Americans have had very little good news to celebrate over the past two
years due to declining wages, unpunished racial killings, a rush toward
theocracy, and most recently, the prospect of the most extremist
right-wing Congress in the nation’s history. There has been steady good
news on the economic front in consistent Wall Street gains, record
corporate profits, world-leading oil exports, falling gas prices, and
job growth numbers as a result of the Obama Administration’s rejection
of Republican economic policies. However, now that Republicans will have
control of both houses of Congress, they will start, immediately,
passing legislation to revert back to Bush-era economics and undo the
economic progress of the past six years.
Republicans campaigned on, and have lied perpetually
about their storied “40 bills” on job creation such as opening up our
world leading oil production for American jobs, building Canadian
corporation TransCanada’s Keystone pipeline, reducing tax rates for the
rich and corporations, balancing the budget, and abolishing
environmental regulations. Boehner and Paul Ryan have complained
bitterly “that all 40 jobs bills are dying over there in the United
States Senate.”
The problem for Americans is that beginning in January
the 40 jobs bills, all gifts to corporations, will be brought to life
and instead of creating jobs, will create more wealth for the
one-percent at the expense of the poor, the middle class, Americans’
health, and of course jobs; typical Republican economics.
None of the House jobs bills were designed to create
even one job. It is difficult, indeed, to imagine any American believes
that abolishing overtime pay, giving tax breaks and credits to
corporations outsourcing Americans’ jobs, or providing tax incentives
for the rich and corporations to conceal their wealth offshore will
create jobs; but many are stupid enough to believe lying Republicans and
probably think they did pass 46 jobs bills. But for any American
capable of a 6-year old’s cognitive ability, or noted economic experts,
the GOP’s jobs bills are a joke.
According to five noted economists who reviewed the
storied jobs bills, three decades of trickle-down economics, current
economic disasters in Republican states, and current economic successes
in blue Democratic states, not one of the Republicans’ so-called “jobs
bills” will have any measurable impact on job growth. In fact, as
history proves, and Republicans intend, the bills serve to kill jobs and
economic growth while promoting the Koch, Wall Street, and Republicans’
agenda; enrich the oil industry and corporations at the middle class
and poor’s expense.
Some of the more absurd “jobs bills” are worth
noting including four of Boehner’s so-called education bills purported
to be monumental job creators. According to Cecilia Rouse, the dean of
the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at
Princeton University, “not one of them would affect job growth like
Republicans claim.” Two of the bills require colleges to offer loan
counseling and push the Department of Education to provide information
for potential college attendees. Rouse said all colleges already have
dedicated loan or financial aid counselors, and like the second bill,
will not create any jobs.
The
other two
education “job creation” bills “seize control of primary education from
the federal government by allowing states to transfer public school
funding to underperforming private and religious charter schools;
something the Obama Education Department champions as part of its (not
so stealthy) anti-union school privatization crusade. Much more on this
in another article.
Republicans claim that cutting social programs is a
sure-fire job creator, and they cite two special bills they claim boosts
economic growth and creates an explosion of new jobs. One is Paul
Ryan’s Path to Prosperity budget that
every economist
not with the Heritage Foundation said would “not only harm poor
Americans, but also hinder job creation by depressing demand in the
economy.” The other proposal is a harsh work requirement to qualify for
food stamps that will not create jobs for the majority of recipients
who already work; including active-duty service members.
An economist at the American Enterprise Institute,
Michael Strain, questioned exactly how imposing work requirements will
create employment opportunities in a slow economy; particularly for the
elderly and children who make up a substantial number of food stamp
recipients. Strain said, “The problem with talking about these things is
in a depressed economy, the jobs need to be there. If the jobs aren’t
there, you can’t impose work requirements.” A Brookings economist, Gary
Burtless, said that “pulling people’s fingernails out in order to get
them to take a job does not add to the total stock of jobs in the
economy.” It is important to note that Republicans are not interested in
adding jobs, just cutting food stamp funding to give the wealthy tax
cuts.
The largest number of bills are aimed at
deregulating the dirty energy sector (oil, coal, and mining) that
Republicans claim will create jobs by “saving companies a lot of money.”
But according to University of Michigan public policy professor
specializing in environmental policy, Barry Rabe, “It’s sort of a
classic argument” from Republicans to claim that any these bills would
help Americans who are looking for more jobs. Rabe said that the bills
are a response to Obama’s environmental goals that will put a damper on
the Republican goal of “saving energy companies a lot of money.” For
example,
one
“jobs” bill bans the Environmental Protection Agency from enforcing
emissions standards, and another “job creation bill” requires the EPA to
give its authority to Republicans in Congress. The total number of
jobs created from both bills is absolutely zero, but the total profit
for the Kochs to decimate the environment, like the other bills
enriching corporations, is immeasurable; but that is the whole point of
every one of the Republicans’ so-called jobs bills.
The only reason there has been consistent job and
economic growth since Republicans crashed the economy during the Bush
era is because President Obama has rejected their disastrous economic
policies. In fact, the Obama Administration has presided over the best
job creation streak
since 1939,
and so far 2014 has been the strongest year for job growth since 1999;
all in spite of Republicans’ Herculean attempts to kill jobs, thwart
economic growth, and basically do nothing but bitch and moan about
immigration, Obamacare, Ebola, Benghazi, and something about a WTF war
on religion.
The President is certainly going to be busy using
his veto over the next two years, because as is their wont, Republicans
will do everything in their power to decimate the economic gains in
jobs, GDP growth, revenue, and
debt
reduction as a result of a Democrat in the White House. It too bad the
Americans who voted for Republicans according to their promise of
enacting the 46 jobs bills that do not create jobs were too racist, too
religious, and too incredibly stupid to notice that the only reason
there has been record job growth is because Republicans did not control
Congress. Next month that changes and for the next two years they will
do everything in their power to reverse the past few years impressive
job growth numbers, give the rich more tax breaks, kill regulations, and
keep Americans’ wages from growing.
