State of the Economy

Hillary and Obama have both come out with possible solutions to the lagging economy. Both candidates advocate the following to jump start the economy:

1. Raise income taxes.

2. Eliminate and / or change the North Amercian Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico (It should be pointed out that the No. 1 and No. 2 sources for the United States' oil supply are Canada and Mexico, respectively.)

3. Not sign the free trade agreement with Columbia, one of our strongest trading partners in Latin America.

4. Tax US companies that have any plants, facilities, outside the US (which would be a staggering number of companies, thus virtually raising taxes on all businesses).

5. Impose a tariff on foreign made products coming into the US (which would be virtually all products on the shelves in stores).

6. Possibly impose a price freeze.

7. Raise the capital gains tax on investors (which stimulates new businesses and creates jobs from 15% to possibly 35%)


Think back in history to 1929-1930: the economy was slumping faster than what we are presently experiencing. The President of the United States

1. imposed an income tax on the wealthy

2. signed into law the Smoot-Hawley Tariff

3. cut off free trade

4. imposed a price and wage freeze

That President was Herbert Hoover. What followed was the Great Depression.

Both Senators Clinton and Obama voted for the minimum wage increase that went into law in 2007. Anyone who has had Economics 101 should recall that increases in minimum wage is inflationary, leads to a shortage of jobs, and results in people being layed off or their hours of work reduced.

On the Tonight Show Thursday night, Senator Clinton told the story of a young boy who told her that his mother earned minimum wage, but her hours had been reduced. Senator Clinton said she was shocked to learn this. Maybe she didn't take economics in college, but if she is as economic savvy as she claims, or if she has any economic advisors at all, she should have known before she voted that raising prices/wages is cost-push inflation and that businesses either pass that cost on to the consumer or they will attempt to recoup that expense by reducing the number of employees.

It's not rocket science folks.