HHS – The Old Guy Phd

G’Day!

On November 6 we will face an election that will decide our nation’s course for many years. This election will be the most important election in our lives and will decide not only our immediate future but also the future for our children and grandchildren. After 3 ½ years of the Obama Administration, the Senate Democrats, and over a year of campaigning, our choices have never been more clear. At stake is the success or failure of our economy, the relationship between our government and ourselves, federal fiscal and debt solvency, taxation levels, America’s role in the world, and the legacy we are endowing to future generations.

The key issue we must face is which Presidential Candidate and political party offers the best opportunity for economic & job growth, wealth creation, supportable social safety nets & entitlements, sustainable National Debt, and a higher standard of living for the American people. It is vital that each of us take the time and make the effort to understand the potential consequences for our culture, our freedoms, and the potential survival of our country from these two widely different visions of government’s role in our society and vote accordingly.

Choice 1

Fundamentally, Romney/Ryan and the Republican Party support smaller government, free market capitalism, a strong national security, and individual liberty. They believe in the Constitution as written by the Founding Fathers, individual & business freedoms, private property rights, sound fiscal and monetary policies, lower taxes for business and individuals, a government limited to the powers granted in the Constitution, and equality of opportunities for all citizens.

Specifically in this election, Romney/Ryan and Republicans support overturning government run Obamacare, which significantly increases healthcare costs, adds central bureaucratic control over healthcare, and erodes our freedom of choice in the doctor/patient relationship. They support overturning the Dodd-Frank financial legislation, which has stagnated our financial industry and economic growth and adds layers of still to be written rules and regulations and additional costs over banking. As protection from mounting problems in the Middle East, Romney/Ryan and Republicans support the construction of the Keystone Pipeline and the opening of public lands and offshore exploration for expanding and achieving North American energy independence.

Republicans further believe in a clear and resolute Foreign Policy supported by a strong economy and military and free trade with other nations. They believe that a reasonable but not unlimited social safety net is desirable for those truly in need and welfare as a temporary situation with the objective of being a transition to independence. Romney/Ryan advocate major tax reform by lowering the rates and broadening the base for individuals and businesses in order to promote economic growth. They further advocate major entitlement reform to bring the Federal Budget into balance, while insuring that Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid will be sustainable for future generations.

Regarding the economy, Republicans believe that prosperity and job growth is derived from entrepreneurial business activity free from excessive government interference and is advanced by minimizing regulations, having lower taxes, and maximizing freedoms and opportunities. Individual and business success is praised, honored, and rewarded. Free markets determine winners and losers and wealth is distributed based on objective “achievement” through persistence, intelligence, and hard work.

Choice 2

Primarily, Obama/Biden and the Democrat Party support bigger (unlimited?) government, centrally planned European-style neo-socialism, reduced national defense, and bureaucratic control of individual and business freedoms. They believe in a “living” Constitution to be interpreted and modified by the judicial system as desired, control over private property use, and unsustainable fiscal policy and National Debt. They advocate open-ended entitlements, welfare, and government spending, higher taxes on businesses and individuals but especially the successful “rich”, and forced wealth transfer to achieve “fairness”. Opportunities for success (or failure) will be largely determined by central government administrators.

Specifically in this election, Obama/Biden and Democrats approve of and are committed to retaining government run Obamacare and Dodd-Frank financial legislation. They have no practical national energy plan and are against the Keystone Pipeline, offshore exploration, and expansion of fossil fuel development on public land. As is well documented, Obama currently favors “Green Energy” as the alternative to fossil fuels and, through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Department of Energy (DOE), has used billions of taxpayer money to subsidize and support his belief. Through the EPA and DOE, The Obama Administration is waging a “War on Coal”, which is preventing the country from exploiting a cheap and plentiful fuel source and will result in the loss of thousands of jobs in the Coal Industry. All of this makes America weaker and more dependent on foreign energy from the troubled Middle East Area.

For nearly four years Obama has followed a Foreign Policy of appeasement, apology, and withdrawal emphasized by planned reductions in the military and controlled trade with other nations. Obama and Democrats believe in regulated and even hostile control over businesses and the use of Administrative Executive Power (especially EPA, DOE, Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), and Department of Labor (DOL)) as desired to accomplish this. They believe in and have encouraged entitlement expansion and welfare dependency supported by a $6 Trillion increase in the National Debt in four years.

Obama/Biden and Democrats believe that economic and job growth is derived from central government planning not free markets, high taxes on successful individuals & companies, and taxpayer funding through grants and subsidies to bureaucratically selected companies and industries. Individual and business success is envied, derided, and penalized through regulations and wealth transfer. The government determines winners and losers based on administrative subjectivity and wealth is redistributed based on an arbitrary determination of “fairness”.

For months we have heard impressive speeches from our President promising more of the same “Hope and Change” supported by increasing government restrictions (Obamacare, Dodd-Frank, the EPA, the DOE, etc.), unsustainable entitlements, higher taxes on the “Rich”, and ballooning National Debt. But no volume of skillful oratory by the President can disguise the fact that Obama and the Democrats have no new ideas for the next four years and Romney/Ryan and the Republicans do. Romney has articulated clearly his 5-Point Plan to get America back on track to a prosperous growing economy with job opportunities for those who want to work: 1) Energy Independence, 2) Free Trade, 3) a Balanced Budget, 4) Improved Education, and 5) Tax Reform to support Small Businesses. While no one party or individual is perfect or will solve all problems we must select the alternative that provides our best opportunity to save our country from financial disaster and economic chaos that uncontrolled government deficits represent. The survival of our great nation depends on making the right choice.

OK, it’s decision time! Which future do you want? Please take the time and make the effort to study the alternatives, the potential outcomes from each, consider what is at stake for yourself, your children, and our great country, and vote wisely. The choice will be yours on November 6th.

The Old Guy PhD

G’Day!

In just the last few days, the Obama Administration has directly or indirectly initiated four (see below) separate anti-business actions against American corporations, which interfere with our national economic growth and prosperity. These actions are similar to strong-arm tactics initially used by authoritarian regimes to increase central government control and to decrease individual and economic freedoms. As I said in Tuesday’s OpEd, “Attack on American Business by Obama “packed” NLRB!”, this is a very, very dangerous precedent. The policies of President Obama do not represent the American free market, limited government culture I know and admire. Specifically, the actions taken in the last week are:

1) The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has agreed with a union complaint against Boeing and South Carolina to prevent Boeing from opening the nearly completed expansion plant in South Carolina for the 787 Dreamliner.

2) The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under Lisa Jackson has stopped a Department of the Interior’s previously approved Shell Oil request to drill and develop a 27 billion barrel oil reserve in the Arctic Ocean off Alaska.

3) The Health and Human Services Department (HHS) under Kathleen Sebelius has demanded the firing of the CEO of Forest Labs, a privately owned firm, under the coercive threat of refusing to do government business with the firm, if the CEO is not replaced.

4) The NLRB (again) is suing Arizona and South Dakota to invalidate a law requiring “secret ballots” for union recognition in those States. Two (2) other States have also passed similar laws. (How silly of me, I thought secret ballots were a fundamental part of our democratic freedoms.)

All of these actions represent intimidation or possibly even extortion by these government departments, agencies, and boards to bully privately owned businesses and even States of the Union to conform to the wishes of the current Administration. This is an unprecedented use of governmental administrative power in peacetime and is not in keeping with the freedoms we have enjoyed in this country for over two hundred (200) years. If this were happening in another country, we might call it “creeping fascism”. I sincerely hope this is not Obama’s intent.

Equally disturbing is the trend by the Obama Administration to bypass Congress and increasingly use administrative force, not legislation, to control and implement the Administration’s agenda and greater centralization of Presidential power. Evident in the actions above is promoting unions over business, environment over energy development, and intimidation of private businesses into conforming to healthcare and other administrative objectives. This centralization and probable misuse of administrative power is not good for our democracy or our nation.

The EPA’s frivolous and damaging action against Shell Oil is worthy of additional comment because of the importance of energy in our economy. This is another questionable environmental complaint by the EPA that forces Shell to abort its approved exploration and development of domestic oil resources in the Arctic Ocean off Alaska. The court ruling on the EPA claim is that the air quality of the remote village of Kaktovik, with less than 250 people and 70 miles away from the drilling site, will be “close to” the air quality standard (not above) based on the greenhouse gas emissions from an icebreaker servicing the site. Also claimed is the site is “too close” to ANWR (but not inside it) and wildlife will be endangered.

This action by the EPA comes at a time when higher domestic oil production is critical to reducing our dependence on vitally necessary oil from questionable foreign sources. The US currently consumes 18.8 million barrels of petroleum per day (approximately 6.8 billion/year) of which approximately 50% is imported. The proven US oil reserves are only 19.1 billion barrels. The Shell project in the Arctic Ocean was expected to add 27 billion barrels and 74 trillion cubic feet of natural gas of new US reserves, which would more than double the current level of US petroleum reserves! Shell has already invested almost $4 billion and over 5 years in the project, $2.2 billion for the leases alone.

This is another deliberate anti-business action by the Obama Administration, this time the EPA, and further stifles economic development, domestic oil production, American job creation, and encourages American businesses to move offshore. We do not need an authoritarian government that dictates to its people and its businesses what they can do, where they can do it, and how they can do it. If this policy is continued, it will restrict economic growth, innovation, job creation, and our personal liberties; AND it will further pressure our American enterprises to move to more business-friendly nations. I believe it was Thomas Jefferson who said, “That government is best which governs least.” This is good advice and should be remembered at the next election.

It’s time to take back our country and return to Constitutionally protected freedoms, free markets, economic growth, and limited government. Let’s get to work!

The Old Guy PhD

Tag: HHS

Obama Administration Attacks American Business Again!