OPINION:
President Obama wants to spend another $447 billion. How much more money can he and Capitol Hill Democrats squander, putting the burden of repayment on our children and their children?
Mr. Obama says it is all paid for. That’s because under his plan, the motto is “Spend now, pay later.” In October 2008, Congress spent $1 trillion to bail out Wall Street and the banks. These troubles were related to Sen. Chris Dodd’s and Rep. Barney Frank’s legislation, which allowed unqualified home buyers to qualify for loans when they otherwise would not have. President Bush had warned of these changes, but Democrats ignored the warnings.
Since his inauguration, Mr. Obama and Capitol Hill Democrats passed legislation for $410 billion for government operations, a $2 billion “Cash for Clunkers” program, the costly to companies Obamacare, an $825 billion “stimulus” package using our tax money - and the list goes on. These added costs make businesses less competitive in the marketplace. Many of them are forced to relocate or go out of business.
General Electric’s Jeffrey Immelt, who heads Mr. Obama’s own Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, is relocating GE’s 115-year-old X-ray business headquarters to China.
On a regular basis, Obama administration officials provide reports of jobs “created or saved.” Our economy has actually lost 2.4 million jobs under the Obama administration. Mr. President, you spent billions for a “stimulus,” and now where are the jobs?
Costly oil and gasoline is draining our economy. Mr. Obama and his Environmental Protection Agency, as well as Capitol Hill Democrats, continue to prohibit almost all known locations for oil drilling. When Mr. Obama took office in January 2009, the price of gasoline was $1.81 a gallon. Today, gasoline is about $3.67 a gallon. Diesel fuel is around $3.86 a gallon.
Mr. Obama now says that his new spending bill is for repair and renovation of schools and construction of more railroads and bridges. These projects provide government jobs at taxpayers’ expense. The economy needs jobs in the private sector, not from the government. You can safely bet that Mr. Obama and Capitol Hill Democrats will defend this spending scheme for their labor union allies.
Boeing has built a new manufacturing facility in South Carolina that would provide private-sector jobs. However, Mr. Obama’s National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is attempting to close this facility since South Carolina is a “right to work” state that does not require union membership.
Mr. Obama’s American Jobs Act is more about government jobs than it is about jobs in the private sector. His plan will offer almost nothing for improving our economy. It is just another socialist spending scheme.
British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher once said, “The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people’s money.” If government would reduce taxes, cut the red tape and get out of the way, our economy would quickly recover. America needs jobs in the private sector.
OSCAR Y. HARWARD
Monroe, N.C.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.