Read the updated post on this topic at: The Two Most important Issues Facing America Today
Updated from a February 2008 posting.
Deep recession, job loss, and retirement savings loss are the current drivers of the challenges to the economy right now. Our new President is receiving a great deal of good will driven by populism and a far left agenda to move this country into the socialist column and to create a nanny state. Those behind the populism movement must be ever alert to ensure that the far left’s agenda does not sneak through masquerading as helping the country out of the current recession. The current pork laden, earmarks on steroids bill being discussed in Congress labeled an economic stimulus bill by the far left is an example of the left trying to sneak it through, at a time when we desperately need a tightly targeted stimulus and jobs bill, only.
What do you think of our far left leaders like Pelosi and Reid, who will use the very serious recession with people hurting in every corner of this nation to substitute a pure spending bill in the name of an emergency economic stimulus package? These people intend to capitalize on populism to change the culture and fabric of this nation. It is a tool used since democratic governments were created. It uses the populace’s desire for economic change to sneak in radical change that is not in the best interests of the mainstream populace. They sneak in their limited appeal power grabbing agenda in the guise of making changes that will help all people.
Why is populism so popular today? What are the real challenges facing President Obama? What kind of leader does he need to be? Let’s start with populism. People are unhappy with the ever lowering of their standard of living. Food, fuel, medical care, and schooling cost more each day. These are the basics to a happy and successful life. The gap between the “have” and the “have-nots” is widening. The middle class is disappearing but you would not know it because we keep redefining it. The unemployment rate after hovering for years pretty close to what has in the past been defined as virtual full employment has slipped and we are in an unemployment rate upward spiral.
The tsunami of problems we face as a country today is knee buckling.
- A goodly portion of the world seeks our demise. An entire movement of millions wants us all dead.Hostile nations can, overnight, be in control of more than half the world’s oil exports.
- We consume more than half the world’s oil exports, while making unfriendly nations richer and more powerful.
- Fierce worldwide trade competition has brought our trade deficit to a little more than $600 Billion annually.
- For the long term, we can no longer compete on the world stage. Plentiful good paying blue collar middle class jobs are gone. We no longer make much of anything in this country – it is nearly impossible to buy American.We have opened our borders – at least our government has – to just about anyone who has the temerity to sneak into our country. This uncontrolled illegal immigration has created even more economic and social pressure on state and local governments, by increasing the cost of schools, hospitals, police, fire, and all sorts of social services.
- Home values are vaporizing; millions are underwater in their home mortgages trapped in their homes as if they had gone to debtor’s prison.
President Obama must tackle two problems that are not mutually exclusive. He will have to change our energy culture. We must shake our oil addiction. This effort could consume an entire Presidential term of office. Multiple millions of Americans use oil for transportation, to heat their homes, and work in oil heated places of business. Oil is our Achilles Heel! Each of our Presidents since Richard Nixon, Republican and Democrat, has know this to be our Achilles Heel and have not addressed the matter directly, thanks to the U.S. Oil interests and environmentalists. They have instead relied on international leverage of force and financial persuasion. This prescription is proving to be disastrous; as we are already experiencing serious side effects. The use of nuclear energy, using the newest technology with very low waste reactors, must become a national priority – it is the fastest way for us to replace oil imports with an inexpensive alternative.
Mr. Obama will also have to restructure our ability to effectively trade in the world. We have neglected this for nearly twenty years. No, not more agreements. The President must steer a course to rebuild our ability to compete in the world trade market. We must be able to manufacture and sell to the world. We must remove all obstacles to low cost domestic production of goods and services, including low cost energy. Only then will we be able to add quality good paying blue collar middle class jobs and start this country back on its way to a sound economic footing. Get back to a sound economic footing and the desires of the populists will be achieved.
We need a leader who recognizes these two critical issues, who is passionate about these two issues, who can cut through the entrenched resistance and the far left agenda to effect positive long term energy and trade change, and who can unflinchingly stand his or her ground. He will also need a Congress that understands that our survival as a great nation depends on these changes happening sooner rather than later. We do not need a Congress interested in only further the power of their party. We do need a Congress that will not take advantage of us when we are down, and will be a driving force to drive our economy upward and forward. We need a Congress that is not beholden to the far left, but is beholden to main stream and Main Street America.
