum intend when they advocate a consumption tax, and it's a large part of what environmentalists intend when we advocate carbon emissions taxes and/or cap-and-trade permits.
16
@15
Interesting point you have. Indeed, we're a nation of consumers now. Maybe a consumer tax would help. Heck, I believe "sin" taxes work. There is some truth to the axiom "Tax it & you'll have less of it (cigarettes are a good example), subsidize it and you'll have more of it".
Interesting point you have. Indeed, we're a nation of consumers now. Maybe a consumer tax would help. Heck, I believe "sin" taxes work. There is some truth to the axiom "Tax it & you'll have less of it (cigarettes are a good example), subsidize it and you'll have more of it".
17
@16: Haha, well, I don't know if the axiom's always true, but I am confident that businesses in America pay taxes on hiring labor here - namely, through the income taxes - but don't usually pay taxes on shipping goods into the country or on selling them here.
Hence, our taxation system encourages companies to hire producers abroad and to sell goods locally. We're encouraged to become service employees who are paid enough to support our consumption but aren't really employed in labor-intensive industry.
This problem is why people in the Obama Administration and top Democrats want to slowly move toward a consumption tax or cap-and-trade, ideas once vehemently supported by thoughtful conservatives (even like, Michael Reagan). But of course the move away from income taxes has now become evil, since Democrats have endorsed them, among the ignorance parade that is, unfortunately, what's become of the Republican party's remaining thinkers.
It's all really frustrating for those of us who care less about the electoral future of whoever and just want to see policies enacted that will better our country.
Hence, our taxation system encourages companies to hire producers abroad and to sell goods locally. We're encouraged to become service employees who are paid enough to support our consumption but aren't really employed in labor-intensive industry.
This problem is why people in the Obama Administration and top Democrats want to slowly move toward a consumption tax or cap-and-trade, ideas once vehemently supported by thoughtful conservatives (even like, Michael Reagan). But of course the move away from income taxes has now become evil, since Democrats have endorsed them, among the ignorance parade that is, unfortunately, what's become of the Republican party's remaining thinkers.
It's all really frustrating for those of us who care less about the electoral future of whoever and just want to see policies enacted that will better our country.
18
@17
Agree. I care less about "electoral futures" and more for policies that will better our country. I believe there is compelling evidence that America is on the decline (with or w/o Obama). I do think we need to live with less (fewer kids, cars and less weight). "More" is out "less" is in.
Clearly, we have much in common.
Agree. I care less about "electoral futures" and more for policies that will better our country. I believe there is compelling evidence that America is on the decline (with or w/o Obama). I do think we need to live with less (fewer kids, cars and less weight). "More" is out "less" is in.
Clearly, we have much in common.
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