Sunday, August 2, 2009

Obamanomics--Our Tax Dollars At Work

From the Associated Press:

"NEW YORK - Even when their profits dried up and they turned to taxpayers to stay afloat, the nation's biggest banks kept paying huge bonuses. But much of the money went not to top executives, but to star traders and salesmen, even as the economy battled through the worst recession in a generation.

The bonuses — including $1 million or more for each of nearly 4,800 bankers at nine of the largest firms — were paid for 2008, along with scores of smaller checks to thousands of rank-and-file employees. But their revelation this week has renewed criticism of companies relying on government aid."

Millions of Americans are out of work, yet the Obama team has sent our tax dollars to the very people who orchestrated the collapse of our economy, so they in turn can pay out billions of dollars in bonuses to their workers. Their excuse is that these people are the "producers", the ones generating the profits for their banks. Even if this is true, why are they being paid bonuses with our tax dollars? Shouldn't any bonuses be paid from the "profits" they produce?

http://www.cnbc.com/id/32243314/for/cnbc/

More Obamanomics:

With so many people out of work in the U.S. and the economy still in such bad shape, the administration is considering extending unemployment benefits. Not a bad thing in itself, but how do they plan to pay for it?

Again, from the Associated Press:

"Top U.S. officials said on Sunday more steps may be needed to firm up economic recovery -- including extended jobless benefits -- and declined to rule out future tax increases to tame massive budget deficits.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the government needed to show the will to reverse deficits after the recovery, and would have to make some "hard choices" about whether this may include increasing tax revenues."

http://www.cnbc.com/id/32259702

But wait, that's not all you get, still more of our tax dollars at work:

"The House approved on Friday a $2 billion extension of the "Cash-for-Clunkers" automobile sales incentive program.

The Democratic proposal would run through Sept. 30, 2010, and tap funds from an Energy Department loan guarantee program included in the economic stimulus package enacted in February.

An initial $1 billion in funding approved this summer to boost stagnant industry sales has already been exhausted, officials said."

http://www.cnbc.com/id/32235069

So under Obamanomics and the Democrats, the taxpayers loaned the auto industry billions of dollars to help pay their debts, then subsidize the sale of their cars with another $3 billion. I'm just guessing, but I'd be willing to bet that some of the bankers, who collected million dollar bonuses, are driving taxpayer subsidized cars about now. It's a sure bet the millions of unemployed could not afford to take advantage of this program. Let's not forget Mr. Geitner's comment about the government making some, "hard choices" in regards to increasing tax revenues. If anyone believes they will really tax "the rich" to make up for budget shortfalls, then they're only fooling themselves. After all, these people are "the rich". Businesses that are overtaxed simply go out of business or move to another country with lower taxes. So who will pay increased taxes? The only ones left to tax. You and me.

I've read articles comparing Obama's handling of the economic crisis with Reagan's handling of the Savings and Loan crisis and the weak economy during his administration. Reagan had the "trickle down" theory and I was definitely better off after his first four years in office. With Obamanomics, even if through some miracle I am better off after his first four years, I'm pretty sure he and his band of merry men in congress will tax it all away. Obama campaigned on a platform of "change", to help the poor and "yes we can!". I can't help but wonder, before his four years are up, if instead of "yes we can", we might be saying, "Oh no you didn't.".

As a final thought, I'll leave you with this piece from the Weekly Standard, titled "Obamanomics Renders Economy Inefficient":

"Two thoughts pierce the gloom. The first is that the American economy might be large enough, and resilient enough, to remain competitive even bearing the weight of the new inefficiencies. The second is that voters will demand a change of course before Obamanomics is permanently embedded in our system. Voters worry that they are leaving their children a mountain of debt. Already Obama's approval rating among independent voters, whom Wall Street Journal analyst Gerald Seib calls "the canaries in the coal mine of American politics", has fallen from 60 percent to 45 percent. Even if the president doesn't get the message, Congress, faced with an election next year, just might."

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/06/29/opinion/main5122778.shtml

Let's hope someone in Washington is still paying attention.

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