Tag: Concord Coalition

–Will the party of “NO!” become the party of “I don’t know”?

The debt hawks are to economics as the creationists are to biology. Those, who do not understand monetary sovereignty, do not understand economics. Cutting the federal deficit is the most ignorant and damaging step the federal government could take. It ranks ahead of the Hawley-Smoot Tariff.
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This should be interesting. Will the party of “NO!” become the party of “I don’t know,” when asked how they plan to reduce federal spending without alienating all the people who receive federal spending, and without destroying the economy, too?

My hunch is all those “small government” types will begin to whine loudly when their favorite federal benefits begin to disappear. And then there is the presumed reduction in federal employees, “to save money” at just the time when we’re supposed to be creating jobs.

For a reminder about some of the things we voters will have to worry about, read: “14 ways to dismantle a monstrous government”.

And why cut federal spending? The debt hawks have no clue. They do not understand monetary sovereignty, and have no desire to learn.

Ignorance has its costs.

Rodger Malcolm Mitchell
http://www.rodgermitchell.com

No nation can tax itself into prosperity. Those who say the stimulus “didn’t work” remind of the guy whose house is on fire. A neighbor runs with a garden hose and starts spraying, but the fire continues. The neighbor wants to call the fire department, which would bring the big hoses, but the guy says, “Don’t call. As you can see, water doesn’t put out fires.”

–The Fed’s $500 billion bond purchase

The debt hawks are to economics as the creationists are to biology. Those, who do not understand monetary sovereignty, do not understand economics. Cutting the federal deficit is the most ignorant and damaging step the federal government could take. It ranks ahead of the Hawley-Smoot Tariff.
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Rumor has it the Fed soon will announce approximately $500 billion in Treasury bond purchases, with possibly more purchases in the future. The effect of the Fed buying government bonds will be to add dollars to the economy.

This is in recognition of two realities:

1. The economy has been starved for dollars by the economically suicidal, debt-hawk mantra of “lower federal deficits and less federal debt.” Bernanke and the Fed now will officially have acknowledged the economy needs more dollars and the federal government has to supply them.

2. Congress and the President either are ignorant of this economic fact or, more likely, are too afraid of the debt hawks to add dollars to the economy via deficit spending, and instead have passed that hot potato to the Fed.

The question now is whether adding $500 billion is sufficient to pull us out of this economic funk. I suspect it is not, and that something north of $1-2 trillion in actual spending will be needed.

Rather than relying on the indirect effect of bond purchases by the Fed, and hoping that somehow the dollars will find their way into the hands of business and consumers, Congress and the President should use a direct approach. They should reduce all tax rates and specifically eliminate FICA. That would provide both an immediate and long-lasting economic stimulus, resulting in stronger business and more jobs.

Yes, that would add to the dreaded and much maligned federal deficit and the debt, which is exactly what a growing economy needs. It also might bring the debt hawks to their senses, and finally we could stop, for instance, cutting Medicare payments to doctors and reducing Social Security benefits.

Rodger Malcolm Mitchell
http://www.rodgermitchell.com

No nation can tax itself into prosperity. Those who say the stimulus “didn’t work” remind one of the guy whose house is on fire. A neighbor runs with a garden hose and starts spraying, but the fire continues. The neighbor wants to call the fire department, which would bring the big hoses, but the guy says, “Don’t call. As you can see, water doesn’t put out fires.”

–How to end federal debt and create prosperity in two simple steps

The debt hawks are to economics as the creationists are to biology. Those, who do not understand monetary sovereignty, do not understand economics. Cutting the federal deficit is the most ignorant and damaging step the federal government could take. It ranks ahead of the Hawley-Smoot Tariff.
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Now comes protectionism. To quote today’s AP article titled, “Bickering political parties share China as target”: “Democrats and Republicans are accusing each other of cozying up to Beijing and backing policies that send U.S. jobs and IOUs to the world’s second-largest economy.”

So China is today’s whipping boy, deflecting the blame from our politicians. Nothing ever is their fault. The problems always are caused by some other country, or the Fed, or the banks, or the “other” party, or the rich, or the poor, or the unions, or the corporations, or the PACs, or the lobbyists, or the war, or the right wing, or the left wing, or the Communists, or the terrorists.

No folks, our economic problems lie squarely on the shoulders of Congress and the President, and much (not all) boils down to one false belief, that taxes pay for federal spending. Amazing isn’t it, how many problems result from this one giant misunderstanding?

If the federal government simply stopped creating T-securities from thin air, there would be no debt, therefore no IOUs. And if the federal government simply eliminated FICA, millions of American jobs would be created and saved.

In 1971 we ended the gold standard and no one remembers why. Instead, the uninformed are led by the ignorant (or is it the other way around?), as we continue to act as though we were part of the European Union, with its stultifying limitations on money creation.

Two simple steps – end T-securities and end FICA – would eliminate debt and tax concerns and create instant prosperity. Can it get any easier? Tell your Congress people.

Rodger Malcolm Mitchell
http://www.rodgermitchell.com

No nation can tax itself into prosperity. Those who say the stimulus “didn’t work” remind of the guy whose house is on fire. A neighbor runs with a garden hose and starts spraying, but the fire continues. The neighbor wants to call the fire department, which would bring the big hoses, but the guy says, “Don’t call. As you can see, water doesn’t put out fires.”

–Easy money for debt hawks.

The debt hawks are to economics as the creationists are to biology.

O.K. boys. It’s time to put up or shut up.

The Concord Coalition is a self-proclaimed “non-partisan, grassroots organization dedicated to educating the public about the causes and consequences of federal budget deficits, the long-term challenges facing America’s unsustainable entitlement programs, and how to build a sound foundation for economic growth.” Their web site http://www.concordcoalition.org/ asks for donations.

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget – http://crfb.org/ – publishes articles like: “How To Avoid a Debt Doomsday,” and writes, “Creditors could lose faith and pull their money from the United States. Interest rates would spike, causing interest payments to grow. The government would be forced to borrow more, which would push rates even higher. The endgame would be a vicious debt spiral and another recession.” They too ask for donations.

As you have seen from my previous post, “How to make a million. No kidding,” Warren Mosler (Mosler) said “it is an indisputable fact that U.S. Government spending is not operationally constrained by revenue and will give $100 million of his own money to pay down the Federal deficit if any Congressman or Senator can prove him wrong.” O.K., he said Congressman or Senator, but I’m sure Warren will be glad to extend the offer to any debt-hawk who can show that Social Security is “going broke” as so many claim, or that FICA supports Medicare and Social Security, or that the federal debt is “unsustainable.”

Back in July, I offered ($1,000 ) for the same kind of proof, but I guess I’m a piker, and no one has taken me up on it. Warren is offering the big bucks.

Just think. $100 million dollars, debt-hawks, and all you need do is prove what you have been preaching all these years. You’ve been begging for donations and here is your chance. I urge all my readers to go to any debt-hawk web site – you know, the ones publishing those ridiculous debt clocks and claiming the government can’t afford this or that, or saying we need austerity, or debt reduction or some other suicidal action — and urge these folks to come up with the proof. And if they don’t, I guess we’ll all know that what they are selling is a load of BS.

Speak up, boys. My book is called FREE MONEY, but this offer is easy money, and the money is waiting for you. Warren is waiting. I’m waiting.

Rodger Malcolm Mitchell
http://www.rodgermitchell.com

No nation can tax itself into prosperity. Those who say the stimulus “didn’t work” remind of the guy whose house is on fire. A neighbor runs with a garden hose and starts spraying, but the fire continues. The neighbor wants to call the fire department, which would bring the big hoses, but the guy says, “Don’t call. As you can see, water doesn’t put out fires.”