Debt: Obama’s Real Agenda

Democracy and Power 108:  Obfuscation

Wherever politics intrudes upon economic life, political success is readily attained by saying what people like to hear rather than what is demonstrably true. Instead of safeguarding truth and honesty, the state then tends to become a major source of insincerity and mendacity. – Hans F. Sennholz

 Fearing legislated failures, the politician’s speech is seldom precise or logically reasoned.  Seeking a favorable image, the politician talks in generalities, exaggerates and obfuscates. 

Debt:  Obama’s Real Agenda

 President Obama’s deficit reduction scheme is to form a 16-person panel who will present a plan to create the legislative framework to reduce the deficit.  The Wall street Journal reports:

The President proposes a 16-person bicameral bipartisan Congressional budget negotiation, led by VP Biden, beginning in early May. Each Congressional leader (Boehner, Pelosi, Reid and McConnell) would name four Members. The group’s goal would be “to agree on a legislative framework for comprehensive deficit reduction.”

 There are five reasons this is an abysmal and disingenuous scheme:

• Our fiscal danger is long-term debt.  While the annual deficit is appalling, the danger is America’s debt, which is approaching 100% of GDP.
• The President entrusts “deficit reduction” to the pols that willfully and wantonly created America’s “dangerous “debt.” 
• Boehner, Pelosi, Reid, McConnell and Biden have achieved personal power at the expense of fiscal responsibility, and will again bargain and manipulate with their political brethren to the detriment of a competent fiscal policy.
• The President diffidently calls for a legislative framework for deficit reduction, while debt continues to dangerously accrue, and confidence in the American dollar plunges.
• American must cut government spending immediately.
  • Reduce the government payroll.
  • Restructure entitlements.

Reprehensively, the President is pandering and stalling.  As Democratic Senator Manchin of West Virginia said prior to this deception, “Why are we doing all this when the most powerful person in these negotiations – our president – has failed to lead this debate or offer a serious proposal for spending and cuts that he would be willing to fight for.”

 Still, the President has not offered a serious proposal.  The recent proposal is a shame and intentionally contrived to obfuscate and delay.  The President’s agenda is to force Americans to relent to additional taxes, which consolidates more power in D.C.