The Democrats’ Big Ideas Do Big Damage to Jobs

September 7, 2011

Two and a Half Years Into Obama’s Term, Democrats’ Plans to Create Jobs Have Failed Over and Over Again

After Obama’s inauguration, then-Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel famously said that Democrats intended not to let a “crisis go to waste” and wanted to do “big things.”
Democrats proceeded to undertake a series of radical economic experiments that they promised would create jobs. Yet two and a half years into the Obama administration, Democrats have little to show for their trillions of dollars in spending and new government programs.
Far from creating jobs, Democrats’ economic experiment has stifled job creation with new regulations. Yet Democrats are about to unveil a plan for more of the same failed policies on Thursday evening.

BACKGROUND

After Obama’s inauguration, then-Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel famously said that Democrats intended not to let a “crisis go to waste” and wanted to do “big things”:

WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF RAHM EMANUEL: “RULE ONE: NEVER ALLOW A CRISIS TO GO TO WASTE. THEY ARE OPPORTUNITIES TO DO BIG THINGS.” (Jeff Zeleny, “Obama Weighs Quick Undoing of Bush Policy,” The New York Times, 11/9/2008)

OBAMA’S “PLANS FOR AN ACTIVIST GOVERNMENT AGENDA… GIVEN A BOOST BY THIS CRISIS”: “Therein lies the opportunity for President-elect Barack Obama.His plans for an activist government agenda are in many ways being given a boost by this crisis atmosphere and the nearly universal call for the government to do something fast to stimulate the economy.

“This opportunity isn’t lost on the new president and his team. ‘You never want a serious crisis to go to waste,’ Rahm Emanuel, Mr. Obama’s new chief of staff, told a Wall Street Journal conference of top corporate chief executives this week.

“He elaborated: ‘Things that we had postponed for too long, that were long-term, are now immediate and must be dealt with. This crisis provides the opportunity for us to do things that you could not do before.’” (Gerald Seib, “In Crisis, Opportunity for Obama,” The Wall Street Journal, 11/21/2008)

Democrats proceeded to undertake a series of radical economic experiments that they promised would create jobs. Yet two and a half years into the Obama administration, Democrats have little to show for their trillions of dollars in spending and new government programs:

OBAMA PROMISED HIS $800 BILLION STIMULUS WOULD KEEP UNEMPLOYMENT BELOW 8%: “Back in early January, when Barack Obama was still President-elect, two of his chief economic advisers—leading proponents of a stimulus bill — predicted that the passage of a large economic-aid package would boost the economy and keep the unemployment rate below 8%.” (Stephen Gandel, “Barack Obama’s Stimulus Plan: Failing By Its Own Measure,” Time, 7/14/2009)

1.7 MILLION FEWER JOBS THAN WHEN OBAMA TOOK OFFICE: “The Labor Department says that nonfarm payroll employment totaled 131.1 million in August, compared with 132.8 million in February 2009.” (Robert Pear, “Democrats Press Obama for New Works Programs; Republicans Say They’ve Failed,” The New York Times, 9/7/2011)

AUGUST JOBS REPORT: ZERO NEW JOBS, UNEMPLOYMENT STUCK AT 9.1%, FIRST TIME SINCE FEB. 1945 THAT ECONOMY HAS HAD “MONTHLY NET JOB CHANGE OF ZERO.” (Lyneka Little and Bill McGuire, “U.S. Employers Added No New Jobs in August,” ABC News, 9/2/2011)

WHITE HOUSE FORECAST: UNEMPLOYMENT ABOVE 9% THROUGH 2012. (Erik Wasson, “White House Downgrades Job Growth Forecast for 2012,” The Hill, 9/1/2011)

PELOSI SAID GOVERNMENT TAKEOVER OF HEALTHCARE WOULD CREATE “4 MILLION JOBS – 400,000 JOBS ALMOST IMMEDIATELY”: “It’s about jobs. In its life, it [the health bill] will create 4 million jobs — 400,000 jobs almost immediately.“(“Pelosi: Health Reform Will Create 400,000 Jobs ‘Almost Immediately,’ Real Clear Politics, 2/25/2010)

CBO: HEALTHCARE TAKEOVER WILL COST 800,000 JOBS. (Jeffrey H. Anderson, “CBO Director Says ObamaCare Would Reduce Employment by 800,000 Workers,” The Weekly Standard, 2/10/2011)

PRICETAG: $1 TRILLION. (Jennifer Haberkorn, “CBO Ups Healthcare Cost Projections,” Politico, 5/12/2010)

CAP-AND-TRADE BILL ABOUT “JOBS, JOBS, JOBS, JOBS”? “House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says her advocacy for cap-and-trade is all about ‘jobs, jobs, jobs, jobs.’ But there’s no evidence that employment has grown anywhere in the world because of energy mandates such as cap-and-trade.” (Editorial, “Green Myths,” The Detroit News, 7/02/2009)

WOULD HAVE DESTROYED UP TO 1 MILLION JOBS A YEAR, INCREASED ANNUAL ENERGY BILLS $1,000: “Independent analysis conducted by the nonpartisan Tax Foundation estimates that job loss could be close to 1 million jobs per year. Theaverage family is expected to see an increase of about $1,100 in their energy-related bills (gas for the car, electricity for the house, etc.), meaning the average cost increase for a small business will be even greater.” (“Cap and Trade,” National Federation of Independent Businesses, Accessed 2/2/2011)

Far from creating jobs, Democrats’ economic experiment has stifled job creation with new regulations. Yet Democrats are about to unveil a plan for another failed spending binge Thursday night even while they continue their job-destroying regulatory onslaught:

“OBAMA JOBS PLAN HAS $300B PRICE TAG.” (Tim Mak, “Obama Jobs Plan Has $300B Price Tag,” Politico, 9/7/2011)

“OBAMA TO SEEK STIMULUS FUNDS—BUT ‘YOU WON’T HEAR THE S WORD'”:“With President Obama set to unveil his plan for job creation at a Joint Session of Congress next week, a former White House economic adviser said today that economic ‘stimulus’ will be part of the package – but won’t be labeled as such.

” ‘You won’t hear the word ‘stimulus’ — the ‘s word’ — because that just is politically unappealing right now,’ Jared Bernstein, who left his post as Vice President Joe Biden’s top economist in June, told us on ABC’s ‘Top Line’ today. ‘But you will hear targeted measures, which I think is actually a more apt description of what I think the president will talk about.'” (Rick Klein, “Obama to Seek Stimulus Funds—But ‘You Won’t Hear the S Word’,” ABC News’ The Note Blog, 8/31/2011)

BIDEN LAST WEEK: WE NEED MORE STIMULUS, FIRST ONE DIDN’T SPEND ENOUGH MONEY. “Vice President Joe Biden said on Friday the U.S. economy needed more stimulus to get it moving, putting in a plug for government intervention shortly before the White House unveils new proposals to boost job growth. … ‘I think the economy does need more stimulus,’ Biden said… ‘Everybody says we should’ve (had)…a bigger stimulus package. Yeah, we should’ve. I was pushing (for) it,’ he said.” (Jeff Mason, “Biden Says U.S. Needs More Stimulus, Businesses Mad at S&P,” Reuters, 8/26/2011)

4,257 NEW REGULATIONS IN THE WORKS, 219 WILL COST MORE THAN $100 MILLION ANNUALLY—15% MORE REGULATIONS THAN LAST YEAR. “Appropriate and responsible regulations play an important policymaking role. Yet the Obama administration has turned rule-making into an assault on American businesses and the jobs they create. Right now, 4,257 new regulations are in the works, 219 of which will cost over $100 million annually — 15 percent more than last year.”(Editorial, “How Obama’s Rules Hold Back Chicago Business,” The Chicago Sun-Times, 8/30/2011)

7 NEW RULES WILL COST MORE THAN $1 BILLION/YEAR: “President Barack Obama says his administration is considering seven regulations that would cost the U.S. economy more than $1 billion a year. In a letter to House Speaker John Boehner, Obama says his administration is also trying to reduce the burden of government rules.” (Jim Kuhnhenn, “Obama: 7 Proposed Regs Would Exceed $1 Billion,” Associated Press, 8/30/2011)