Author: Rodger Malcolm Mitchell

MBA Northwestern, business turnaround expert, economist

–The KISS approach to narrowing the Gap and growing the American economy

Twitter: @rodgermitchell; Search #monetarysovereignty
Facebook: Rodger Malcolm Mitchell

Mitchell’s laws:
•Those, who do not understand the differences between Monetary Sovereignty and monetary non-sovereignty, do not understand economics.
•Any monetarily NON-sovereign government — be it city, county, state or nation — that runs an ongoing trade deficit, eventually will run out of money.
•The more federal budgets are cut and taxes increased, the weaker an economy becomes..

•Liberals think the purpose of government is to protect the poor and powerless from the rich and powerful. Conservatives think the purpose of government is to protect the rich and powerful from the poor and powerless.

•The single most important problem in economics is the Gap between rich and poor.
•Austerity is the government’s method for widening the Gap between rich and poor.
•Until the 99% understand the need for federal deficits, the upper 1% will rule.
•Everything in economics devolves to motive, and the motive is the Gap between the rich and the rest..
============================================================================================================================================================================================================================================================

It is difficult to argue with faith. Facts won’t do it. Faith is supported by authority, intuition , desire and simplicity.

Facts cannot undo faith.

People want guidance from authority. People are programmed to believe their own intuition. People want simple answers to complex questions.

Faith, presented by authority, gives them simple, intuitive answers. Faith cannot be undone by complexity.

And that has been the problem. The populace has been programmed by authority — politicians, the rich, economists, the media — programmed to believe that federal financing is like state, local and personal financing.

The notion that something so valuable as money can be created from thin air, is not simple. It violates the “no free lunch” mantra. The denial is reinforced by people in authority.

So you are told the Big Lie, that “the federal government is just like you and your state and local governments.” Simple.

And you are told, “printing money causes inflation. Remember Zimbabwe.” Simple.

And you are told, “if the government could create dollars out of thin air, it wouldn’t collect taxes.” Simple.

All lies. But oh, so simple.

Here is faith: God rules everything. Yet, if you act badly, God will punish you. The fact that those two ideas are in opposition bothers no one. Faith wins; facts lose.

Here is faith: The federal government can print money. Yet, the government needs tax dollars. The fact that those two ideas are in opposition bothers no one. Faith wins; reason and facts lose.

Faith wants no reason or facts. Simplicity and authority are enough.

Readers of this blog are familiar with the “Ten Steps to Prosperity” shown at the end of each post.

‘Ten Steps’? That’s not simple. It’s not intuitive. It’s not what the politicians and media and economists tell you. It’s not what the rich tell you.

The people believe what they always have believed. They believe printing money causes inflation. They believe the federal government needs taxes to pay for spending. And they believe if you give people money, they will become needier and refuse to work, because only the rich have ambition.

If we want to overcome intuition and faith, perhaps Ten Steps are too many. Perhaps we need to follow the “KISS” principle: Keep It Simple, Stupid.”

The first step in the Ten Steps is: “Eliminate FICA.”

It is first because it is the most powerful step.

Every year, the federal government collects more than a trillion FICA dollars from employees and employers. That’s about 1/3 of all the dollars the federal government takes in taxes.

monetary sovereignty
Source: Office of Management and Budget

A trillion dollars taken from business and the middle classes! A trillion dollars taken from the economy! Every year!

So here is a simple path to economic growth and to narrowing the Gap between the rich and the rest: STOP COLLECTING FICA TAXES.

Just stop.

What could be simpler?

The government would continue paying Social Security and Medicare benefits as it always has. No change. But simply stop collecting FICA dollars.

Stop taking a trillion dollars a year out of the economy.

Stop impoverishing the middle classes by picking dollars out of their pockets. Stop increasing American business employment costs. Stop making American business less competitive vs. foreign employers.

Just stop.

Stop pretending that Social Security and Medicare will run short of dollars. Stop pretending that Social Security lends dollars to other agencies in the government, which then supposedly pays the dollars back so Social Security can pay its bills. It’s a complex, Byzantine, Rube Goldbergian shell game.

Just stop.

The American people would be more self-sufficient. They would have more money to spend on goods and services, on housing and health and education.

U.S. business payroll costs would go down, the better to compete with foreign, low-wage businesses.

The entire nation would prosper.

And all that would be needed is for the federal government to stop collecting FICA.

It’s that simple.

Perhaps the Ten Steps are too difficult for the populace to absorb. Perhaps we should focus on just one simple step.

STOP COLLECTING FICA.

KISS.

Rodger Malcolm Mitchell
Monetary Sovereignty

Grow America; End FICA

===================================================================================
Ten Steps to Prosperity:
1. Eliminate FICA (Click here)
2. Federally funded Medicare — parts A, B & D plus long term nursing care — for everyone (Click here)
3. Provide an Economic Bonus to every man, woman and child in America, and/or every state a per capita Economic Bonus. (Click here) Or institute a reverse income tax.
4. Free education (including post-grad) for everyone. Click here
5. Salary for attending school (Click here)
6. Eliminate corporate taxes (Click here)
7. Increase the standard income tax deduction annually Click here
8. Tax the very rich (.1%) more, with higher, progressive tax rates on all forms of income. (Click here)
9. Federal ownership of all banks (Click here and here)
10. Increase federal spending on the myriad initiatives that benefit America’s 99% (Click here)

The Ten Steps will add dollars to the economy, stimulate the economy, and narrow the income/wealth/power Gap between the rich and the rest.
——————————————————————————————————————————————

10 Steps to Economic Misery: (Click here:)
1. Maintain or increase the FICA tax..
2. Spread the myth Social Security, Medicare and the U.S. government are insolvent.
3. Cut federal employment in the military, post office, other federal agencies.
4. Broaden the income tax base so more lower income people will pay.
5. Cut financial assistance to the states.
6. Spread the myth federal taxes pay for federal spending.
7. Allow banks to trade for their own accounts; save them when their investments go sour.
8. Never prosecute any banker for criminal activity.
9. Nominate arch conservatives to the Supreme Court.
10. Reduce the federal deficit and debt

No nation can tax itself into prosperity, nor grow without money growth. Monetary Sovereignty: Cutting federal deficits to grow the economy is like applying leeches to cure anemia.
1. A growing economy requires a growing supply of dollars (GDP=Federal Spending + Non-federal Spending + Net Exports)
2. All deficit spending grows the supply of dollars
3. The limit to federal deficit spending is an inflation that cannot be cured with interest rate control.
4. The limit to non-federal deficit spending is the ability to borrow.

THE RECESSION CLOCK
Monetary Sovereignty

Vertical gray bars mark recessions. Recessions come after the blue line drops below zero and when deficit growth declines.

As the federal deficit growth lines drop, we approach recessions, each of which has been cured only when the growth lines rose.

Increasing federal deficit growth (aka “stimulus”) is necessary for long-term economic growth.

#MONETARYSOVEREIGNTY

–The qualifications for being the Presidential window and mirror

Twitter: @rodgermitchell; Search #monetarysovereignty
Facebook: Rodger Malcolm Mitchell

Mitchell’s laws:
•Those, who do not understand the differences between Monetary Sovereignty and monetary non-sovereignty, do not understand economics.
•Any monetarily NON-sovereign government — be it city, county, state or nation — that runs an ongoing trade deficit, eventually will run out of money.
•The more federal budgets are cut and taxes increased, the weaker an economy becomes..

•Liberals think the purpose of government is to protect the poor and powerless from the rich and powerful. Conservatives think the purpose of government is to protect the rich and powerful from the poor and powerless.

•The single most important problem in economics is the Gap between rich and poor.
•Austerity is the government’s method for widening the Gap between rich and poor.
•Until the 99% understand the need for federal deficits, the upper 1% will rule.
•Everything in economics devolves to motive, and the motive is the Gap between the rich and the rest..
============================================================================================================================================================================================================================================================

The President is both a window and a mirror.

Lately, I’ve been quite critical of the Republican Presidential candidates. I see an aggregation of men (and woman), whose primary qualification seems to be hatred: Hatred of the poor and middle classes, hatred of the gay, hatred of the immigrant, the non-Christian, the uneducated, the non-English speaking and ironically, hatred of the government.

Hatred is not an acceptable basis for governmental leadership, as hatred of others begets hatred of self. Such a divided nation cannot survive.

There are, to my thinking, three primary qualifications for being President.

1. Political experience and talent with which to drag an often reluctant Congress forward.
2. Experience with, and an understanding of, domestic and world economics.
3. The communication skills to educate the public and to gain public support.

1. Political experience and talent: If you wished to hire someone to do a difficult job, you would look for experience and talent. You wouldn’t hire someone having no experience to be a dentist, a dietician or a database administrator.

But among the Republican leaders are Donald Trump, Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina, each of whom has zero political experience.

Two have business experience, but business is not at all like the U.S. government.

The CEO of a business is a dictator, who issues commands and expects obedience. By contrast, we are a democracy. Our President (who has perhaps the world’s hardest job) must negotiate, cajole and promise, in order to move Congress and the public.

In my lifetime, Franklin Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson probably were the most effective Presidents, because they knew how to work Congress. Their political experience and talent resulted in the passage of major forward advances of America.

Opting for a President with scant political experience is like opting for a doctor who never went to school.

2. Experience with, and an understanding of, domestic and world economics: Ultimately, the President is credited with a nation’s economic growth and faulted when growth lags.

He must understand what is needed to increase employment, reduce unemployment, narrow the Gap between the rich and the rest, feed the hungry, house the homeless, educate the uneducated and strengthen the nation’s economic and military competitiveness.

In today’s modern, technological world, we need a President who has, if not an understanding of, at least an appreciation for research, development and science.

Our President must support scientific achievements like atomic energy and other energy sources, spaceflight, medical advances and quantum mechanics and computing.

Scientific research and development ask our government to absorb the financial risks and long-term goals that are beyond the abilities and short-term views of financially constrained private organizations.

Yet, the vast majority of Republicans have voted to: Cut federal deficit spending, cut social benefits, starve the poor, impoverish the middle, deport immigrants and force America to default on its debts, all of which weaken America’s economy.

The likes of Carson, Santorum, Huckabee and the religious right deny science, and specifically economics, in favor of pious superstition. They offer Dark Ages thinking that will return us to 3rd world tribalism.

3. Communication skills: The President must communicate not only facts, not only ideas, but attitudes. As the leader, he helps us know who we are and who we wish to be.

Are Americans a people of love and tolerance or of hatred? Are we a people of courage or of fear? A people of joy or of melancholy? Of strength or weakness? A generous or a selfish people? A people of darkness or of light?

Who are we and who do we wish to be?

Our leader will help determine our national personality.

The Republican candidates received a few minutes of “hard” questions in the most recent debate. They haven’t stopped whining. Hillary Clinton endured 11 hours of hostile questioning, and she never flinched, cried or complained.

In the Republican candidates, I see weakness. I see intolerance and hatred. I see cowardice and the fear of an intolerant base. I see dark misery and selfishness. I see all the basest forms of the human psyche. With such leadership, I see an America that radiates no joy to the world nor back to itself.

Democrats Roosevelt and Kennedy and Republican Reagan gave us feelings of hope and optimism. But Democrat Carter gave us a dour “crisis of confidence.” And today’s Republicans give us anger.

The President is a window, who lets the world see us, and a mirror who helps us see ourselves.

Who are we and who shall we be?

In a year, we will choose.

Rodger Malcolm Mitchell
Monetary Sovereignty

===================================================================================
Ten Steps to Prosperity:
1. Eliminate FICA (Click here)
2. Federally funded Medicare — parts A, B & D plus long term nursing care — for everyone (Click here)
3. Provide an Economic Bonus to every man, woman and child in America, and/or every state a per capita Economic Bonus. (Click here) Or institute a reverse income tax.
4. Free education (including post-grad) for everyone. Click here
5. Salary for attending school (Click here)
6. Eliminate corporate taxes (Click here)
7. Increase the standard income tax deduction annually Click here
8. Tax the very rich (.1%) more, with higher, progressive tax rates on all forms of income. (Click here)
9. Federal ownership of all banks (Click here and here)
10. Increase federal spending on the myriad initiatives that benefit America’s 99% (Click here)

The Ten Steps will add dollars to the economy, stimulate the economy, and narrow the income/wealth/power Gap between the rich and the rest.
——————————————————————————————————————————————

10 Steps to Economic Misery: (Click here:)
1. Maintain or increase the FICA tax..
2. Spread the myth Social Security, Medicare and the U.S. government are insolvent.
3. Cut federal employment in the military, post office, other federal agencies.
4. Broaden the income tax base so more lower income people will pay.
5. Cut financial assistance to the states.
6. Spread the myth federal taxes pay for federal spending.
7. Allow banks to trade for their own accounts; save them when their investments go sour.
8. Never prosecute any banker for criminal activity.
9. Nominate arch conservatives to the Supreme Court.
10. Reduce the federal deficit and debt

No nation can tax itself into prosperity, nor grow without money growth. Monetary Sovereignty: Cutting federal deficits to grow the economy is like applying leeches to cure anemia.
1. A growing economy requires a growing supply of dollars (GDP=Federal Spending + Non-federal Spending + Net Exports)
2. All deficit spending grows the supply of dollars
3. The limit to federal deficit spending is an inflation that cannot be cured with interest rate control.
4. The limit to non-federal deficit spending is the ability to borrow.

THE RECESSION CLOCK
Monetary Sovereignty

Vertical gray bars mark recessions. Recessions come after the blue line drops below zero and when deficit growth declines.

As the federal deficit growth lines drop, we approach recessions, each of which has been cured only when the growth lines rose.

Increasing federal deficit growth (aka “stimulus”) is necessary for long-term economic growth.

#MONETARYSOVEREIGNTY

–The mystery of my favorite Presidential candidate.

Twitter: @rodgermitchell; Search #monetarysovereignty
Facebook: Rodger Malcolm Mitchell

Mitchell’s laws:
•Those, who do not understand the differences between Monetary Sovereignty and monetary non-sovereignty, do not understand economics.
•Any monetarily NON-sovereign government — be it city, county, state or nation — that runs an ongoing trade deficit, eventually will run out of money.
•The more federal budgets are cut and taxes increased, the weaker an economy becomes..

•Liberals think the purpose of government is to protect the poor and powerless from the rich and powerful. Conservatives think the purpose of government is to protect the rich and powerful from the poor and powerless.

•The single most important problem in economics is the Gap between rich and poor.
•Austerity is the government’s method for widening the Gap between rich and poor.
•Until the 99% understand the need for federal deficits, the upper 1% will rule.
•Everything in economics devolves to motive, and the motive is the Gap between the rich and the rest..
============================================================================================================================================================================================================================================================

Bernie Sanders currently is my favorite Presidential candidate. He’s the most liberal of the bunch, which means he cares more about the lower 99% income/wealth/power folks, and he is less bought-and-paid-for than neo-liberal Hillary Clinton and the conservative side’s, mentally and morally challenged.

We don’t know how he would be as President (we never do), but just being less beholden to the rich could put him in the “great” category.

But, I am bothered by a mystery.

Stephanie Kelton knows the facts. She understands Monetary Sovereignty. She teaches it. She is an MMTer of the first rank.

Last December, Bernie Sanders hired Stephanie to be his chief economist. Presumably, he wanted to learn what Stephanie knows.

And presumably, she has taught Bernie things like:
1. Federal finances are not like personal finances. The federal government cannot run out of its own sovereign currency, the dollar.
2. Federal deficit spending grows the economy.
3. Federal debt is nothing more than deposits in the Federal Reserve Bank, and is not a burden on the federal government.
3. Reductions in federal deficit spending lead to recessions and depressions.
4. Tax cuts are stimulative because they put dollars into the pockets of consumers; similarly tax increases are recessive.

So Bernie knows all this stuff. But even knowing Monetary Sovereignty, here is what Bernie wants to do:

1. Stop corporations from using offshore tax havens to avoid U.S. taxes. Each and every year, the United States loses an estimated $100 billion in tax revenues due to offshore tax abuses by the wealthy and large corporations.

2. Establish a Robin Hood tax on Wall Street speculators. Creating a speculation fee of just 0.03 percent on the sale of credit default swaps, derivatives, options, futures, and large amounts of stock would reduce gambling on Wall Street, encourage the financial sector to invest in the job-creating productive economy, and reduce the deficit by $352 billion over 10 years, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation.

3. End tax breaks and subsidies for big oil, gas and coal companies. If we ended tax breaks and subsidies for big oil, gas, and coal companies, we could reduce the deficit by more than $113 billion over the next ten years.

4. Establish a Progressive Estate Tax. If we established a progressive estate tax on inherited wealth of more than $3.5 million, we could raise more than $300 billion over 10 years.

5. Tax capital gains and dividends the same as work. Taxing capital gains and dividends the same way that we tax work would raise more than $500 billion over the next decade.

6. Repeal all of the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax breaks for the top two percent. Repealing the Bush tax breaks for all of the top two percent would reduce the deficit by about $400 billion over the next decade.

7. Eliminate the cap on taxable income that goes into the Social Security Trust Fund.

8. If we imposed a currency manipulation fee on China and other currency manipulators, the Economic Policy Institute has estimated that we could raise $500 billion over 10 years and create 1 million jobs in the process.

9. Reduce unnecessary and wasteful spending at the Pentagon. We could achieve significant savings of around $100 billion a year at the Pentagon while still ensuring that the United States has the strongest and most powerful military in the world.

10. Require Medicare to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices with the pharmaceutical industry. Requiring Medicare to negotiate drug prices, similarly to what the VA currently does, would save more than $240 billion over 10 years.

Note that every one of these 10 recommendations would take dollars out of American’s pockets, and send the dollars to the federal government, and not one recommendation would stimulate the economy.

They solve the non-existent problem of reducing the federal deficit and debt.

Bernie knows it. Stephanie knows it. So what is going on? It’s a mystery.

My guess: Bernie is a politician. As such, he believes that telling the American public the truth would be a political kiss of death.

So he first wants to get elected, and then, once he’s in power, he will do some of the correct things (See the Ten Steps to Prosperity).

At least, I hope that is what is in his mind. Why else would he hire Stephanie?

Anyway, my belief is this: Bernie Sanders will not receive the nomination unless he does something spectacular. His “Hail Mary pass” would be to tell the truth about Monetary Sovereignty.

Probably, he would not be believed. But, barring Hillary having a heart attack or being caught in bed with a Republican, that would be only the way Bernie could win an unwinnable nomination.

Worth a try?

Rodger Malcolm Mitchell
Monetary Sovereignty

===================================================================================
Ten Steps to Prosperity:
1. Eliminate FICA (Click here)
2. Federally funded Medicare — parts A, B & D plus long term nursing care — for everyone (Click here)
3. Provide an Economic Bonus to every man, woman and child in America, and/or every state a per capita Economic Bonus. (Click here) Or institute a reverse income tax.
4. Free education (including post-grad) for everyone. Click here
5. Salary for attending school (Click here)
6. Eliminate corporate taxes (Click here)
7. Increase the standard income tax deduction annually Click here
8. Tax the very rich (.1%) more, with higher, progressive tax rates on all forms of income. (Click here)
9. Federal ownership of all banks (Click here and here)
10. Increase federal spending on the myriad initiatives that benefit America’s 99% (Click here)

The Ten Steps will add dollars to the economy, stimulate the economy, and narrow the income/wealth/power Gap between the rich and the rest.
——————————————————————————————————————————————

10 Steps to Economic Misery: (Click here:)
1. Maintain or increase the FICA tax..
2. Spread the myth Social Security, Medicare and the U.S. government are insolvent.
3. Cut federal employment in the military, post office, other federal agencies.
4. Broaden the income tax base so more lower income people will pay.
5. Cut financial assistance to the states.
6. Spread the myth federal taxes pay for federal spending.
7. Allow banks to trade for their own accounts; save them when their investments go sour.
8. Never prosecute any banker for criminal activity.
9. Nominate arch conservatives to the Supreme Court.
10. Reduce the federal deficit and debt

No nation can tax itself into prosperity, nor grow without money growth. Monetary Sovereignty: Cutting federal deficits to grow the economy is like applying leeches to cure anemia.
1. A growing economy requires a growing supply of dollars (GDP=Federal Spending + Non-federal Spending + Net Exports)
2. All deficit spending grows the supply of dollars
3. The limit to federal deficit spending is an inflation that cannot be cured with interest rate control.
4. The limit to non-federal deficit spending is the ability to borrow.

THE RECESSION CLOCK
Monetary Sovereignty

Vertical gray bars mark recessions. Recessions come after the blue line drops below zero and when deficit growth declines.

As the federal deficit growth lines drop, we approach recessions, each of which has been cured only when the growth lines rose.

Increasing federal deficit growth (aka “stimulus”) is necessary for long-term economic growth.

#MONETARYSOVEREIGNTY

–Who the heck is voting for this guy?

Twitter: @rodgermitchell; Search #monetarysovereignty
Facebook: Rodger Malcolm Mitchell

Mitchell’s laws:
•Those, who do not understand the differences between Monetary Sovereignty and monetary non-sovereignty, do not understand economics.
•Any monetarily NON-sovereign government — be it city, county, state or nation — that runs an ongoing trade deficit, eventually will run out of money.
•The more federal budgets are cut and taxes increased, the weaker an economy becomes..

•Liberals think the purpose of government is to protect the poor and powerless from the rich and powerful. Conservatives think the purpose of government is to protect the rich and powerful from the poor and powerless.

•The single most important problem in economics is the Gap between rich and poor.
•Austerity is the government’s method for widening the Gap between rich and poor.
•Until the 99% understand the need for federal deficits, the upper 1% will rule.
•Everything in economics devolves to motive, and the motive is the Gap between the rich and the rest..
============================================================================================================================================================================================================================================================

You might think one of the qualifications for the U.S. Presidency is sanity, or at least common sense. Clearly, that is not the case, as witness some of the leading candidates.

Most astounding is that the guy most seriously lacking common sense, is also the current leader in the Republican polls, Ben Carson, who among his beliefs are:

Ridiculous Things Ben Carson Actually Believes

1. Women who get abortions are like slaveholders
Carson compared women who terminate their unwanted pregnancies to slaveowners who “thought that they had the right to do whatever they wanted to that slave.” He went on to call for an outlaw of abortion, even in cases of rape and incest. “I would not be in favor of killing a baby because the baby came about in that way.”

Yes, a 12-year-old girl who is raped, surely should be forced to carry, deliver and raise an unwanted child. That is exactly what is good for the girl, for the child and for society.

2. Obamacare is the worst thing since slavery
“And it is in a way, it is slavery in a way, because it is making all of us subservient to the government, and it was never about health care,” he added. “It was about control.”

In Carsonworld, being “controlled” means receiving healthcare you otherwise could not afford, which naturally, is worse than being a slave.

3. Jews could have prevented the Holocaust if they had guns
“I think the likelihood of Hitler being able to accomplish his goals would have been greatly diminished if the people had been armed.”

Sure, Jews with guns would have been able to stop the German military, consisting of tanks, planes, guns and well-trained soldiers — a military that all the armies of Europe were unable to stop.

4. College campuses should be monitored for liberal political speech
Carson advocated for the censorship of “extreme political bias” on college campuses, saying the Department of Education should “monitor our institutions of higher education for extreme political bias and deny federal funding if it exists.”

The next day, he clarified during a different conservative radio program that his plan wouldn’t hurt conservatives. When host Dana Loesch asked if “the pendulum would swing the other way and we would see sort of like monitoring of political speech for conservatives,” Carson assured her that it would not. “I think we would have to put in very strict guidelines for the way that that was done.”

Translation: “I don’t believe in Constitutional free speech, and I have no idea what I’m talking about, but my right wing supporters won’t notice.”

5. Muslims should be disqualified from the presidency
“I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely would not agree with that.”

No bigotry, implied. And forget the Constitution. I just don’t like Muslims (or Catholics, Jews, Buddhists, gays or anyone else different from me — including liberals and whites.)

6. Being gay is a choice because prison turns people gay
Carson said that homosexuality is a choice, citing people who “go into prison straight – and when they come out, they’re gay” as proof.

Excuse me, Dr. Carson, if sexual orientation is a choice, exactly when did you choose to become straight?

7. Marriage equality a “Marxist plot.”
Marriage equality supporters are “enemies of America.

Odd, that he equates gay rights with communism. Perhaps this expert on international diplomacy doesn’t realize Russia notoriously is intolerant of gays.

8. The military should not be subject to any war crimes law.
“If you’re gonna have rules for war, you should just have a rule that says no war. Other than that, we have to win.”

Do not try to figure out what that means. His logic is unfathomable.

9. Obama is depressing the economy to keep people on welfare
“Perhaps some of the things that are going on right now which could be easily remedied are not being remedied in order to keep the economy depressed because there would be no appetite for many of the social programs if people were doing well.”

Um, so liberals work to keep people poor, so there can be social programs that help poor people. Huh?

10. Congress should be able to remove judges for voting for marriage equality
Carson said it was “unconstitutional” that judges have ruled in favor of equality. When federal judges make rulings like this, “our Congress actually has the right to reprimand or remove them.”

Constitutional scholar, Ben Carson, doesn’t believe in the separation of powers dictated by the Constitution.

And here are a few more non-sensical beliefs from the man many people want as President of the most powerful nation on earth:

Ben Carson’s Craziest Beliefs

11. Not Taxing Poor People is “Condescending”
Carson held that it’s “condescending,” to suggest that low-income Americans can’t pay their “fair share” of taxes, because “poor people have pride, too” and “don’t want to be just taken care of.”

Carson couldn’t explain how his plan wouldn’t increase taxes on the poor, the working class, and middle class.

Of course, he can’t explain it. It’s beyond explanation.

12. The President Can Ignore The Supreme Court
Carson told right-wing outlet Newsmax TV that the president can ignore the Supreme Court on marriage equality.

Apparently, if elected President, this Constitutional expert plans to ignore the Supreme Court when it pleases him.

13. We Should Stop Being Mean To The Police, Because It Makes Them “Timid”
Carson told faith and community leaders to stop criticizing the police, lest it make them too timid to do their job.

Obviously, the police are perfect and are above criticism. As for those shootings of unarmed black males, they resulted from police timidity.

14. Protests Against Police Violence Help ISIS And Al Qaeda

Because, as everyone knows, it is our local police, not our military, who are fighting ISIS and Al Qaeda.

15. The “women’s lib” movement led to police shootings.
“Young African-American men like Michael Brown” are getting killed by the police because they “never really learn how to relate to authority in the proper way.”

Clearly, if women did not enjoy the same freedoms and liberties as men, there would be fewer police shootings. Anyone could see that — if their mind were twisted enough.

16. President Obama Is Engaged in a Leninist Plot To Destroy The Economy
Carson tied together Benghazi, marijuana use, and Pharrell Williams’ “Happy” to suggest that communists in government are out to destroy the U.S. economy. And the main “communist,” of course, is the president.

And here you mistakenly thought Sen. Joseph McCarthy and his crazy ideas were dead.

17. Carson told Breitbart News that the U.S. is “very much like Nazi Germany,” and recommended that Americans read “Mein Kampf” if they want to understand President Obama.

Not sure about a relationship between Mein Kampf and President Obama, but with Republicans like Donald Trump wanting to round up immigrants and ship them (in box cars?) to (concentration camps?), maybe the good Doctor is on to something.

18. God Gave Him The Answers To His College Chemistry Final
At the National Day of Prayer gathering, Carson told the audience that God helped him ace his chemistry final by giving him the answers in a dream.

One is left to wonder why God didn’t give all those other kids the answers. One also is left to wonder why Carson didn’t know the answers, but needed divine assistance to pass the test.

And the lunacy continues:

19. Ben Carson’s Strange Theory About The Egyptian Pyramids
Carson posited in a 1998 commencement address at Andrews University that the pyramids in Egypt were used for grain storage rather than as tombs for ancient kings and queens.

The climate expert, Constitution expert, Holocaust expert and Marxism expert, also is an Egyptology expert — the only one who knows what he knows.

20. Many scientists believe aliens built the pyramids.
“Various of scientists (sic) have said, ‘Well, you know there were alien beings that came down and they have special knowledge and that’s how.’ You know, it doesn’t require an alien being when God is with you.”

Asked Wednesday by CBS News whether he still believed the pyramids were primarily used for grain storage, Carson said, “It’s still my belief, yes.”

Thankfully, Dr. Ben straightened out the scientists on their belief in aliens building the pyramids and the fake mummies.

21. Carson believes Evolution is an invention of Satan
“I personally believe that this theory that Darwin came up with was something that was encouraged by the adversary [Satan], and it has become what is scientifically politically correct. Amazingly, there are a significant number of scientists who do not believe it but they are afraid to say anything.”

Yes, “a significant number of scientists” are afraid to renounce science and admit that Darwin was encouraged by Satan. After all, it makes absolute sense.

This guy thinks he is qualified to be President of the most powerful nation in world history.

Today, Carson is leading in the Republican polls. So my question is: Who the heck are all those people who agree with him?</strong>

Rodger Malcolm Mitchell
Monetary Sovereignty

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Ten Steps to Prosperity:
1. Eliminate FICA (Click here)
2. Federally funded Medicare — parts A, B & D plus long term nursing care — for everyone (Click here)
3. Provide an Economic Bonus to every man, woman and child in America, and/or every state a per capita Economic Bonus. (Click here) Or institute a reverse income tax.
4. Free education (including post-grad) for everyone. Click here
5. Salary for attending school (Click here)
6. Eliminate corporate taxes (Click here)
7. Increase the standard income tax deduction annually Click here
8. Tax the very rich (.1%) more, with higher, progressive tax rates on all forms of income. (Click here)
9. Federal ownership of all banks (Click here and here)
10. Increase federal spending on the myriad initiatives that benefit America’s 99% (Click here)

The Ten Steps will add dollars to the economy, stimulate the economy, and narrow the income/wealth/power Gap between the rich and the rest.
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10 Steps to Economic Misery: (Click here:)
1. Maintain or increase the FICA tax..
2. Spread the myth Social Security, Medicare and the U.S. government are insolvent.
3. Cut federal employment in the military, post office, other federal agencies.
4. Broaden the income tax base so more lower income people will pay.
5. Cut financial assistance to the states.
6. Spread the myth federal taxes pay for federal spending.
7. Allow banks to trade for their own accounts; save them when their investments go sour.
8. Never prosecute any banker for criminal activity.
9. Nominate arch conservatives to the Supreme Court.
10. Reduce the federal deficit and debt

No nation can tax itself into prosperity, nor grow without money growth. Monetary Sovereignty: Cutting federal deficits to grow the economy is like applying leeches to cure anemia.
1. A growing economy requires a growing supply of dollars (GDP=Federal Spending + Non-federal Spending + Net Exports)
2. All deficit spending grows the supply of dollars
3. The limit to federal deficit spending is an inflation that cannot be cured with interest rate control.
4. The limit to non-federal deficit spending is the ability to borrow.

THE RECESSION CLOCK
Monetary Sovereignty

Vertical gray bars mark recessions. Recessions come after the blue line drops below zero and when deficit growth declines.

As the federal deficit growth lines drop, we approach recessions, each of which has been cured only when the growth lines rose.

Increasing federal deficit growth (aka “stimulus”) is necessary for long-term economic growth.

#MONETARYSOVEREIGNTY