Let’s Make It Official: Obama Is Not Serious About a Real Economic Recovery Plan

[Better Believe It]

Let’s Make It Official: Obama Is Not Serious About a Real Recovery
A bold jobs plan will have to be pushed from the grassroots
by Roger Bybee
August 30, 2011

Obama’s Chief of Staff William Daley and top political advisor David Plouffe believe "It would be political folly to make the argument that government spending equals jobs."

The Obama team's unwillingness to make the same argument that was so successful for Franklin Delano Roosvelt in the 1930s betrays both cowardice and a misreading of the American people's desperation for jobs. In the end, its overwhelming desire to win over “independent” voters by showing that Obama is tough on deficits will likely prove to be self-defeating.

Playing it safe is not going to cut it... Not proposing anything bold and not trying to do something to definitively deal with our problems would mean that we're going to have another year and a half like the last year and a half— and then it's awfully hard to get re-elected.

America's labor movement must by now recognize that President Obama, for all of his strengths, is unwilling to take the lead in shepherding the nation out of the Great Recession. If there is to be any bold jobs program to emerge, it looks like it will have to originate from labor itself, and be backed up by massive grassroots activism. Lobbying the White House has failed.

Read the full article at:

http://www.inthesetimes.com/working/entry/11874/lets_make_it_official_obama_is_not_serious_about_a_real_recovery/

[dennis4868]

1. that was a close one...

we almost went 2 straight hours here without hyperspeculating about Obama in a negative way...THANKS BETTER BELIEVE IT! :-(

[FSogol]

2. LOL. Maybe he sets a timer?

:shrug:

[Solomon]

3. almost two hours! really?

Wow. LOL. Hard to believe. There's hope for us yet.

[nevergiveup]

9. Credit where credit is do

Hard work deserves credit and this person does a lot of hard work digging up these articles. I think we all need to be more appreciative. :sarcasm:

[Name removed]

17. Deleted message

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[sabrina 1]

29. Actually the OP is more about the American people who are out of

work than about this president who simply happens to be in a place where he could help to do something about it. The world doesn't spin around politicians. For the average person, out of work, about to lose their homes, I doubt they care much about politics or politicians at this point.

Interesting though how many people are more concerned about the president than about the millions of Americans who are suffering as a result of the corruption on Wall St.

[Major Hogwash]

37. Was it that long?

Seemed longer to me. I must have fallen asleep again.

[tularetom]

4. Remember the good ol days when we used to blame all the republican bullshit

coming from the WH on Rahm Emanuel?

I don't know whether the administration (especially Obama himself) really believe what these two guys are supposed to have said, but just reading it is depressing.

If they did say this and they haven't been fired yet, that's even more depressing.

At this point government spending is the only thing that has any chance of equaling jobs because the so called "job creators" aren't spending dick. And somebody has to spend before one job will be created.

[Fumesucker]

12. Silly, it's only the liberals who get fired for saying stuff..

Like Shirley Sherrod who was fired on the side of the road via cell phone for things she never even actually said.

[Mimosa]

22. Imagine how that felt.

*SAD*

Not only but dangerous. *grrr*

[rhett o rick]

18. Why do you think they were hired in the first place? nm

[spanone]

5. please link to his unserious plan

[Better Believe It]

8. What serious and bold economic recovery plan has President Obama proposed in three years?

I and the growing army of unemployed must have missed it.

Are we recovered now or will we be by the end of President Obama's term?

[Creideiki]

11. The initial Healthcare Reform, pre-Health Insurance Reform was pretty bold

Then everything bold was stripped out and we got milquetoast.

His energy plan was supposed to be bold, and would have created lots of jobs, but it never saw the light of day, so no one can link to it. Instead, well, if you like your toast extra soggy, then Obama's a great chef.

[Life Long Dem]

32. We didn't see a great depression everyone was talking about having when Obama took office.

We're at 9.1% unemployment. This needs to improve, and that is what Obama is "currently" working on with this new jobs package.

[Ikonoklast]

39. I think the GOP is hiring professional posters to do their bidding.

You should look into that.

[sad sally]

40. It's hard to imagine that anything new that will actually stimulate

massive job creation will be in the plan.

It's a fairly sure bet there will be things like an extension of businesses expensing capital investments; credits for businesses that increase the size of their workforce (no promise of good wages, just size counts); probably some job training programs to help businesses; may even be a 2% payroll tax holiday for businesses; maybe even a repatriation tax holiday so corporations doing business overseas would have to pay only 5.25 percent tax on earnings brought back to the United States instead of the 35 percent corporate tax rate on domestic profits. Sounds like another giveaway to millionaires and billionaires - you know, those who need it the least.

For everybody else, the lets-kill-social-security-payroll-tax-holiday will be extended (maybe be made permanent); a small extension of unemployment insurance (don't expect this will be what's needed). These two items are projected to boost employment by about 500,000 jobs (not quite enough to keep up with natural workforce growth), and also questionable because that's what was expected out of these two in 2011, which hasn't panned out quite like planned.

Might also include some spending on infrastructure (heard schools would be the focus and lots of them need fixing with property taxes tanking in most States).

Feel more recovered? (if speeches were horses, beggers would ride)

[Creideiki]

10. Please link to his serious plan.

It should come out some time in mid-2012 and then get buried in a sub-basement along about November 2012 one way or the other. More likely the other.

[Sheepshank]

26. Auto mfg assistance, and cash for clunkers were both very bold. n/t

[Creideiki]

41. Helped one segment ONLY, although it was good

Bold? Really? It was pretty narrow. It only benefited you if you could afford to buy a car during a narrow window of opportunity, sort of like the homebuyer's tax credit. Narrow.

Bold would be TVA. Even an infrastructure bank proposal could turn out to be too narrow if it is structured the way that conservatives (of both parties) want. We need a solid PWA--tell you what, you hold your breath, but don't worry; I know CPR.

[John Agar]

6. "Something bold" would be very out of character for this White House..

Unless you think proposing major benefit cuts in SS and Medicare is "bold," especially coming from a supposed DEMOCRATIC president.

I have learned to expect disappointment and/or outright betrayal, and I see no reason to expect anything else from this gang of fools.

Or is that "tools"?

[Fumesucker]

13. Actually I do think major SS and Medicare cuts would qualify as "bold" at a minimum..

I would even go so far as to label them "radical" or "transformational".

[Dragonfli]

21. Maybe even as transformational as Reagan, I know he is highly valued by Obama for being so

transformational.

He may get to be as cool as Ronny after all. Yippee!

[Control-Z]

14. Please provide a link to the

major benefit cuts in SS and medicare the White House has proposed. I've not heard of any.

[madrchsod]

7. that`s a well known fact so we need to move on...

yes labor is on their own and we need to follow the example of wisconsin`s movement. we need to concentrate our efforts at the local and state level.

[Starry Messenger]

15. recommend.

[Name removed]

16. Deleted message

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[rhett o rick]

19. Ahh, we hear from another Koch Democrat. nm

[Name removed]

20. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Cali_Democrat]

24. A guarantee? Really?

Prove it.

[Mimosa]

23. *LOL!!*

Rhett, how you do run on. And make us laugh! :7

[rhett o rick]

25. Sorry, I should ignore those trouble makers. nm

[scheming daemons]

35. Then you would have ignored the OP. nm

[dionysus]

27. the neverending campaign slogs on. unrec.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

28. Let's not

and say that we did. :eyes:

[JNinWB]

30. I love these threads!

More candidates for my "Ignore" list---or my "lower the blood Pressure" list.

A twofer!

[JoePhilly]

34. Don't use ignore ... you'll miss the endless nonsensical Obama bashing.

[hifiguy]

31. Rec'd nt

[JoeyT]

33. I disagree with the original article.

I think we will get bold and lots of it. It just won't be a plan that creates actual jobs. It'll be free trade and trickle down, but they'll be willing to dig in and fight for it.

Lack of boldness isn't really the problem when it's something they actually want.

[leftstreet]

36. +1 Obama and the Dems have taken bold steps to further enrich the 1%

They'll stay the course

[johnaries]

38. Unrec. He hasn't even released his plan, yet. And although I support

a grassroots movement, the very fact that he plans on releasing a plan puts the lie to this article.