Obama Suggests ‘Secretary of Business’ in a 2nd Term

WSJ ^ | October 29, 2012 | Carol E. Lee

[Snuph]

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President Barack Obama signaled if he wins a second term he would appoint a Secretary of Business to oversee newly-consolidated government agencies, including the Small Business Administration, and predicted “a war” will break out within the Republican Party after the Nov. 6 election.

“We should have one Secretary of Business, instead of nine different departments that are dealing with things like giving loans to SBA or helping companies with exports,” Mr. Obama said in an interview that aired Monday on MSNBC. “There should be a one-stop shop.”

Mr. Obama blamed Congress for such consolidation not happening during his first term because lawmakers have been “very protective about not giving up their jurisdiction over various pieces of government.” But the president has done little to push the idea himself.

[Brookhaven]

The Dept of Commerce is the Dept of Business. The words commerce and business mean essentially the same thing. This is like proposing a Dept. of Teaching when we have a Dept. of Education. Dictionary: commerce   com·merce   [kom-ers] noun 1. an interchange of goods or commodities, especially on a large scale between different countries (foreign commerce) or between different parts of the same country (domestic commerce); trade; BUSINESS. business  busi·ness   [biz-nis] noun a person, partnership, or corporation engaged in COMMERCE, manufacturing, or a service; profit-seeking enterprise or concern. Thesaurus: Main Entry: commerce  [kom-ers] Show IPA Part of Speech: noun Definition: buying and selling Synonyms: BUSINESS, dealing, dealings, economics, exchange, industry, marketing, merchandising, merchantry, retailing, trade, traffic, truck, wholesaling

[leprechaun9]

What happened to CZAR SOB?

[leprechaun9]

What happened to CZAR SOB?

[haroldeveryman]

Obama’s first Business Czar ?

Here’s a guess: John Corzine.

[Argus]

Yes, it will make the crony capitalist corruption so much more efficient.

[RichInOC]

The Business Department: We’ll do for business what the Defense Department did for our people in Benghazi.

[9YearLurker]

Yeah, that is all obvious.

What he’s referring to is a combination of things like the SBA that have slipped out on their own. Still, his point is bureaucratic growth with a new superstructure, rather than efficiency through consolidation.

[Mr. K]

I wonder if he knows we already have a Commerce Department?