Quote for the week: "…the economy is something that he should focus on, probably more than the brackets." – Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski, after being asked what he thought of not being picked by President Obama to be in his "Final Four" bracket.
President Obama likes to speak. He likes to speak a lot. At one point while I was recovering from my surgery, I remember seeing him give 3 separate televised speeches on the same day! Whether it’s Leno or a prime time press conference, he’s on TV saying something pretty much every day.
But is he doing what he is saying? A couple of weeks ago an editorial appeared in none other than the Washington Post (not exactly a conservative publication) suggesting that he is saying one thing and doing another. I agree. Here are some specific examples:
"…I’ve pledged to slash earmarks by more than half when I am President" Candidate Obama – 11/22/08:
But one of his very first acts was to sign a massive spending bill with nearly 9,000 earmarks costing over $7.7 billion. Heck, he didn’t even ask, or try to ask, that the earmarks be removed. He appears to have no intention of following through on this popular campaign pledge.
"…I pledged to cut the deficit in half by the end of my first term in office" Address to Joint Session of Congress – 2/24/09:
This statement is so far from the truth that I hardly know where to start. The budget, as computed by the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, does cut the budget in half in 5 years, but only because the first year deficit has been enlarged so much (to $1.8 trillion) by the stimulus package and omnibus spending bill. It’s like pledging to lose 10 pounds, but then gaining 20 pounds first. Secondly, after the 5th year, it rises again dramatically every year thereafter, even under his own numbers! His 5 year number is only a brief moment in time. His budget averages over $1 trillion in deficit a year for as far as the eye can see. He will add more debt in 6 years than was accumulated by every president from George Washington to George W Bush. But, more on the budget tomorrow.
"So if you look at our budget, what you have is a very disciplined, fiscally responsible budget…” – 3/06/2009:
Give me a break. This is clearly the least responsible budget ever proposed, for the reasons I have laid out above.
"…We’re very serious about working on a bipartisan basis to reduce those deficits or reduce those costs.” – 3/24/2009:
Frankly, had the stimulus bill been anything remotely close to something Republicans could support, we would have had met the President way farther than half way, due to the severity of the current economic situation and his popularity at the time (which is now falling quickly). But he didn’t. The stimulus was so far to the left that not one Republican voted for it, and some of the more centrist Democrats voted against it too. But he hasn’t stopped there. He has since declared that his "cap and trade" energy proposal (which will double the cost of electric and heating bills nationwide) is "non-negotiable." Yeah, way to gain consensus. Now, he is proposing to use a "nuclear option" in the Senate for “cap and trade,” and socialized medicine plans so that he will not need any Republican votes, and can afford to lose some centrist Democrats as well. His agenda is left of center of the Democratic Party, not to mention the nation.
"…we invest in reform that will bring down the cost of health care for families, businesses, and government… And in this budget, we have …" 3/24/2009
He included an extra $600 billion in his budget to cover the extra costs of his healthcare plan. How is that bringing down costs?
"We are in the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression…"- 10/07/2008
"We are beginning to see signs of recovery." – 3/24/2009:
When he wants to spend money, he overstates the state of the crisis. Then, if people start to lose confidence, he understates it.
"I will make a firm pledge: I pledge under my plan, no one making less than $250,000 a year will see any type of tax increase, not income tax, not capital gains taxes, not any kind of taxes," – 11/12/2008:
First of all, this is completely inaccurate on its face. The president’s budget straight up limits tax deductions for incomes over $208,000 joint and $104,000 single. Furthermore, it imposes an energy tax (cap and trade) which is expected to double utility rates for everyone regardless of income. Additionally, the president is guilty by omission. There is no way he can spend the money he wants to without raising taxes on everyone at some point. You can confiscate all income over $250,000 (a more plausible idea after the bonus vote last week) and you would not balance the Democrat budget over the next 10 years. It would require a 30% increase in EVERY federal tax on EVERBODY, at EVERY level, in order to pay for the spending they want. That’s 30% more social security tax, Medicare tax, income tax, corporate tax, capital gains tax, alternative minimum tax, etc. That’s the real message in his budget.
Bottom line: The President speaks a lot because he is good at it. But I think he also speaks a lot in order to distract from the actions that are actually being taken. I think we must take his words with a grain of salt, and watch what actually moves through Congress and the administration.
I feel passionately about this country. I feel that its founding principles are as relevant today as ever. I feel that those of us in Congress should take every opportunity to transfer as much power to individuals and states as possible, and concentrate as little as possible in Washington. I believe the power of America is in our people and our system, not in our government. I believe the agenda that President Obama is following is destructive to those goals. If he gets what he wants, I believe that we will have a future of diminished opportunities and expectations. If you are a regular reader, you know that I frequently give you my alternative ideas. But I recognize that in the minority, with a President and Speaker, who are determined to flex their ‘one-party’ rule muscles, there is little opportunity to enact much of the agenda I would like to see.
But you can be sure that I will use every bone in my shortened-colon body to stop or slow down this march towards socialism. (And I do not use that word lightly). I respect those who disagree. But I will fight their policies. And I hope you will too. There is too much at stake.
Until tomorrow, when we will talk about the budget…