In the House and Senate we saw the true Republican plan for the economy:
- Give money (subsidies, tax breaks, etc.) to the oil companies.
- Cut taxes on the wealthy (in order to cut services for the poor)
Both of these are wrong on 2 fronts: they are wrong on economics (i.e. they will lead to larger problems, and not help the economy) and they are wrong morally.
First subsidies to big oil. By increasing the immediate reward, there is little incentive to actually explore or try to produce oil more efficiently. The profit is so great today why work hard. Hummm this is the usual anti-welfare argument, or something close to it, but in this case the welfare recipient is very wealthy already.
All the example of tax cuts to the rich have resulted in lower revenue and lower job levels. The only way people will be hired is when the income will be heavily taxed unless you hire people. In the extreme this is not necessarily a good idea, but the claim that tax cuts lead to jobs and prosperity is a lie. (It has been debunked so much that it is no longer just a different opinion, it is a lie pure and simple.)
I certainly knew about many of this, but having said that, I still believed it turned out practical. Very good post!