Thoughts on the State of the Union Speech
President Obama: "The shadow of crisis has passed, and the State of the Union is strong."
Reality: Mostly true. The Union is not as strong as it has been in the past, but is stronger now than at any moment in the aftermath of the fiscal crisis. High marks for what the president has accomplished in this area.
President Obama: "Will we allow ourselves to be sorted into factions and turned against one another — or will we recapture the sense of common purpose that has always propelled America forward?"
Reality: We are a particularly polarized nation when it comes to politics. The failure of the two major political parties to work toward compromise and consensus may have catastrophic consequences in our future.
President Obama: "Tonight we turn the page."
Reality. I'm ignoring all of the missteps my administration has made in the last six years and focusing only on the positive from now on.
President Obama: "Our unemployment rate is now lower than it was before the financial crisis."
Reality: Depends on how you measure it. The current labor force is more than 1% lower than it was ten years ago, when measured as a percentage of the total population. Or more simply, at least part of the cause of the current unemployment rate being lower than it was before the crisis is because some people have given up on looking for work.
President Obama: "Tonight, for the first time since 9/11, our combat mission in Afghanistan is over."
Reality: Thousands of American military personnel are still in Afghanistan. Their mission has been relabeled from "combat" to "support." That doesn't mean they won't be attacked. That doesn't mean they aren't at risk of death or injury.
President Obama: "In two weeks, I will send this Congress a budget filled with ideas that are practical, not partisan. And in the months ahead, I’ll crisscross the country making a case for those ideas."
Reality: Most of those ideas, good or bad, are DOA when they arrive at a Congress where Republicans are in control. With their dependence on the Tea Party ideologues to maintain their iron grip on the House, there's no way the Republicans will allow a tax increase proposal to see the light of day. Nor would enough of the moderate Republicans cross the aisle to vote for things that make sense. In an era where the Republicans are more interested in punishing the IRS despite the reduction in tax revenues will follow, they will not offend the men who keep funding their reelection campaigns.
President Obama: "So the verdict is clear. Middle-class economics works. Expanding opportunity works. And these policies will continue to work, as long as politics don’t get in the way. We can’t slow down businesses or put our economy at risk with government shutdowns or fiscal showdowns. We can’t put the security of families at risk by taking away their health insurance, or unraveling the new rules on Wall Street, or refighting past battles on immigration when we’ve got a system to fix. And if a bill comes to my desk that tries to do any of these things, it will earn my veto."
Reality: Middle-class economics does work. Wasting time on even more attempts to overturn the ACA is stupid. Relaxing the tougher regulations put in place to prevent another fiscal crisis is really stupid. On immigration, it's long past time for meaningful reform, and that's much more important now so that the president can rescind his Executive Order on the subject.
President Obama: "And that’s why my plan will make quality childcare more available, and more affordable, for every middle-class and low-income family with young children in America — by creating more slots and a new tax cut of up to $3,000 per child, per year."
Reality: The maximum child and dependent care credit is currently $2,100 for a family earning less than $15,000 per year and spending the maximum amount of $6,000 on daycare annually. It shrinks to a maximum of $1,200 per family once the earned income goes above $43,000. So going from $600 to $3,000 per child is huge. It isn't a bad idea, but I doubt Congress will approve the tax increases needed to pay for it.
President Obama: "Here’s another example. Today, we’re the only advanced country on Earth that doesn’t guarantee paid sick leave or paid maternity leave to our workers. Forty-three million workers have no paid sick leave. Forty-three million. Think about that. And that forces too many parents to make the gut-wrenching choice between a paycheck and a sick kid at home. So I’ll be taking new action to help states adopt paid leave laws of their own. And since paid sick leave won where it was on the ballot last November, let’s put it to a vote right here in Washington. Send me a bill that gives every worker in America the opportunity to earn seven days of paid sick leave. It’s the right thing to do."
Reality: Maybe it is and maybe it isn't the right thing to do. Before you decide, please read what former Senator George McGovern wrote about his foray into business. http://digital.library.ucla.edu/websites/2008_993_056/Politician_Dream.htm. Or if you prefer, you can read this excerpt, which is the part that relates directly to this particular presidential proposal: "But my business associates and I also lived with federal, state and local rules that were all passed with the objective of helping employees, protecting the environment, raising tax dollars for schools, protecting our customers from fire hazards, etc. While I never doubted the worthiness of any of these goals, the concept that most often eludes legislators is: `Can we make consumers pay the higher prices for the increased operating costs that accompany public regulation and government reporting requirements with reams of red tape.' It is a simple concern that is nonetheless often ignored by legislators."
If you own a small business and suddenly you're being forced to provide your employees with seven days of paid sick leave a year, who is going to pay for it? Can you pay for it without charging your customers higher prices? Paid sick leave is an excellent idea, right up until the bill comes due.
President Obama: "And yet, we still live in a country where too many bright, striving Americans are priced out of the education they need. It’s not fair to them, and it’s not smart for our future. That’s why I am sending this Congress a bold new plan to lower the cost of community college — to zero."
Reality: As long as a way can be found to pay for it, this is an excellent idea. But as an unfunded federal mandate to the states, it is not.
President Obama: "Already, we’ve made strides towards ensuring that every veteran has access to the highest quality care. We’re slashing the backlog that had too many veterans waiting years to get the benefits they need, and we’re making it easier for vets to translate their training and experience into civilian jobs."
Reality: Try telling that to the families of veterans who believe their veteran died while waiting for care from a VA facility didn't happen in time. That is NOT the fault of President Obama, but his chosen Secretary of Veterans Affairs did not get the job done. However, forcing him out and replacing him was the right move and President Obama's concern for veterans is genuine..
President Obama: "So let’s set our sights higher than a single oil pipeline. Let’s pass a bipartisan infrastructure plan that could create more than thirty times as many jobs per year, and make this country stronger for decades to come."
Reality: Investing in our infrastructure is smart. It creates jobs now and facilitates job creation in the future. A stronger infrastructure means a stronger nation. We cannot afford to waste precious resources on patchwork solutions. The current system of water mains in Los Angeles is a perfect example of how not to maintain and improve infrastructure.
President Obama: "This year, we have an opportunity to change that. Let’s close loopholes so we stop rewarding companies that keep profits abroad, and reward those that invest in America. Let’s use those savings to rebuild our infrastructure and make it more attractive for companies to bring jobs home. Let’s simplify the system and let a small business owner file based on her actual bank statement, instead of the number of accountants she can afford. And let’s close the loopholes that lead to inequality by allowing the top one percent to avoid paying taxes on their accumulated wealth. We can use that money to help more families pay for childcare and send their kids to college. We need a tax code that truly helps working Americans trying to get a leg up in the new economy, and we can achieve that together."
Reality: A system where General Electric can file a corporate income tax return that is 57,000 pages in length and gives a corporation that earns billions annually a tax credit of $5 billion is flawed. A system that allows Burger King to merge with a Canadian corporation and move its headquarters to Canada to avoid corporate taxation is flawed. A system that encourages the outsourcing of jobs to other nations is flawed. These flaws must be fixed.
Overall, it was a strong effort by the president, well-written and delivered with style. The fatigue of a two-term president, usually burned out by this time was not present. Well-played President Obama. If only the bipartisan cooperation to get some of this ambitious agenda passed were present in Congress.
Reality: Mostly true. The Union is not as strong as it has been in the past, but is stronger now than at any moment in the aftermath of the fiscal crisis. High marks for what the president has accomplished in this area.
President Obama: "Will we allow ourselves to be sorted into factions and turned against one another — or will we recapture the sense of common purpose that has always propelled America forward?"
Reality: We are a particularly polarized nation when it comes to politics. The failure of the two major political parties to work toward compromise and consensus may have catastrophic consequences in our future.
President Obama: "Tonight we turn the page."
Reality. I'm ignoring all of the missteps my administration has made in the last six years and focusing only on the positive from now on.
President Obama: "Our unemployment rate is now lower than it was before the financial crisis."
Reality: Depends on how you measure it. The current labor force is more than 1% lower than it was ten years ago, when measured as a percentage of the total population. Or more simply, at least part of the cause of the current unemployment rate being lower than it was before the crisis is because some people have given up on looking for work.
President Obama: "Tonight, for the first time since 9/11, our combat mission in Afghanistan is over."
Reality: Thousands of American military personnel are still in Afghanistan. Their mission has been relabeled from "combat" to "support." That doesn't mean they won't be attacked. That doesn't mean they aren't at risk of death or injury.
President Obama: "In two weeks, I will send this Congress a budget filled with ideas that are practical, not partisan. And in the months ahead, I’ll crisscross the country making a case for those ideas."
Reality: Most of those ideas, good or bad, are DOA when they arrive at a Congress where Republicans are in control. With their dependence on the Tea Party ideologues to maintain their iron grip on the House, there's no way the Republicans will allow a tax increase proposal to see the light of day. Nor would enough of the moderate Republicans cross the aisle to vote for things that make sense. In an era where the Republicans are more interested in punishing the IRS despite the reduction in tax revenues will follow, they will not offend the men who keep funding their reelection campaigns.
President Obama: "So the verdict is clear. Middle-class economics works. Expanding opportunity works. And these policies will continue to work, as long as politics don’t get in the way. We can’t slow down businesses or put our economy at risk with government shutdowns or fiscal showdowns. We can’t put the security of families at risk by taking away their health insurance, or unraveling the new rules on Wall Street, or refighting past battles on immigration when we’ve got a system to fix. And if a bill comes to my desk that tries to do any of these things, it will earn my veto."
Reality: Middle-class economics does work. Wasting time on even more attempts to overturn the ACA is stupid. Relaxing the tougher regulations put in place to prevent another fiscal crisis is really stupid. On immigration, it's long past time for meaningful reform, and that's much more important now so that the president can rescind his Executive Order on the subject.
President Obama: "And that’s why my plan will make quality childcare more available, and more affordable, for every middle-class and low-income family with young children in America — by creating more slots and a new tax cut of up to $3,000 per child, per year."
Reality: The maximum child and dependent care credit is currently $2,100 for a family earning less than $15,000 per year and spending the maximum amount of $6,000 on daycare annually. It shrinks to a maximum of $1,200 per family once the earned income goes above $43,000. So going from $600 to $3,000 per child is huge. It isn't a bad idea, but I doubt Congress will approve the tax increases needed to pay for it.
President Obama: "Here’s another example. Today, we’re the only advanced country on Earth that doesn’t guarantee paid sick leave or paid maternity leave to our workers. Forty-three million workers have no paid sick leave. Forty-three million. Think about that. And that forces too many parents to make the gut-wrenching choice between a paycheck and a sick kid at home. So I’ll be taking new action to help states adopt paid leave laws of their own. And since paid sick leave won where it was on the ballot last November, let’s put it to a vote right here in Washington. Send me a bill that gives every worker in America the opportunity to earn seven days of paid sick leave. It’s the right thing to do."
Reality: Maybe it is and maybe it isn't the right thing to do. Before you decide, please read what former Senator George McGovern wrote about his foray into business. http://digital.library.ucla.edu/websites/2008_993_056/Politician_Dream.htm. Or if you prefer, you can read this excerpt, which is the part that relates directly to this particular presidential proposal: "But my business associates and I also lived with federal, state and local rules that were all passed with the objective of helping employees, protecting the environment, raising tax dollars for schools, protecting our customers from fire hazards, etc. While I never doubted the worthiness of any of these goals, the concept that most often eludes legislators is: `Can we make consumers pay the higher prices for the increased operating costs that accompany public regulation and government reporting requirements with reams of red tape.' It is a simple concern that is nonetheless often ignored by legislators."
If you own a small business and suddenly you're being forced to provide your employees with seven days of paid sick leave a year, who is going to pay for it? Can you pay for it without charging your customers higher prices? Paid sick leave is an excellent idea, right up until the bill comes due.
President Obama: "And yet, we still live in a country where too many bright, striving Americans are priced out of the education they need. It’s not fair to them, and it’s not smart for our future. That’s why I am sending this Congress a bold new plan to lower the cost of community college — to zero."
Reality: As long as a way can be found to pay for it, this is an excellent idea. But as an unfunded federal mandate to the states, it is not.
President Obama: "Already, we’ve made strides towards ensuring that every veteran has access to the highest quality care. We’re slashing the backlog that had too many veterans waiting years to get the benefits they need, and we’re making it easier for vets to translate their training and experience into civilian jobs."
Reality: Try telling that to the families of veterans who believe their veteran died while waiting for care from a VA facility didn't happen in time. That is NOT the fault of President Obama, but his chosen Secretary of Veterans Affairs did not get the job done. However, forcing him out and replacing him was the right move and President Obama's concern for veterans is genuine..
President Obama: "So let’s set our sights higher than a single oil pipeline. Let’s pass a bipartisan infrastructure plan that could create more than thirty times as many jobs per year, and make this country stronger for decades to come."
Reality: Investing in our infrastructure is smart. It creates jobs now and facilitates job creation in the future. A stronger infrastructure means a stronger nation. We cannot afford to waste precious resources on patchwork solutions. The current system of water mains in Los Angeles is a perfect example of how not to maintain and improve infrastructure.
President Obama: "This year, we have an opportunity to change that. Let’s close loopholes so we stop rewarding companies that keep profits abroad, and reward those that invest in America. Let’s use those savings to rebuild our infrastructure and make it more attractive for companies to bring jobs home. Let’s simplify the system and let a small business owner file based on her actual bank statement, instead of the number of accountants she can afford. And let’s close the loopholes that lead to inequality by allowing the top one percent to avoid paying taxes on their accumulated wealth. We can use that money to help more families pay for childcare and send their kids to college. We need a tax code that truly helps working Americans trying to get a leg up in the new economy, and we can achieve that together."
Reality: A system where General Electric can file a corporate income tax return that is 57,000 pages in length and gives a corporation that earns billions annually a tax credit of $5 billion is flawed. A system that allows Burger King to merge with a Canadian corporation and move its headquarters to Canada to avoid corporate taxation is flawed. A system that encourages the outsourcing of jobs to other nations is flawed. These flaws must be fixed.
Overall, it was a strong effort by the president, well-written and delivered with style. The fatigue of a two-term president, usually burned out by this time was not present. Well-played President Obama. If only the bipartisan cooperation to get some of this ambitious agenda passed were present in Congress.
posted by me at 11:36 PM
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