It’s becoming every more evident that Republicans are willing to tank the economy for their perceived electoral benefit. And they’re willing to drive our economy into another recession rather than raise taxes on the Koch brothers. If anything we should be expanding crucial programs that extend a helping hand to those Americans in need, not cutting them during this time of extreme economic duress.
Anybody who’s taken a basic accounting course understands that there are two sides of a balance sheet, a revenues side and an obligations side. The Gang of Pillagers, from 2001 through 2006, continually reduced revenues via tax breaks for the rich and rang up considerable obligations by pre-emptively starting two wars in which we’re still engaged.
Taxes are the lowest we’ve seen since the Eisenhower era and there are now insufficient revenues to pay the bills coming due. So what do the Gang of Pillagers insist on doing? Well, they propose to cut taxes even further and cut government spending to the bone.
Okay, think about that for a minute. Government is NOT some big monolith that you can just take a big to which you can just take a sledge hammer. It’s programs, services, and most of all JOBS! More than anything right now, we need JOBS! Yes indeed, the Gang of Pillagers are singularly focused on JOBS … not CREATING them as everyone who voted for them expected … but ELIMINATING JOBS and the middle class occupying those jobs.
Cutting government spending is the ultimate job elimination strategy. Not only can the Gang of Pillagers cut public sector jobs en mass, they can also cut private sector jobs of those that would have supplied those governmental programs and services at the same time. In other words, they get a two-fer!
Don’t believe me? Have you been watching the monthly jobs reports. GOP governors have been dumping public sector jobs as fast as they possibly can (you know teachers, fire fighters, policemen, etc.). Up until this last month, those public sector job losses have been making only a small dent in the overall job increases. With all the uncertainty being caused by the GOP’s willingness to allow the U.S. to default on it’s debts, those public sector job losses came close to overwhelming private sector increases last month. If you paid attention, the public sector created 58,000 jobs, but the public sector lost 40,000 jobs, leaving our nation with a net increase of only 18,000 jobs.
Their latest strategy for eliminating jobs, not just in our nation, but globally, is to drive the United States into defaulting on the debt. You think we have problems now? Wait until they force us into default. Then you can watch credit rating of the U.S. Treasury plummet, the interest rates on both past and future borrowing skyrocket, and the national debt balloon to something your great grandchildren’s great grandchildren will only be able to dream of paying off. But it won’t stop there, take a look at your own financial situation. Are you unfortunate enough to have an adjustable mortgage? Expect to see some dramatic rises in your mortgage interest rates, to the point it will certainly force you into foreclosure. Any business needing a loan to be able to operate their business will likely see their cost of capital rise dramatically as well forcing them to pass those expenses along to those who can pay for as long as they can pay. And once it gets to the point folks can no longer afford those more expensive products/services, that employer will go under as will the jobs associated with that employer.
The Desert Beacon wrote an exceptional piece on the 9th about “What a U.S. Debt Default Would Mean to You.” If you haven’t read it yet, you should. Please do take the time to read it so you’ll understand just how irresponsible it would be for the GOP leadership to drive the U.S. into default. If that’s their intent, then they no longer believe in a Democracy and they’re taking this action as a means of economic revolution to cripple our nation, and to remake it into something a whole lot less democratic, something more like a plutocracy ruled by the elite super-rich robber-barons of this nation.