Congress have dug in their heels over health care changes which are highly questionable. Then again Obamacare needs a serious rethink. Thats not my view: its the opinion of the US trades unions who form Obamas base support. They have realised that heaping costs on employers will result in fewer full-time jobs. That hurts the average citizen but Obamas aloof plutocrats dont care. Equally Congressional Republicans are understandably furious that the President seeks to ignore their democratic mandates while being keen to schmooze with an Iranian President elected via a dubious democratic process. Obama behaves with the demeanour of one who has a massive mandate, yet strip away the hype and he was a relatively narrow victor against two frankly mediocre opponents. On the broader economic front, a crunch looms around October 20th. Then it will be time to return to Congress cap in hand and request not just the cash for another round of drinks but actually a full extension to Mr Obamas burgeoning bar tab. The debt ceiling will soon be breached once again. The President fails to grasp the fundamental tenet of his expansionist government tendency: Nobody can keep spending citizens money indiscriminately and not expect to pay for it along the way. The last shutdown showdown resulted in America losing its coveted AAA credit rating. The current rounds of high stakes bickering appear unlikely to improve the USs debt standing. Moreover a prolonged stand-off of several weeks may yet produce more economic damage than the hurricane Katrina disaster. The daily cost is apparently circa 300 million dollars per day. Then again the stakes are raised as actually the current impediment to daily life is more frustrating than fundamental. The great outdoors is a bit smaller given the shutdown of national parks but really the crisis so far has largely demonstrated that the US remains a private powerhouse where government is an interruption to the success of the economy. Nancy Pelosi and her leftist elite may recoil in horror but actually they dont benefit society - well apart from enriching the bond traders they claim to loathe. In some ways a government shutdown is rather useful. It ought to restrain the frequently irresponsible behaviour of the government mortgage agencies whose bankruptcy was a result of their huge input fueling the last property bubble. Fundamentally, the USA needs a rethink to make its governance system match its economic and military capacity. President Obamas focus on creating the European socialist mess is a fascinating example of stubbornness from somebody who has barely experienced commerce. True, the Europeans would love to merely have Mr Obamas mess but then again Mr Obamas mess can easily resemble the EUs given a few more decades to develop.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Oct 2013 00:29:32 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015