Democrats' Tax-And-Spend Insanity

IBD Editorials ^ | June 10, 2011 | Staff

[Kaslin]

Leadership: You have to wonder who's advising Democrats these days. With the economy stuck in a two-year, Obama-dug rut, their only new economic growth idea is to raise taxes and hike federal spending.

According to The Hill, Democrats are so frustrated with President Obama's "passivity on the economy" that they're actively working on a fresh stimulus package that would include significant new spending on roads and other infrastructure, paid for by closing various tax loopholes.

Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, told the publication that "the last election was about jobs and the economy, and now we're in a position where we really do need some economic pump-priming by the federal government."

Has Harkin been asleep for the past two years? Doesn't he remember that Democrats already pushed through $830 billion worth of "pump priming"? And that this was supposed to stimulate growth and hold unemployment under 8%?

Instead, quarterly GDP growth has averaged an anemic 2.8% since the recession officially ended two years ago, and unemployment has been at or above 9% for all but two of the past 24 months.

[exDemMom]

So, we’re supposed to believe the recession ended two years ago, because... ?

Best thing for the economy right now would be to start ramping down spending. We don’t need any more “pump priming.”

[Don Corleone]

GOVERNMENT.....STOP!

[Malone LaVeigh]

Wasn’t spending on roads and infrastructure supposed to be part of that “shovel ready” first stimulus?

[Pearls Before Swine]

Doesn't he remember that Democrats already pushed through $830 billion worth of "pump priming"?

Yeah, but that wasn't true fiscal stimulus. It was primarily looting and payoffs to favored groups.

That said, why would anyone expect a new stimulus to be any better, in other words, to actually be a stimulus?

[white17x]

I may be wrong but I sure thought revenue and spending bills had to originate in the house ??

[17th Miss Regt]

That used to be true. It was a requirement in a quaint, old document called the “Constitution of the United States”. But no one pays attention to that thing anymore. We’ve moved beyond that.

[Pearls Before Swine]

I may be wrong but I sure thought revenue and spending bills had to originate in the house ??

True, but remember the "deem and pass" maneuver for O-care?

[captmar-vell]

these policies are all about trying to manage the debt and protect the bankers instead of attempting (at least)to stimulate a return to a more healthy economy.

unlike most countries whose leaders are actually playing to win, we have leadership that is conflicted and feel we deserve much less,

try winning a basketball game with that coach,