I was having a look at Tim Walberg’s website this morning, wondering if he had anything that discusses the Republicans’ recent rejection of a federal bill to reward companies that return jobs to the USA and to punish those that outsource them. I had a look at his jobs plan and, you won’t believe this, IT DOES NOT ACTUALLY MENTION CREATING JOBS ONCE! Okay, I take that back. It mentions it once. In the title.
Here’s his “plan”:
Tim Walberg’s plan to create jobs:1) Stop government overspending- The trillion dollar stimulus, government takeover of health care, and Speaker Pelosi’s budget with trillion dollar deficits are placing America on an unsustainable financial course. Congress needs to limit spending, make reforms, and move the budget toward balance. I favor a line item veto and Balanced Budget Amendment. Most importantly, a majority in Congress needs to have the will to vote against overspending.
2) Reduce the tax burden- Taxes are scheduled to increase at the end of the year, unless Congress acts. Congress needs to prevent these tax increases and then reduce tax rates like Presidents Kennedy and Reagan to spur economic growth and job creation. Specifically, Congress needs to reduce individual and corporate tax rates, eliminate the capital gains tax, and kill the death tax in order to encourage hard work, investment, entrepreneurship, and job creation.
3) Repeal Obamacare and replace with common sense reforms- The trillion dollar government takeover of health care raises taxes, adds paperwork, and increases the cost of health care. Congress needs to repeal Obamacare and replace with patient-centered reforms such as ending lawsuit abuse, allowing the purchase of insurance across state lines, expanding the use and flexibility of health savings accounts, and letting small businesses join together to purchase health insurance at a more affordable price.
4) Expand American energy production- Being dependent on foreign nations for our energy is a security risk and the national ‘cap and trade’ energy tax that passed the U.S. House would devastate America’s economy and destroy jobs. Congress needs to allow the expansion of American energy exploration, refinery construction, nuclear energy and alternatives.
5) Educational excellence- Congress needs to provide greater flexibility to states and local school districts in order to empower those closest to the students; parents, teachers, administrators and school boards. Supporting higher education, encouraging partnerships with the private sector and education institutions, and enabling students, particularly from low and middle income families, with access to excellent educational opportunities is important to the future of our nation.
Taking them one at a time:
“1) Stop government overspending”
Most people would argue that spending by the government is about the only thing that HAS created jobs. Walberg, in fact, makes no effort to show how cutting spending creates jobs. No surprise, really, since most economists agree that cutting government spending in the midst of an economic downturn is about the worst thing you can do.
“2) Reduce the tax burden”
This section completely ignores the fact that the Obama administration, with the help of Walberg’s most-awesome Democratic opponent Mark Schauer, has reduced taxes for 95% of working Americans and has put in place 16 tax cuts for businesses, particularly small businesses, in the past 20 months. He also fails to mention how reducing taxes for wealthy Americans creates jobs. Doesn’t that basically just increase their savings accounts and investment portfolios???
“3) Repeal Obamacare and replace with common sense reforms”
Wait. I thought we were talking about jobs…???
I do wonder which elements Walberg doesn’t like. Is it that kids can stay on their parents’ insurance until they are 26? Or is that people can no longer be excluded from coverage due to a pre-existing condition (like having a uterus). I’ll bet it’s the fact that insurance companies can’t just cut you off anymore because you become too expensive.
“4) Expand American energy production”
Again, aren’t we talking about … uh … creating jobs? Expanding American energy production will, at most, create a tiny amount of jobs. Now if you want to talk about creating an entirely new Clean Energy sector with research & development along with manufacturing happening right here in the USA, that’s different. But, of course, like pretty much all Republicans, Tim Walberg decidedly does NOT want to talk about that.
“5) Educational excellence”
You know what? I’m going to give him this one. I mean if he’s going to support initiatives started by Democrats like Governor Granholm with her “No Worker Left Behind” initiative, who am I to quibble? The question is will Mr. Cut Government Spending actually be willing to fund such programs. Eight Ball says, “Outlook not so good”.
Oh and, just for the record, educating workers doesn’t actually “create jobs”. It just prepares workers better for jobs just in case they get created through other means. Which would be entirely by accident if we follow Tim Walberg’s Jobs “Plan”.
I’m just sayin’…
