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Obama Hits Many High Notes in Speech on the Economy
One of the things I like most about Barack
Obama is he understands the economic crisis we're in, and he grasps
much of what needs to be done.
Plus, he's not afraid to level with the American people that we need
to spend a lot of money--and yes, increase the deficit in the process--if
we're going to escape a depression.
He also understands that the much-ballyhooed private sector is incapable of solving this problem.
Jan 09, 2009
One of the things I like most about Barack
Obama is he understands the economic crisis we're in, and he grasps
much of what needs to be done.
Plus, he's not afraid to level with the American people that we need
to spend a lot of money--and yes, increase the deficit in the process--if
we're going to escape a depression.
He also understands that the much-ballyhooed private sector is incapable of solving this problem.
As he put it in his big economic speech at George Mason University
on Thursday: "At this particular moment, only government can provide
the short-term boost necessary to lift us from a recession this deep
and this severe. Only government can break the vicious cycles that are
crippling our economy -- where a lack of spending leads to lost jobs,
which leads to even less spending; where an inability to lend and
borrow stops growth and leads to even less credit."
Even rightwing economists like Martin Feldstein acknowledge this fact.
Basically, the private sector has punted.
The banks and investment houses created the crisis first by blowing
air into the housing bubble and then by gambling on unregulated
derivatives that were all wrapped up in that bubble.
And even after Paulson dropped $300 billion into their laps, they refused to lend and refused to refinance mortgages.
The auto manufacturers crawled to Washington, and the steel companies are on their way.
So we've got a credit crisis, a housing crisis, a collapse of
manufacturing, rising unemployment, and falling consumer spending,
which, in turn, will cause more companies to throw more people out of
work. Meanwhile, state governments are in deep holes, too, and are
having to cut payrolls.
Obama understands that this "bad situation could become dramatically worse," and he is wise to urgently call for bold action.
He recognizes the irrationality of a deep recession like this one,
where "there are millions of Americans trying to find work, even as,
all around the country, there is so much work to be done."
Many pieces of his "American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan" make a great deal of sense.
Like doubling the production of alternative energy in the next three years.
Like modernizing more than 75% of federal buildings.
Like improving the energy efficiency of two million homes.
Like building solar panels and wind turbines.
Like computerizing America's medical records.
Like rebuilding the infrastructure.
Like building a new electricity grid.
Like expanding broadband.
Like giving 95% of working families a $1,000 tax cut.
Like extending unemployment and health benefits to those looking for work.
Like helping states avoid harmful budget cuts.
Like stabilizing and repairing the financial system.
Like getting credit flowing to families and businesses.
Like addressing the foreclosure crisis.
Like having transparency about where all this money is going.
How Obama will do some of this remains to be seen, however.
For instance, it's unclear how he will go about re-regulating the
financial system, since he has surrounded himself with people who were
intimately involved with deregulating that system.
It's also unclear how he will address the foreclosure crisis "so we
can keep responsible families in their homes"--and how he will
differentiate between responsible and irresponsible families.
What's more, he may be aiming too low by vowing to "save or create
at least three million jobs over the next few years," since the economy
lost about 3 million jobs in 2008 alone.
And for some reason, he is insisting that "the overwhelming majority
of the jobs will be in the private sector," when there is much more job
security -- and union protection -- in public sector jobs. Why trust the
private sector when it bollixed everything up in the first place?
But at least Obama recognizes a crisis when he sees one.
At least he is fluent enough in economics to understand the
essential role that the federal government must play in such a crisis.
And at least he has put on the table several good ideas for ameliorating that crisis.
It's now up to Congress to get him a recovery bill he can sign -- in a hurry.
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Matt Rothschild
Matt Rothschild is the executive director of the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign. Prior to joining the Democracy Campaign at the start of 2015, Matt worked at The Progressive Magazine for 32 years. For most of those, he was the editor and publisher of The Progressive.
One of the things I like most about Barack
Obama is he understands the economic crisis we're in, and he grasps
much of what needs to be done.
Plus, he's not afraid to level with the American people that we need
to spend a lot of money--and yes, increase the deficit in the process--if
we're going to escape a depression.
He also understands that the much-ballyhooed private sector is incapable of solving this problem.
As he put it in his big economic speech at George Mason University
on Thursday: "At this particular moment, only government can provide
the short-term boost necessary to lift us from a recession this deep
and this severe. Only government can break the vicious cycles that are
crippling our economy -- where a lack of spending leads to lost jobs,
which leads to even less spending; where an inability to lend and
borrow stops growth and leads to even less credit."
Even rightwing economists like Martin Feldstein acknowledge this fact.
Basically, the private sector has punted.
The banks and investment houses created the crisis first by blowing
air into the housing bubble and then by gambling on unregulated
derivatives that were all wrapped up in that bubble.
And even after Paulson dropped $300 billion into their laps, they refused to lend and refused to refinance mortgages.
The auto manufacturers crawled to Washington, and the steel companies are on their way.
So we've got a credit crisis, a housing crisis, a collapse of
manufacturing, rising unemployment, and falling consumer spending,
which, in turn, will cause more companies to throw more people out of
work. Meanwhile, state governments are in deep holes, too, and are
having to cut payrolls.
Obama understands that this "bad situation could become dramatically worse," and he is wise to urgently call for bold action.
He recognizes the irrationality of a deep recession like this one,
where "there are millions of Americans trying to find work, even as,
all around the country, there is so much work to be done."
Many pieces of his "American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan" make a great deal of sense.
Like doubling the production of alternative energy in the next three years.
Like modernizing more than 75% of federal buildings.
Like improving the energy efficiency of two million homes.
Like building solar panels and wind turbines.
Like computerizing America's medical records.
Like rebuilding the infrastructure.
Like building a new electricity grid.
Like expanding broadband.
Like giving 95% of working families a $1,000 tax cut.
Like extending unemployment and health benefits to those looking for work.
Like helping states avoid harmful budget cuts.
Like stabilizing and repairing the financial system.
Like getting credit flowing to families and businesses.
Like addressing the foreclosure crisis.
Like having transparency about where all this money is going.
How Obama will do some of this remains to be seen, however.
For instance, it's unclear how he will go about re-regulating the
financial system, since he has surrounded himself with people who were
intimately involved with deregulating that system.
It's also unclear how he will address the foreclosure crisis "so we
can keep responsible families in their homes"--and how he will
differentiate between responsible and irresponsible families.
What's more, he may be aiming too low by vowing to "save or create
at least three million jobs over the next few years," since the economy
lost about 3 million jobs in 2008 alone.
And for some reason, he is insisting that "the overwhelming majority
of the jobs will be in the private sector," when there is much more job
security -- and union protection -- in public sector jobs. Why trust the
private sector when it bollixed everything up in the first place?
But at least Obama recognizes a crisis when he sees one.
At least he is fluent enough in economics to understand the
essential role that the federal government must play in such a crisis.
And at least he has put on the table several good ideas for ameliorating that crisis.
It's now up to Congress to get him a recovery bill he can sign -- in a hurry.
Matt Rothschild
Matt Rothschild is the executive director of the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign. Prior to joining the Democracy Campaign at the start of 2015, Matt worked at The Progressive Magazine for 32 years. For most of those, he was the editor and publisher of The Progressive.
One of the things I like most about Barack
Obama is he understands the economic crisis we're in, and he grasps
much of what needs to be done.
Plus, he's not afraid to level with the American people that we need
to spend a lot of money--and yes, increase the deficit in the process--if
we're going to escape a depression.
He also understands that the much-ballyhooed private sector is incapable of solving this problem.
As he put it in his big economic speech at George Mason University
on Thursday: "At this particular moment, only government can provide
the short-term boost necessary to lift us from a recession this deep
and this severe. Only government can break the vicious cycles that are
crippling our economy -- where a lack of spending leads to lost jobs,
which leads to even less spending; where an inability to lend and
borrow stops growth and leads to even less credit."
Even rightwing economists like Martin Feldstein acknowledge this fact.
Basically, the private sector has punted.
The banks and investment houses created the crisis first by blowing
air into the housing bubble and then by gambling on unregulated
derivatives that were all wrapped up in that bubble.
And even after Paulson dropped $300 billion into their laps, they refused to lend and refused to refinance mortgages.
The auto manufacturers crawled to Washington, and the steel companies are on their way.
So we've got a credit crisis, a housing crisis, a collapse of
manufacturing, rising unemployment, and falling consumer spending,
which, in turn, will cause more companies to throw more people out of
work. Meanwhile, state governments are in deep holes, too, and are
having to cut payrolls.
Obama understands that this "bad situation could become dramatically worse," and he is wise to urgently call for bold action.
He recognizes the irrationality of a deep recession like this one,
where "there are millions of Americans trying to find work, even as,
all around the country, there is so much work to be done."
Many pieces of his "American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan" make a great deal of sense.
Like doubling the production of alternative energy in the next three years.
Like modernizing more than 75% of federal buildings.
Like improving the energy efficiency of two million homes.
Like building solar panels and wind turbines.
Like computerizing America's medical records.
Like rebuilding the infrastructure.
Like building a new electricity grid.
Like expanding broadband.
Like giving 95% of working families a $1,000 tax cut.
Like extending unemployment and health benefits to those looking for work.
Like helping states avoid harmful budget cuts.
Like stabilizing and repairing the financial system.
Like getting credit flowing to families and businesses.
Like addressing the foreclosure crisis.
Like having transparency about where all this money is going.
How Obama will do some of this remains to be seen, however.
For instance, it's unclear how he will go about re-regulating the
financial system, since he has surrounded himself with people who were
intimately involved with deregulating that system.
It's also unclear how he will address the foreclosure crisis "so we
can keep responsible families in their homes"--and how he will
differentiate between responsible and irresponsible families.
What's more, he may be aiming too low by vowing to "save or create
at least three million jobs over the next few years," since the economy
lost about 3 million jobs in 2008 alone.
And for some reason, he is insisting that "the overwhelming majority
of the jobs will be in the private sector," when there is much more job
security -- and union protection -- in public sector jobs. Why trust the
private sector when it bollixed everything up in the first place?
But at least Obama recognizes a crisis when he sees one.
At least he is fluent enough in economics to understand the
essential role that the federal government must play in such a crisis.
And at least he has put on the table several good ideas for ameliorating that crisis.
It's now up to Congress to get him a recovery bill he can sign -- in a hurry.
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