Danny Gardner
Guest Columnist
Jobs are key to moving our economy back toward prosperity for everyone.
Between now and November’s election savvy voters will seek information about JOBS, the economy, new and rising taxes, growing deficits and debt, and ideas about how to lead our nation back to prosperity.
Savvy voters will look for leaders who propose solutions, not politicians who look backward with nothing more than name-calling, blame-gaming ineptitude and poor judgment.
The Obama Administration predicts 9-percent unemployment or higher all next year, the longest period at this level since the Great Depression. They preach “jobs” and “the summer of recovery,” while playing race cards to distract attention from real unemployment and economic numbers.
Recently, some DC Democrats expressed reservations about allowing the Bush tax cuts to expire January 1, 2011, which will raise taxes on all taxpayers. This is anathema to the Obama-Pelosi-Reid consortium (OPR) dedicated to continually raising taxes and spending precipitously ad infinitum.
Of course, DC is not ‘spending’ tax dollars; DC is borrowing money to pay for more and more government handouts. That’s why the deficit will continue to skyrocket above $1.4 TRILLION by the end of September! The deficit is how many more dollars we borrow than we collect in taxes.
America’s businesses, anticipating coming tax hikes as well as new taxes, have resisted investing in their own businesses, i.e. they have laid off workers and stopped hiring. Unemployment numbers have zoomed to new heights during Obama’s tenure (according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics more than 4-million jobs have been lost since January 2009).
The economic debate in Washington revolves around how to balance revenue with spending. OPR argues we have to raise taxes to raise revenue to pay for increased government spending. Conservatives argue DC needs to quit spending more than we collect in taxes…or, really, stop borrowing.
If the private sector is taxed more, businesses will invest less than they would have by at least that same amount, and may spend even less because of the additional tax burdens imposed by the government, thus putting more people out of work, and reducing tax collections as well.
When businesses invest in themselves they hire more workers who pay taxes. Unemployed workers pay no income taxes; instead, they receive taxpayer handouts from the government. Nobody wants that!
Helping businesses increase profits means businesses will hire more workers. Raising taxes on businesses hinders businesses from hiring more workers.
Hindering businesses from hiring more workers smothers the economy.
Poor and unemployed Americans suffer more than anyone when DC smothers businesses with higher taxes.
OPR argues DC’s taxing businesses and redistributing those tax dollars to needy causes will improve the economy more than businesses investing profits and growing their own businesses and hiring more employees.
Do Americans want the government to pay increasing handouts to unemployed Americans? Or, would Americans prefer the government get off the backs of businesses and let them grow their businesses, hire more employees, and grow our economy back to prosperity?
Voters will decide in November.
Daniel L. Gardner is a syndicated columnist who lives in Starkville, MS. You may contact him at PJandMe2@gmail.com
His column does not reflect the views of Starkville-Now.com.
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