Next year? Try RIGHT NOW.
Robert Reich? Wow, I thought this man was high on Obama’s policies. This is big IMO.
During the 30’s, unemployment hit about 20% about 1933, and then went down to about 17%. It stayed at 17% throughout the 30s- never going down until we started ramping up for WWII in 1939-40.
Using the same employment definitions, the rate now is about 17%.
Reich is forgetting that business will NOT INVEST in more people until the situation with Energy prices (due to CapNTax fears) and Employee cost (due to health care taxes) is clarified. After that, they will be able to estimate demand, which is often dependent on employment and the general economy. Only after that, will they see if they can borrow for expansion, etc.
He IS right that we are years from a real recovery, and he might even be accurate that the govt should be rebuilding roads, bridges, and other such infrastructure. Adding to the govt debt simply to do that, though, will hurt the business borrowing for expansion, so it is not a panacea.
In the end, gov’t doesn’t expand the economy, business does.