Monday, January 7, 2008

Bush's Recession Strategy? Do Nothing

Last week the media reported that Bush was seeking advice about how to handle economic problems. So who did he talk to? Wall Street. Business folk.

No working families. No seniors. No homeowners.

And what is his plan to handle looming economic crisis, growing unemployment, currency crisis, foreclosures, the health care crisis?

Do nothing.

According to TheStreet.com, Bush is urging that his tax cuts for the very rich and corporate America be made permanent and to end the estate tax, which would be a targeted tax cut for a group of wealthy people who comprise less than 1% of taxpayers of the US population and would add about $1 trillion to the debt over ten years.

Paris Hilton will get relief. But if you work in the last auto factory in Detroit. Sorry.

Bush further called for expanded subsidies for energy production. No not for alternative fuels, but for more uncertain and environmentally dangerous oil and gas exploration, as well as for more use of nuclear energy.

Bush also refused to announce new plans to help homeowners caught up in the subprime housing crisis.

So lets' see. Current economic policies have been in place for about 5+ years now and have failed to avert what many see as a looming recession. So in Bush's mind keeping those policies in place is the best solution.

Fortunately, Bush has just about year left. Unfortunately he appears inclined to drive working families down in the year he has left. Working families simply can't afford another Republican.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Andrew Carnegie once said that strange as it seems, an economy was as prosperous as its number of millionaires(more millionaires, more prosperity for all through the charity of the rich, the "gospel of wealth" as it was called then)
It was pretty strange, but Bush apparently believes it. Carnegie did endow a lot of libraries though. Bush might go to one. He might learn something