Let’s Have This Debate
According to this LATimes article, President Obama has changed tactics in an attempt to get the stimulus bill passed. Here’s what the Tribune’s Peter Nicholas is reporting:
“Now, let me say this,” Obama said. “In the past few days, I’ve heard criticisms of this plan that frankly echo the very same failed theories that helped lead us into this crisis in the first place, the notion that tax cuts alone will solve all our problems, that we can address this enormous crisis with half steps and piecemeal measures and tinkering around the edges, that we can ignore fundamental challenges, like the high cost of healthcare, and still expect our economy and our country to thrive.
“I reject these theories,” he continued. “And, by the way, so did the American people when they went to the polls in November and voted resoundingly for change.”
Obama also sought to sway public opinion in his favor through his newspaper column, reiterating many of the same points.
“In recent days, there have been misguided criticisms of this plan that echo the failed theories that helped lead us into this crisis, the notion that tax cuts alone will solve all our problems,” Obama wrote.
Let’s get something straight, Mr. President. Tax cuts didn’t cause this recession. The Democrats’ unwillingness to fix Fannie and Freddie until they were crises and the entire subprime lending mess played a significantly bigger role in creating this recession than Republican tax policies ever did.
Had Democrat Barney Frank and Democrat Christopher Dodd not run interference for the subprime mortgage industry, we wouldn’t have had to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on ill-conceived bailouts that’ve wasted money but had little or no effect. It’s time for President Obama to admit that his party’s disinterested attitude towards providing HONEST oversight into the subprime industry played the biggest part in the recession.
It’s one thing to disagree with President Bush’s tax policies. That’s an honest debate we can have. Crediting President Bush’s tax cuts with causing the recession is intellectually dishonest.
Let’s further ask President Obama to explain the driving principles behind his stimulus bill. He can’t answer that because he’d rather not admit that it’s a payoff to the Democratic Party’s political allies. That’s the only driving principle seen in this bill.
It’s just a hunch but I’m betting that that isn’t a winning argument with voters.
During last night’s O’Reilly Factor, O’Reilly asked Dick Morris whether President Obama would quickly move to the center or cave to the lunatic fringe that drives the Democrats’ electionmobile. Morris said that President Obama likely would move to the center. Morris’s opinion was based on his belief that staying this far left would hurt President Obama in the short- and long-term.
Based on this morning’s speech, it’s looking more and more likely that President Obama is shedding his postpartisan facade and reverting to partisan mode. If that’s the approach he finally settles on, President Obama should expect to pass this bill without GOP support.
If that’s what he wants, then the Democrats can reap the rewards of passing such ill-conceived legislation in 2010.
Finally, I need to make an important point: President Obama and Robert Gibbs calling this recession a crisis doesn’t mean it’s a crisis. It’s definitely a time where we face significant challenges but it isn’t a crisis.
Calling it a crisis is reminiscent of Al Gore’s fearmongering. That’s the politics of the Twentieth Century, not the postpartisan politics that President Obama campaigned on.
If that’s the turf that President Obama wants to fight on, that’s a fight Republicans should welcome because that’s the terrain and fight that we can win on.
Technorati Tags: Pork, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Barney Frank, President Obama, Robert Gibbs, Postpartisanship, Recession, Crisis, Fearmongering, Al Gore, Partisanship, Democrats, Tax Cuts, President Bush, Job Growth, Election 2010
Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog
February 5th, 2009 at 5:31 pm
It must be hard to lose the Presidency and both houses of Congress in one fell swoop, rendering conservative thinking practically irrelevant.
February 5th, 2009 at 10:13 pm
Well, Liem, I doubt you were singing the same tune in 1994, 1996, 2000, and 2004 as you watched Republicans wipe the floor with Democrats. You weren’t burning your ACLU membership card and running up a French flag of surrender.
Four years of Obama’s false hope and empty promises will be all this country will stand. He’s been president for only two weeks, and already he’s broken numerous promises and proven himself ineffective, corrupt, hypocritical, and completely lacking in leadership.
The op-ed he issued was not a pep talk or rallying of troops. It was both a desperate cry for help and a “Get out of responsibility free” card should his policies fail. And they will.
February 6th, 2009 at 4:29 am
Obama is scrambling for help to ressucitate his floundering presidency.
This man has not a clue as to how to fix the problems created by Dodd and Frank and their socialist tinkering.
Bring on the depression!
February 6th, 2009 at 12:39 pm
1994 and 1996 led to a strengthening of our economics. 2000 and 2004 is what led us to our current recession. But of course Republicans are responsible for the growth in 1994 and 1996 while Clinton was useless. And of course those sneaky Democrats are responsible for the current credit crisis, 7.6% unemployment rate, and falling stock market while Bush tried his best to prevent these crises.
It just seems to me that conservatives enjoy making a lot of whiney noises while Obama and the Democrats hold the reigns of power. Whether or not he fails or succeeds with this stimulus package is yet to be seen.
February 6th, 2009 at 5:24 pm
Liem, your first paragraph is fairly accurate, except that GW did little to stop the current crisis and, on economic issues, was basically a donkey-light. But thanks for the acknowledgment.