Just my two cents on this economic recovery plan.
So, how did we get here? Oh right; Bush said we were here: “I’ve abandoned free-market principles to save the free-market system.” (the headstone is a nice touch)
Link: https://michellemalkin.com/2008/12/16/george-w-bushs-political-epitaph/
And who is to blame? According to the CBO 50 page report (no the other one that actually exists):
– John McLaughlin – “the Bush administration stepped into the largest surpluses in American history in nominal terms. The Bush administration then proceeded to convert $5.6 trillion in projected surpluses — its number, $5.6 trillion — into nearly $4 trillion in projected deficits, all of it added to the national debt.”
– Pat Buchanan – “Bush is responsible.”
– Monica Crowley – “Well, a lot of it can be blamed on President Bush.
– Mort Zukerman – The political blame has been pinned on Bush.
Link: https://www.mclaughlin.com/library/transcript.htm?id=700
And for a while it seemed Republicans were willing to atone for their mistakes: “At a moment when the country needs our help, it would be a great mistake for the House GOP to turn inward and simply become the party of “no.”
Link: https://washingtonindependent.com/28059/quote-of-the-day-2
So, what happened?
“Eyebrows were raised on both sides by Wednesday night’s 244-188 House vote, in which not a single Republican supported the stimulus package.” Wow. Not one. To much spending not enough tax cuts?
Link: https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ienuPb5G15bVeZ_4NwKrZ5RCpqAgD9614PN81
So which is better for the United States of America (not Dem.’s or Rep.’s)?
Fiscal Stimulus Bang for the Buck Per Moody’s Economy.com:
…Every dollar spent on (item below) generates (x) back to us.
“Tax Cuts:
Non-refundable Lump-Sum Tax Rebate = $1.01
Refundable Lump-Sum Tax Rebate = $1.22
Temporary Tax Cuts
Payroll Tax Holiday = $1.28
Across the Board Tax Cut = $1.03
Accelerated Depreciation = $0.25
Permanent Tax Cuts
Extend Alternative Minimum Tax Patch = $0.49
Make Bush Income Tax Cuts Permanent = $0.31
Make Dividend and Capital Gains Tax Cuts Permanent = $0.30
Cut in Corporate Tax Rate = $0.30
Spending Increases:
Extending Unemployment Insurance Benefits = $1.63
Temporary Increase in Food Stamps = $1.73
General Aid To State Governments = $1.38
Increased Infrastructure Spending = $1.59”
Link: https://www.economy.com/mark-zandi/documents/Economic_Stimulus_House_Plan_012109.pdf
So, when Rush and others tell you that spending is the problem and tax cuts are the solution ask for the facts (yes those cruddy things that even trip up Bill Kristol):
– Rush: “I say, cut the U.S. corporate tax rate — at 35%, among the highest of all industrialized nations — in half. Suspend the capital gains tax for a year to incentivize new investment, after which it would be reimposed at 10%.”
Link: https://online.wsj.com/article/SB123318906638926749.html
– Pat Toomey FOX News Business Network: “President-elect Obama should do, make all the Bush tax cuts permanent…Second, lower capital gains.”
Link: https://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,478444,00.html
– John Boehner: “Our plan offers fast-acting tax relief, not slow-moving and wasteful government spending,”
Link: https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Republican_leaders_in_US_want_more_tax_relief_in_economic_stimulus?curid=119845
– John McCain: “We need to make tax cuts permanent”
Link: https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Republican_leaders_in_US_want_more_tax_relief_in_economic_stimulus?curid=119845
Eric Cantor: Voted YES on making the Bush tax cuts permanent.
Link: https://www.ontheissues.org/va/Eric_Cantor_Tax_Reform.htm
– The Honorable Jim DeMint and The Heritage Foundation: The idea is simple: first, make the temporary tax cuts of 2001 and 2003–now set to expire in 2011–permanent.
Link: https://www.heritage.org/Research/Economy/hl1108.cfm
Good Ole Newt has a Tax Holiday: “That would mean no working American would pay a penny in income tax or a penny in FICA tax for the first six months of the year. And that would mean no business would pay a penny in matching FICA tax for the first six months of the year. ”
Link: https://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=29760
Verdict: Spending has a greater ROI than tax cuts for this particular bill.
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