'Investing' our way to the poorhouse

NY Post ^ | Rich Lowry

[Scanian]

President Obama hopes to be saved by a euphemism.

He is wagering on the power of the word "investment." It sounds so market oriented and cutting edge in contrast to its more pedestrian, politically fraught synonym, "spending," especially the toxic "deficit spending" that, to this point, has defined Obama's presidency.

The focus on "investment" is nothing new. Obama already had leaned heavily on one of the hoariest Democratic tropes. When he signed the stimulus bill in February 2009, he used the word "invest" or "investment" 15 times in a 2,000-word speech. A casual listener might have been hard-pressed to understand that any new government spending was involved at all, what with all the "critical investments," including "the largest new investment in our nation's infrastructure since Eisenhower" and "the largest investment in education in our nation's history."

In a June 2010 speech at Carnegie Mellon University on his vision of a "new foundation" for the economy, Obama uttered the word "invest" or "investment" about two dozen times. If he weren't president, he might be working in a boiler room somewhere, touting a dubious stock. Former Bush official and Hoover Institution fellow Keith Hennessey substituted "government spending" for "investment," getting this Obama paragraph:

"It's a foundation based on government spending on our people and their future; government spending on the skills and education we need to compete; government spending on a 21st-century infrastructure for America, from high-speed railroads to high-speed Internet; government spending on research and technology, like clean energy, that can lead to new jobs and new exports and new industries."

[rockinqsranch]

Democrats. The Party of don’t get it.

[livius]

Oh, they get it allright. That’s why they’re manipulating language and doing the old Communist head-fake with the meaning of words. Of course, the party where it depends on what the meaning of “is” is has a lot of practice at this.

[FlingWingFlyer]

Didn’t Clinton and the ‘RATS try this Big Governement spending = “investment” BS before? I’m pretty sure we’ve already been down this road.

[rockinqsranch]

I agree with you. I meant something down another track by my post, which should have reflected that, but I was impulsive in my response. Sorry ‘bout that.

No time now to explain the track of thought as I have to go offline, but YOU are correct in your post.

[TimSkalaBim]

Yep, and the ‘Rats call tax cuts “spending.”

[SampleMan]

A family might think of purchasing a utilitarian commuting vehicle as an investment, but the new bedroom set and even the new refrigerator are NOT investments.

I want to slap Democrats every time they use the word “investment”, because they have no idea what it means. They think that a trip to Disneyland is an investment in the futue.

[lowbridge]

bump

[sickoflibs]

RE :”He is wagering on the power of the word “investment.” It sounds so market oriented and cutting edge in contrast to its more pedestrian, politically fraught synonym, “spending,” especially the toxic “deficit spending” that, to this point, has defined Obama’s presidency. The focus on “investment” is nothing new. Obama already had leaned heavily on one of the hoariest Democratic tropes. When he signed the stimulus bill in February 2009, he used the word “invest” or “investment” 15 times in a 2,000-word speech”

Investing in unions. The return?? Union get-out-the-vote for Democrats, deficits and higher taxes.

These addresses are total BS. I couldnt make it through more than a few minutes of GWBs either.

[Vaduz]

Investment=Pay off
Support=Deal
Pau Off-Kick back
Democrat=BS
Obama=Idiot

[LibLieSlayer]

I predict THAT TONIGHT... the republicans will cave... become worse than pelosi... obama will triple down with communist programs... the press will sell it as Ronald Reagan II... obama will surge in the polls and into the mid 60’s... and then the American experiment will die. Will there be anyone or anything left to restore this once GREATEST Nation?

LLS

[kittymyrib]

BO and the socialist Dems have “invested” (”spent”) two TRILLION shrinking dollars since his state-of-the-union lie fest last year. The country is in worse shape financially than ever in its history. That should be the Republican message tonight.

[The Theophilus]

I predict THAT TONIGHT...

You don't have to be Nostradamus to see that.

[LibLieSlayer]

I am railing against the media propaganda of this morning.

LLS

[Opinionated Blowhard]

“Investing” is a silly euphenism for “spending” but it would be easier to condemn it if Republicans had not used it left and right while they were in charge in the early 2000s. The “Republican” Congress did a lot of “investing” in a lot of things during the Bush years. The establishment Right only attacks things like this when they aren’t the ones doing the “investing.”