Here's a good headline from the fear factory over at Fox: Moderate Democrats a Vanishing Breed. The article cites as evidence losses by two moderate Democrats in Pennsylvania's primaries to more liberal opponents. TWO!
Fox of course is known more for its vitriol, embellishments, and outright lies than any type of real or factual attempts to report the news. It's hard to overstate the irony about disappearing moderates in the Democratic Party when the Republican Party for which Fox is a mouthpiece has been hijacked by people who are so far to the right that some of them are genuinely out of touch with the values on which this country was founded. This is all the more ironic since those same people claim to be the ones who hold the values of the founders so dear. In fact the only thing they have in common with the people who founded this nation are the tricornered hats they wear to their rallies.
But the article does touch on a problem of which most Americans are painfully aware, the fact that our nation's political system is deeply flawed, and there is no attempt to fix it. Maybe Democrats are becoming more liberal. Certainly the Republican Party is controlled by a fringe group who are not only woefully ignorant of how economics work, but whose moral values are the antithesis of justice and equality. The natural response to this - and one that I am admittedly guilty of - is to shift further to the left. Perhaps the rise of the Tea Party has made many Democrats even more liberal. In the face of stifling opposition to every idea, what is the point of compromise. This is far less than ideal, but it is certainly the current state of American politics, and if Democrats and Republicans both continue to dig in to their entrenched positions, then our country will never address the problems we face.
Faux News isn't helping, but neither is a shift to the left by Democrats. We've seen how detrimental the Republican shift right has been to the economy and basic rights. In order to make America work we have to have dialogue and compromise, not further entrenchment. We need both parties to make an attempt at bipartisanship. Tax hikes on the rich are important, so is entitle reform. Caring for all Americans in a sustainable manner is possible, but only if each side is willing to make important sacrifices. Right now only President Obama seems willing to do that.
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Tax Time's a-Comin'
Assuming no agreement is reached by January 1, 2013, massive spending cuts to social programs and the military will go into effect, and the Bush tax cuts will elapse for all income levels. In theory this wouldn't be awful as America needs more revenue and less spending. In practice, this would have disastrous economic consequences.
As has been well documented by everyone from Nobel Prize winning economists to Econ 101 textbooks, cutting spending or raising taxes during a recession is a bad idea. The whole political escapade that got us into the mess is a product of Republican posturing about a deficit that is a secondary issue to the economy, and for which they are largely responsible anyhow. Nevertheless there is a need to cut the deficit, and if Republicans have forced the issue at the expense of an economic recovery, then we may as well have real debate and come to an agreement.
Except we're not. When the attempt at a grand bargain fell apart last summer - an interesting read here that seems to spread the blame fairly evenly and shines light on just how much of a jerk Eric Cantor really is - politicians reverted to name calling and fear-mongering. Most of the blame for this, just like much of the blame for the deficit, can be placed squarely on the Republicans, but Obama retreated into his shell as well, and Senate Democrats failed to take action steps to assuage problems, economic, deficit or otherwise. In short, once the President and Boehner failed to reach a deal, everyone else stopped trying. Furthermore, the only people offering real ideas in Washington are Obama and Paul Ryan, and Paul Ryan's ideas are generally more harmful than helpful.
So now we're moving towards another economic disaster, and there is little hope for a solution by January 1st, 2013 even though we have a full seven months to avert it. It would be remarkably foolish to assume Republicans would be willing to do anything that would help improve the state of the nation in the throes of an election when they have refused to do anything helpful for the past three years. Sadly the campaign season consumes the lives of our legislators for too many months when they should be focused on improving America.
So tax time is coming, so is cut time, so is crisis time. America's political system is broken, and only one political party shows even remote interest in fixing it. Perhaps the impending crisis, which both parties recognize, will force legislators to find common ground and finally do something good for the country's economic woes and fiscal future. But if Republicans refuse to make the same sacrifices on taxes that President Obama and Democrats have shown themselves willing to make on entitlement programs, then neither side will get their way and everyone will suffer.
As has been well documented by everyone from Nobel Prize winning economists to Econ 101 textbooks, cutting spending or raising taxes during a recession is a bad idea. The whole political escapade that got us into the mess is a product of Republican posturing about a deficit that is a secondary issue to the economy, and for which they are largely responsible anyhow. Nevertheless there is a need to cut the deficit, and if Republicans have forced the issue at the expense of an economic recovery, then we may as well have real debate and come to an agreement.
Except we're not. When the attempt at a grand bargain fell apart last summer - an interesting read here that seems to spread the blame fairly evenly and shines light on just how much of a jerk Eric Cantor really is - politicians reverted to name calling and fear-mongering. Most of the blame for this, just like much of the blame for the deficit, can be placed squarely on the Republicans, but Obama retreated into his shell as well, and Senate Democrats failed to take action steps to assuage problems, economic, deficit or otherwise. In short, once the President and Boehner failed to reach a deal, everyone else stopped trying. Furthermore, the only people offering real ideas in Washington are Obama and Paul Ryan, and Paul Ryan's ideas are generally more harmful than helpful.
So now we're moving towards another economic disaster, and there is little hope for a solution by January 1st, 2013 even though we have a full seven months to avert it. It would be remarkably foolish to assume Republicans would be willing to do anything that would help improve the state of the nation in the throes of an election when they have refused to do anything helpful for the past three years. Sadly the campaign season consumes the lives of our legislators for too many months when they should be focused on improving America.
So tax time is coming, so is cut time, so is crisis time. America's political system is broken, and only one political party shows even remote interest in fixing it. Perhaps the impending crisis, which both parties recognize, will force legislators to find common ground and finally do something good for the country's economic woes and fiscal future. But if Republicans refuse to make the same sacrifices on taxes that President Obama and Democrats have shown themselves willing to make on entitlement programs, then neither side will get their way and everyone will suffer.
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Immigrants and Emigrants
America is a land of immigrants or something, right? Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free. Mitt Romney, we know, cares not for your poor. Along with most of the rest of his party he also shows little concern for the tired or the huddled masses. In fact, Romney and Republicans don't care for immigrants much at all. Somehow they've forgotten that even they and their ilk - members of the stodgy white man's club - still owe their American heritage to immigrants.
Romney and the Republican attitude towards immigrants is morally callous and economically harmful, a lethal combination that is indicative of far too many Republican policy ideas nowadays.
To see just how far backwards Romney and the Republicans have stepped, consider the following quotes:
"It does not appear that there can be urgent or sufficient reasons, racial or social, for departing from the old tolerant and generous practice of free entry and asylum, to which this country has so long adhered and from which it has so often greatly gained."
-Winston Churchill, 1904
"Illegal immigration has got to end and any form of citizenship amnesty is troublesome"
-Mitt Romney, 2007
One would think that over the course of the last century, we would have developed slightly more progressive views. Oops.
But it isn't just the moral disregard that Republicans hold for immigrants that is troubling. Their position on immigration, as well as the stagnant and suffocating political atmosphere in America, has led many of our brightest immigrants to become emigrants. A country built by immigrants is now watching as the tide shifts, and many of the people who were once attracted to our country are now looking for greener pastures.
There are many reasons for this, but it is an ominous sign for a country whose immigration policy is currently shaped by the buffoonery of Arizona. America needs immigration reform. We need to continue attracting the world's talent, and giving those people reason to stay here. We need to provide paths to residency and citizenship, and we need to make it clear that others are welcome here.
It's funny that the Statue of Liberty is a beacon for immigrants. It's not set in America's heartland, rather it overlooks Ellis Island. The Statue of Liberty is a stark reminder that American values don't just apply to America and Americans. They are universal, and we should offer the same freedoms that we hold dear to those who seek them, just as they were offered to generations of people - now Americans - who have been arriving on our shores for centuries. The tired, the poor, and the huddled masses come here to shed those labels. Those who would have America close its doors to immigrants were once among them.
People from all over the world want to come here. They yearn for freedom and opportunity, and we should give it to them and allow everyone to benefit as we have for generations. If not, we'll be the nation experiencing the brain drain, and we will watch as talented Americans of foreign descent leave our country for better opportunities.
Romney and the Republican attitude towards immigrants is morally callous and economically harmful, a lethal combination that is indicative of far too many Republican policy ideas nowadays.
To see just how far backwards Romney and the Republicans have stepped, consider the following quotes:
"It does not appear that there can be urgent or sufficient reasons, racial or social, for departing from the old tolerant and generous practice of free entry and asylum, to which this country has so long adhered and from which it has so often greatly gained."
-Winston Churchill, 1904
"Illegal immigration has got to end and any form of citizenship amnesty is troublesome"
-Mitt Romney, 2007
One would think that over the course of the last century, we would have developed slightly more progressive views. Oops.
But it isn't just the moral disregard that Republicans hold for immigrants that is troubling. Their position on immigration, as well as the stagnant and suffocating political atmosphere in America, has led many of our brightest immigrants to become emigrants. A country built by immigrants is now watching as the tide shifts, and many of the people who were once attracted to our country are now looking for greener pastures.
There are many reasons for this, but it is an ominous sign for a country whose immigration policy is currently shaped by the buffoonery of Arizona. America needs immigration reform. We need to continue attracting the world's talent, and giving those people reason to stay here. We need to provide paths to residency and citizenship, and we need to make it clear that others are welcome here.
It's funny that the Statue of Liberty is a beacon for immigrants. It's not set in America's heartland, rather it overlooks Ellis Island. The Statue of Liberty is a stark reminder that American values don't just apply to America and Americans. They are universal, and we should offer the same freedoms that we hold dear to those who seek them, just as they were offered to generations of people - now Americans - who have been arriving on our shores for centuries. The tired, the poor, and the huddled masses come here to shed those labels. Those who would have America close its doors to immigrants were once among them.
People from all over the world want to come here. They yearn for freedom and opportunity, and we should give it to them and allow everyone to benefit as we have for generations. If not, we'll be the nation experiencing the brain drain, and we will watch as talented Americans of foreign descent leave our country for better opportunities.
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Walk it out, walk it back
After reviewing the Paul Ryan plan, my initial criticisms still stand, but I have had time to reflect on some of the positive aspects of the Paul Ryan budget, namely that it is a real attempt to curb spending, which is more than can be said for all the Tea Party bunk.
While Ryan clearly doesn't understand the importance of short term spending as a means of economic recovery or realize that trickle down economic theory is a failed formula for growth, he does offer some real solutions for deficit reduction that Democrats should pay attention to and consider.
For one thing, Ryan understands that the real drivers behind the deficit are entitlement programs (though he goes on to cut discretionary spending too much). The country would be better off if Democrats were willing to make sacrifices on entitlement programs such as raising the eligibility age for both Medicare and Social Security. In fairness, President Obama is willing to address the issues, whereas Republicans refuse to sniff at higher taxes for the wealthy. Nevertheless, the Ryan budget is a good starting point for negotiations on a budget.
Furthermore, Ryan knows that the tax code is an astronomical abomination of policy. No one really understands it, but there are so many loopholes, that it makes Swiss Cheese look solid. Revamping and simplifying the tax code is a must for fiscal reform. Of course, Ryan hasn't specified which loopholes he would close, and he has ruled out closing loopholes for the wealthy (figures), but addressing the tax code is important, and again, I think the Ryan budget may be a good starting point for negotiations.
There are a lot of reasons to be disappointed with Paul Ryan's budget, but it is a better starting point than anything his Republican colleagues have offered (primarily because the ones making the most noise are the clueless Tea Party sort who actually have no understanding of policy). I believe Ryan does understand the budget and the deficit, and more importantly I believe that he is the sort of Republican who will negotiate in good faith on the issues of deficit reduction through spending cuts and increased revenues. If I'm correct, perhaps our politicians will actually get something done. If I'm wrong, then the good parts of the Ryan budget are doomed to the scrap heap, and we'll be back to listening to the Tea Party caucus harp about issues of which they have no understanding.
While Ryan clearly doesn't understand the importance of short term spending as a means of economic recovery or realize that trickle down economic theory is a failed formula for growth, he does offer some real solutions for deficit reduction that Democrats should pay attention to and consider.
For one thing, Ryan understands that the real drivers behind the deficit are entitlement programs (though he goes on to cut discretionary spending too much). The country would be better off if Democrats were willing to make sacrifices on entitlement programs such as raising the eligibility age for both Medicare and Social Security. In fairness, President Obama is willing to address the issues, whereas Republicans refuse to sniff at higher taxes for the wealthy. Nevertheless, the Ryan budget is a good starting point for negotiations on a budget.
Furthermore, Ryan knows that the tax code is an astronomical abomination of policy. No one really understands it, but there are so many loopholes, that it makes Swiss Cheese look solid. Revamping and simplifying the tax code is a must for fiscal reform. Of course, Ryan hasn't specified which loopholes he would close, and he has ruled out closing loopholes for the wealthy (figures), but addressing the tax code is important, and again, I think the Ryan budget may be a good starting point for negotiations.
There are a lot of reasons to be disappointed with Paul Ryan's budget, but it is a better starting point than anything his Republican colleagues have offered (primarily because the ones making the most noise are the clueless Tea Party sort who actually have no understanding of policy). I believe Ryan does understand the budget and the deficit, and more importantly I believe that he is the sort of Republican who will negotiate in good faith on the issues of deficit reduction through spending cuts and increased revenues. If I'm correct, perhaps our politicians will actually get something done. If I'm wrong, then the good parts of the Ryan budget are doomed to the scrap heap, and we'll be back to listening to the Tea Party caucus harp about issues of which they have no understanding.
Monday, April 2, 2012
Priorities or Lack Thereof
Paul Ryan is back at it. The now famous "rising star" in the Republican party is one of the people Republican leaders seem to be most comfortable putting on television because, unlike most of the flock, actually has a plan, or in this case, a budget. Armed with said budget, Ryan lectures America about the dire consequences of our fiscal irresponsibility while eschewing his party's vile stance on social issues (at least publicly).
Except that this isn't exactly the case. In fact far from having a plan, Paul Ryan has a disaster, or, if we are giving him the benefit of the doubt, a really, really bad plan. Furthermore, it is a plan that exacerbates the problems our country faces rather than mitigates them, and it prioritizes the rich at the expense of the rest of us.
There is no doubt that Ryan is willing to put himself out there politically, and I have to believe the guy is sincere in his conviction that America is about to fall over a fiscal cliff. There is also no denying that some of the cuts and restructuring he proposes are necessary to create sustainable public safety net programs and ensure future prosperity.
Having said that, his most recent budget is so over the top it is not only a joke, it is an embarrassment. For one thing, Ryan is still subscribing to the worn out theory of trickle down economics that is partially responsible for the declining American middle class. Give the rich as much as possible and some of it will trickle down to the rest of us. I don't know about you, but I don't associate the words trickle and prosperity. But we don't need word association to show us that trickle down economics is a bad theory, we have 30 years of evidence. Still, to Ryan's credit, he is a rising star in the Republican party, not quite yet a star; perhaps he is too young to know the failed history of the economic theory he espouses.
Furthermore, while slashing tax rates for corporations (not a terrible idea) and the super rich (a really bad idea), Ryan also slashes spending on domestic programs that serve the neediest Americans. It's easy to make a case for why this is callous, Robin Hood in reverse is morally deplorable, but I would like for someone to explain to me how this helps the economy. Many of our social programs need reform, but if the Republican line of thinking leads them to the conclusion that giving people more money makes them confident to spend, wouldn't that same line of thinking lead them to the conclusion that subsidizing insurance or healthcare would also make people more confident? Abandoning the neediest Americans isn't just wrong, it's economically backwards. We need a growing middle class, not an expansive proletariat, which is exactly where Republican policies will lead us.
Finally, and perhaps most telling, Ryan's budget relies on closing tax loopholes to eliminate the deficit. Aha, you may think to yourself. Despite being callous and partisan, at least the Ryan budget will actually cut America's budget. So perhaps it's not all bad, right? Of course not. Asked which loopholes he would close to achieve all of these savings, Ryan named...none. Not a single loophole. Yes, that is right, despite publishing a budget that purports to eliminate the deficit by closing tax loopholes, Paul Ryan has yet to identify a single loophole he would close. Not surprisingly he categorically rejected closing any loophole that benefits the wealthy, because, you know, the more money we give them, the more will trickle down to the rest of us. Or something.
Paul Ryan may be a rising star in the Republican party, but his budget illustrates how far the Republican party can take us: very far...backwards, perhaps they can even turn back the clock half a century; they're certainly giving it their best shot. Meanwhile, Americans suffer, and only one party offers solutions. We would all benefit if the Republican party could relocate their sanity and start contributing ideas to the dialogue, but if Paul Ryan's budget is the best they have to offer, we're in deep trouble.
Except that this isn't exactly the case. In fact far from having a plan, Paul Ryan has a disaster, or, if we are giving him the benefit of the doubt, a really, really bad plan. Furthermore, it is a plan that exacerbates the problems our country faces rather than mitigates them, and it prioritizes the rich at the expense of the rest of us.
There is no doubt that Ryan is willing to put himself out there politically, and I have to believe the guy is sincere in his conviction that America is about to fall over a fiscal cliff. There is also no denying that some of the cuts and restructuring he proposes are necessary to create sustainable public safety net programs and ensure future prosperity.
Having said that, his most recent budget is so over the top it is not only a joke, it is an embarrassment. For one thing, Ryan is still subscribing to the worn out theory of trickle down economics that is partially responsible for the declining American middle class. Give the rich as much as possible and some of it will trickle down to the rest of us. I don't know about you, but I don't associate the words trickle and prosperity. But we don't need word association to show us that trickle down economics is a bad theory, we have 30 years of evidence. Still, to Ryan's credit, he is a rising star in the Republican party, not quite yet a star; perhaps he is too young to know the failed history of the economic theory he espouses.
Furthermore, while slashing tax rates for corporations (not a terrible idea) and the super rich (a really bad idea), Ryan also slashes spending on domestic programs that serve the neediest Americans. It's easy to make a case for why this is callous, Robin Hood in reverse is morally deplorable, but I would like for someone to explain to me how this helps the economy. Many of our social programs need reform, but if the Republican line of thinking leads them to the conclusion that giving people more money makes them confident to spend, wouldn't that same line of thinking lead them to the conclusion that subsidizing insurance or healthcare would also make people more confident? Abandoning the neediest Americans isn't just wrong, it's economically backwards. We need a growing middle class, not an expansive proletariat, which is exactly where Republican policies will lead us.
Finally, and perhaps most telling, Ryan's budget relies on closing tax loopholes to eliminate the deficit. Aha, you may think to yourself. Despite being callous and partisan, at least the Ryan budget will actually cut America's budget. So perhaps it's not all bad, right? Of course not. Asked which loopholes he would close to achieve all of these savings, Ryan named...none. Not a single loophole. Yes, that is right, despite publishing a budget that purports to eliminate the deficit by closing tax loopholes, Paul Ryan has yet to identify a single loophole he would close. Not surprisingly he categorically rejected closing any loophole that benefits the wealthy, because, you know, the more money we give them, the more will trickle down to the rest of us. Or something.
Paul Ryan may be a rising star in the Republican party, but his budget illustrates how far the Republican party can take us: very far...backwards, perhaps they can even turn back the clock half a century; they're certainly giving it their best shot. Meanwhile, Americans suffer, and only one party offers solutions. We would all benefit if the Republican party could relocate their sanity and start contributing ideas to the dialogue, but if Paul Ryan's budget is the best they have to offer, we're in deep trouble.
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