Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Mitt Romney : A Republican Stimulus Plan
National Review ^ | Dec 19,2008 | Mitt Romney

Posted on 12/20/2008 3:09:04 PM PST by SeekAndFind

What is Washington waiting for? The inauguration is less than five weeks away: At the rate we’ve been going, another 500,000 jobs will be lost by then. The downward spiral is deepening and accelerating: Congress and the president must act now.

American families have lost about $11 trillion in net worth as securities and home values have plummeted. This translates into about $400 billion less annual consumer spending, net of government safety-net funding. Exports won’t grow to make this up, as the dollar has strengthened with investors worldwide clamoring for its relative security. Investments won’t make up the gap either, as bank loans and secondary-market financing have shrunk and as fresh equity is virtually non-existent.

So this is surely the time for economic stimulus. But — and this is the crucial point — the government can’t just make itself bigger and more oppressive in the guise of stimulating the economy. That would make matters worse. Nor should we forget that fiscal stimulus is but one part of the solution. As Christina Romer, Barack Obama’s designee as chairperson of the Council of Economic Advisors concluded from her study of the Great Depression, bad monetary policy was its greatest cause and good monetary policy was its most effective cure. The Fed should continue to expand the money supply. And, it should confirm that it will not tolerate deflation — the pain of inflation pales in comparison.

That being said, a stimulus plan is needed without further delay, and there are some things that Republicans should insist on.

The first is that tax cuts are part of the solution. Harvard professor and economist Greg Mankiw points out that recent research confirms that tax cuts have a greater multiplier effect than new spending — more economic bang for the federal buck. We should lower tax rates for middle-income families and eliminate their tax on savings altogether — no tax on interest, dividends or capital gains. Let’s also align our corporate tax rate with those of competing nations. These actions will rapidly expand consumption and investment, and right now, time is of the essence.

On the spending front, infrastructure projects should be a high priority. But because infrastructure projects involve engineering, environmental studies, permitting and contracting, they can take a long time to actually boost the economy. Spending to refurbish and modernize our military equipment is urgently needed, and it has a more immediate impact on the economy. A great deal of our armament was damaged or lost in the Middle East, and the rest is long overdue for maintenance.

We should also invest to free us from our dependence on foreign oil, not by playing venture capitalist, but by funding basic research in renewables, material science, combustion, nuclear reprocessing, and the like. During the 2008 campaign, virtually every candidate agreed on the need for an “Apollo-like mission” to achieve energy independence. Now is the time to start.

Cities and states will clamor for government dollars. Like the Big Three automakers, states should first take advantage of the downturn to do some needed cost cutting and restructuring. State employee numbers, pensions, and health-insurance premium sharing — as well as duplicate and ineffective agencies and programs — should be high on the hit list. State budgets should be brought in line with those of the most efficient of their comparables. And the federal government should look to ease the burden of mandates on states, like Medicaid.

Republicans should also lay down a gauntlet: All new spending projects should be selected by the responsible federal agency according to published criteria, not by congresspersons and senators based upon favors and politics. Republicans should commit to vote no on any stimulus bill with earmarks that have not been voted upon by their entire body.

There is a danger that new spending and deficits will lead to runaway inflation, flight from the dollar, and another economic crisis. It is essential, therefore, that Congress and the president commit to reform entitlement spending as soon as the economy recovers. With the footing of our long term economy at risk, with entitlements already reaching 60 percent of federal spending and with baby boomers nearing retirement, this can be delayed no longer.

We must also be careful to avoid burdening the economy with excessive regulation in response to the need to reform regulatory oversight of the financial sector. Going too far could cripple the entire industry, further tightening the credit markets. And we should make it clear that Washington will not act to virtually impose unions on small business by eliminating the right of workers to vote by secret ballot in the workplace. This “card check” payback for the AFL-CIO’s support of the Democrats would devastate business formation and employment.

The Democrats may want to wait for Obama, but the country needs action now. Republicans can — and must — play an important role in shaping a stimulus bill that makes sense for America and lays a foundation for future prosperity and growth.

--— Mitt Romney is the former governor of Massachusetts.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Editorial; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: 110th; bush; goawaymitt; gop; mittbots; republican; rinos; romney; stimulus; whiners
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20 ... 201-220221-240241-260261-269 next last
To: Finny
Excellent summary criticizing the 'hot air', Finny.

Best of the BS is here:

Romney: "The Fed should continue to expand the money supply.
... We should also invest ... in ... combustion..."

Romney suggests printing more money and studying fire.


241 posted on 12/23/2008 10:10:30 AM PST by Diogenesis
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 240 | View Replies]

To: Finny
whoa! some serious attempts to dialogue. thank you, wish I had time to chat. I am in cleaning mode for Christmas.

and I am through with all the losers who let McCain sail into the Republican nominee slot. Sarah was a breath of fresh air and those career politicians were too fond of the smoke filled back rooms of Washington to welcome her. I am not a Romney lover, but we have to stop tearing everyone down and find something positive to say.....whether it be a policy, idea, candidate or party.

242 posted on 12/23/2008 10:17:20 AM PST by tioga (Merry Christmas!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 240 | View Replies]

To: tioga
Merry Christmas, tioga, and may you and yours have a healthy and prosperous 2009!

I beg to differ on one point of your post above: You say, we have to stop tearing everyone down and find something positive to say.....

NO, now is the time to tear moderate big-government liberal Republicans down. We must purge the party of them when they threaten to attempt to "lead" the party direction. The admonition to "play nice" belongs on a kindergarten playround. It belongs far, far away from defending the freedom of America. Part of defending American freedom is chasing and hounding the big-government Mitt Romneys of the world out of the Republican party.

243 posted on 12/23/2008 10:30:37 AM PST by Finny ("Raise hell. Vote smart." -- Ted Nugent.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 242 | View Replies]

To: Finny

Reagan took the stage with a positive message.....yes, he said “tear down that wall”.....but he was not all negative and fighting. I see too much of that on FR. A positive message can purge us of the negative without fighting and alienating each other. and we need to unite and tear down the dems proposals and ideas with our own. we have a common enemy and it isn’t romney or mccain, it’s obama.


244 posted on 12/23/2008 10:40:12 AM PST by tioga (Merry Christmas!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 243 | View Replies]

To: tioga
It is wrong and a big mistake to confer legitimacy on a "conservative" who clearly, plainly, demonstrably fails to grasp Reagan's message that government isn't the solution, it's the problem. You seem to want to make this mistake because you're afraid that people might think you're mean otherwise. Romney is negative for conservatism in every sense. It's destructive to pretend otherwise.
245 posted on 12/23/2008 10:53:42 AM PST by Finny ("Raise hell. Vote smart." -- Ted Nugent.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 244 | View Replies]

To: Finny

It appears that you categorize everything Romney proposed in one of three ways:

A) You agree with it, but because it is from him, you dismiss it as “gratuitous” and “obvious” (aka, ad hominem). (points 1, 4, 6, 8, and 9)

B) You reinterpret it, by assigning your own implied “code phrases”, and then argue against your own interpretation of what Romney said (also known as straw man argument). (points 1, 3, 5)

C) Or, you flat disagree. (points 2, 7)

All in all, if you could get over your hatefest, it would seem you actually agree with more of Romney’s proposed points than you disagree with.


246 posted on 12/23/2008 11:28:36 AM PST by LexBaird (Behold, thou hast drinken of the Aide of Kool, and are lost unto Men.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 240 | View Replies]

To: Finny

I choose not to argue with fellow conservatives........it’s petty and accomplishes little. Proceed if you wish.


247 posted on 12/23/2008 11:51:50 AM PST by tioga (Merry Christmas!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 245 | View Replies]

To: Finny
...Thompson (whom I passionately supported with money and voice)...

Um, you just proved my point.

248 posted on 12/23/2008 12:44:17 PM PST by La Enchiladita
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 232 | View Replies]

To: rintense

Maybe you missed the “and/or” part of what I posted.


249 posted on 12/23/2008 12:45:12 PM PST by La Enchiladita
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 235 | View Replies]

To: Finny

“”Republicans should also lay down a gauntlet: All new spending projects””

How about NO NEW spending projects Mitt!


250 posted on 12/23/2008 5:08:11 PM PST by Impy (RED=COMMUNIST, NOT REPUBLICAN)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 240 | View Replies]

To: Finny

Recently, Sen. John McCain joined whackjob Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) in issuing a report accusing Donald Rumsfeld, former Defense Department General Counsel Jim Haynes, and David Addington, Vice President Cheney’s chief of staff, of causing the torture of terrorist detainees.

McCain actually insinuated that Rumsfeld could be criminally liable for this “torture” of terrorists.

Yet blind-as-bat “conservatives” on FR are obsessed over Romney..... when McCain has done 500 times more damage to the conservative movement and to the US than Romney ever did in his worst day.

Obsessed anti-Romney types are more outraged over a few comments the man made years ago .... when the REAL outrage should be directed at McCain -— the candidate who set conservatism and AMERICA back 50 years.


251 posted on 12/23/2008 7:25:43 PM PST by Edit35 (.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 240 | View Replies]

To: Diogenesis
Every single point in your post is a lie.

As you said conservatives don't lie...ergo, you're no conservative. : )

252 posted on 12/23/2008 10:59:19 PM PST by TAdams8591 (The US is now a Bamana Republic!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 237 | View Replies]

To: La Enchiladita

Check out post #237.


253 posted on 12/23/2008 11:01:03 PM PST by TAdams8591 (The US is now a Bamana Republic!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 229 | View Replies]

To: Finny
It is people like YOU who so viciously and hatefully destroy their own, who give Republicans a bad name. Interesting that you only listen to SOME of what Ronald Reagan has to say.

Since he was out campaigning for John McCain, and therefore on team McCain/Palin, how would it have looked if Romney publicly disagreed with McCain about the bailout?

Note: Romney disagrees with the auto bailout.

Since failing companies and turning them around are Romney's forte, I think he's well aware of the perils of government intervention and Ronald Reagan's maxim (of everything he said the following is the phrase I heard most often from Mr. Reagan and can still well picture and hear him saying it, "Government is not the solution to the problem...Government IS the problem.").

You're assessment of Romney is incorrect. That IS your problem.

Why don't you send a letter to Ronald Reagan's son and lecture him about his positive assessment and support of Romney using his father's famous maxim. I'll bet you'd win him over with THAT one/sarc..lol!

I'm not a big fan of Fred Thompson's. His personality was/is frankly to dull and he was/is too lacking in energy to attract enough of the non-conservative vote to win him the presidency for starters. But my dislike for him would never prompt me to claim he wasn't conservative, nor would I spend hours on threads, ripping him to shreds. My points regarding him were made in several posts and thereafter I moved on. By far the vast majority of my time has been spent promoting the candidate I supported and still support, Mitt Romney.

Promoting your candidate is a far better way to spend your time, than to waste it destroying another man's candidate. All the posters on this thread who've made that point have it exactly right.

If Romney couldn't have been president, all else remaining the same, I wish it were Fred, or McCain or even Huck, I was complaining about now, rather than Obama. How about you? Would you take Romney over Obama?

254 posted on 12/23/2008 11:50:25 PM PST by TAdams8591 (The US is now a Bamana Republic!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 233 | View Replies]

To: Finny
"NO, now is the time to tear moderate big-government liberal Republicans down. We must purge the party of them when they threaten to attempt to "lead" the party direction. The admonition to "play nice" belongs on a kindergarten playround. It belongs far, far away from defending the freedom of America. Part of defending American freedom is chasing and hounding the big-government Mitt Romneys of the world out of the Republican party."

Dr. Thomas Sowell is deadly opposed to these bailouts and government intervention. Yet Romney (as well as one or two others) was an acceptable candidate to him. How could that possibly be?

255 posted on 12/24/2008 12:04:42 AM PST by TAdams8591 (The US is now a Bamana Republic!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 243 | View Replies]

To: TAdams8591
Every post critical of shapeshifting, backstabing, RINO
Romney has been true.
You are unable to rebut a single thing. So you post your name-calling.
Impressive. Not.

Team Romney will be remembered for its attacks on Gov.Palin and her children.

256 posted on 12/24/2008 3:51:52 AM PST by Diogenesis
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 252 | View Replies]

To: LexBaird
You talk about my "hate" instead of about Romney's words. Proving my point. I knew you wouldn't opt to talk issues -- you can't because Romney's own words run counter to limited government conservative principle.

So you're left with accusing me of a "hatefest." Just like I thought.

257 posted on 12/24/2008 8:26:39 AM PST by Finny ("Raise hell. Vote smart." -- Ted Nugent.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 246 | View Replies]

To: La Enchiladita
No, you proved mine -- I'm not trying to resurrect Thompson's candidacy, playing crybaby because he lost, or blaming Obama/McCain's candidacies on those who didn't vote for him.

Romney supporters, on the other hand ...

258 posted on 12/24/2008 8:29:06 AM PST by Finny ("Raise hell. Vote smart." -- Ted Nugent.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 248 | View Replies]

To: Edit35

No discusson about Romney’s actual words and his proposal here because they run counter to limited government conservative principle. Instead, you toss a red herring into the mix to distract from the point at hand. You respond to my discussion of Romney by lambasting McCain ... whom I didn’t support and did not vote for in the primary.


259 posted on 12/24/2008 8:31:55 AM PST by Finny ("Raise hell. Vote smart." -- Ted Nugent.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 251 | View Replies]

To: TAdams8591
You need to read Michael Reagan's actual words. He said some nice things about Romney in a column almost two years ago, words that are often quoted here by Romney supporters ...

... Who conveniently leave out the words immediately following, which have as high a praise for Rudy Giuliani. You LIE and MISLEAD when you imply that Reagan saw or sees Romney as a next Great Hope for the GOP. On the other hand, I notice you forget to mention that Reagan wrote of Palin that "his Dad was back!" He loves Palin.

Don't have time right now to respond to the rest of your post. Don't tell lies about Michael Reagan.

260 posted on 12/24/2008 8:35:19 AM PST by Finny ("Raise hell. Vote smart." -- Ted Nugent.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 254 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20 ... 201-220221-240241-260261-269 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson