Posted on 10/20/2011 4:12:40 PM PDT by marty60
Taking aim at minimum wage laws, union protections, and even local building codes, Herman Cain has put the finishing touches on the last missing piece of his signature “9-9-9” plan – an elaborate proposal to create “opportunity zones” in inner-city America that the GOP presidential candidate will unveil during a major campaign appearance in Detroit on Friday morning.
Cain hinted at the move during Tuesday night’s GOP debate in Las Vegas. He and his aides hope the details they provide about their plans to encourage growth in impoverished areas will deflect the surge of recent criticism branding “9-9-9” as unfair to the poor.
But details about the opportunity zone proposal, as obtained in advance by Fox News, will likely make “9-9-9” more, not less, controversial, particularly with organized labor.
To qualify for zone status under Cain’s plan, a given jurisdiction will have to enact policies the unions consider anathema – such as the elimination of the minimum wage, the provision of school vouchers, or the declaration of a zone as a “right-to-work” area.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
I thought it sounded familiar. I wonder if Clinton's Empowerment zones were Laffers idea also. Cain needs new advisers.
Created Empowerment Zones. The 1993 Clinton-Gore economic plan created nine Empowerment Zones and 95 Enterprise Communities to spur local community planning and economic growth in distressed communities through tax incentives and federal investment. The President won expansions of the program in 1994, 1997, and again in 2000. To date, the 31 Empowerment Zones and 95 Enterprise Communities have leveraged over $10 billion in new private sector investment, creating thousands of new jobs for local residents. Created Community Development Financial Institutions. In September 1994, the President signed legislation creating the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund, a Clinton campaign proposal to support specialized financial institutions serving often-overlooked customers and communities. The Fund has certified over 400 CDFIs. It has provided over $427 million to match investments in CDFIs and to encourage traditional financial institutions to increase their lending, investment and services in under-served markets. Strengthened the Community Reinvestment Act. In 1995, the Administration updated the Community Reinvestment Act regulations to focus on banks’ actual service delivery, rather than on compliance efforts. From 1993 to 1998, lenders subject to the law increased mortgage lending to low- and moderate-income families by 80 percent—more than twice the rate they increased mortgage lending to other income groups. Encouraged Investment in America’s New Markets. In 1999, the President went on two historic "New Markets" trips to highlight the continuing need to bring investment to impoverished inner cities, rural communities and Native American tribal lands. In 2000, the President and Congress worked together to pass this bipartisan initiative to stimulate new private capital investments in economically distressed communities and build network of private investment institutions to funnel credit, equity and technical assistance to businesses in America’s new markets.
This “zones” business makes me skittish. I’d sooner see tax rebates that are not geographically based.
666
If it POs labor unions, it must be good.
So only companies who operate in Opportunity Zones can expense their labor costs. Then what will stop them from declaring the whole country an Opportunity Zone?
This whole 9-9-9 thing is growing crazier by the day.
I can’t see much downside risk in targeting the labor unions. They weren’t going to vote Republican, they were always going to ring doorbells for Democrats.
I would really like to know if Laffer is behind this.
I hope his supporters tell him to rethink this thing.
When business outside the Zone start yelling what will he do?
I would really like to know if Laffer is behind this.
I hope his supporters tell him to rethink this thing.
When business outside the Zone start yelling what will he do?
I think Cain could do well in Detroit mostly because they aren’t voting for a white guy anyway.
On the other hand, Detroit Mayor Dave Bing is a lot more like Herman Cain than he is Obama. Both are self made men and Bing has his own little war with the unions going on and America would be a lot better off if the democrat party were a bit more like him.
If it were up to me, I’d make the whole city a duty free zone.
Guess you missed it but Reagan included the exact same thing in his tax plan
http://www.enotes.com/biz-encyclopedia/empowerment-zones
If these so called “empowerment zones” vote overwhelmingly for the democrats then this may have traction. Cain is offering an alternative to what the democrats have been doing for the last 50 yrs-destroying the economic engine of those areas. This can work!!
I’ve seen Jack Kemp’s name mentioned
Cain’s “empowerment zones” conservative?
He continues his commentary: “But these policies must be coupled with sound money. A dollar must be worth the same tomorrow as it is today. Stabilizing the dollar’s value starts with the federal government taking significant measures to rein in its spending and pay down the national debt. Americans must be assured that the federal government will live within its means and get serious about eliminating our crippling debt. Repealing ObamaCare, Sarbanes-Oxley and the Dodd-Frank bank-regulation bill would be critical steps.”
More commentary from Mr. Cain, about his plan: “Finally, my plan promotes enterprise zones, also known as ‘empowerment zones.’ Coupled with tax reform and monetary stabilization, empowerment zones would revitalize inner cities by providing tax credits to businesses that hire workers living and working in underprivileged areas. Some of the most tragic unemployment numbers can be found in minority communities and in urban centers around the country. Empowerment zones would create a whole new generation of wage-earners providing for their families. The late Jack Kemp, a secretary of the department of Housing and Urban Development and a dear friend, was one of the first lawmakers to propose empowerment zones. He understood the tremendous economic benefits they would provide.” (source http://www.bookerrising.net/2011/09/herman-cain-op-ed-my-plan-to-revive.html)
The RINOs will have a fit about that too.
Guess you missed it but Reagan included the exact same thing in his tax plan
Guess you missed it but Reagan included the exact same thing in his tax plan
http://www.enotes.com/biz-encyclopedia/empowerment-zones
It is a receipe for Business slums. Plus it would probably take the supremes about 2 minutes to declare the minimum wage thing unconstitutional.
Minimum wage laws are constitutionally protected? Uh.
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