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Campaign advertising focused on jobs and trade during the 2012 election cycle totaled an estimated $700 million nationally, Gazette guest columnist Scott Paul points out.
“The fact that the campaigns spent so much money on these issues suggests that they knew what voters know: We need a jobs plan, one focused on making things in America,” said Paul, executive director of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, in a column published Saturday.
“In the last decade, we’ve lost more than 5 million manufacturing jobs to overseas competitors, particularly China,” Paul said. “Simultaneously, our trade deficit with that country has grown. The deficit with China for September was $29.1 billion — the second highest monthly deficit yet recorded. For the whole of 2011, our trade deficit with China came to a record $295 billion, and we’re on track to exceed that number in 2012.
“So instead of continuing to forfeit a crucial sector of our economy to a global competitor, what can we do about it? Plenty,” Paul continues, offering a series of suggestions, including:
“Give American businesses new tools to counter China’s currency manipulation, industrial subsidies, intellectual property theft and barriers to market access. Get tough on trade cheats.
“Apply ‘Buy America’ provisions to all federal spending so domestic firms get the first shot at procurement contracts. If American businesses are capable and competitive, this one is a no-brainer.
“Condition federal loan guarantees for energy projects on the use of homegrown supply chains for construction. The recent boom in American energy production can and should be a vehicle to put more homegrown firms to work.
“Dedicate more federal education funding for technical skills programs to address looming worker shortages in the manufacturing sector. Make sure we’ve got a class of engineers and tradesmen to fuel the next surge of industrial innovation in this country.
“Ensure the benefits of tax reform go to companies that make things in America, not to Wall Street banks or retailers who don’t really face global competition.
“In short: Establish a concerted national policy to restore America’s manufacturing base and the good jobs that come with it,” Paul concludes. “Politicians need to follow through on their promises to fight for American jobs and hold trading partners like China accountable when they cheat on their agreements.”
Do you agree with Paul? What, if anything, should Congress do to help restore U.S. manufacturing?
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Government should work on getting out of the way of entrepreneurs and busineses.
- The EPA is working to kill more American jobs by strangling the fossil fuels industrys. A study og American prosperity reveals that inexpensive energy is a primary factor in past prosperity. The US could solve a massive part of the its economic issues by beoming a world exporter of energy in oil, natural gas and coal while building nuclear plans developing alternative energy. The current administration is dead set against American prosperity.
- The US tax system drives jobs overseas. We have uncompetitive tax rates and tax policy that is cauing American companies to keep trillions of dollars in cash overseas. Reforming the tax structure would bring those investment dollars to the US and bring millions of jobs with it. Obama’s tax policy will keep these dollars overseas because his goal is to strip successful people of the fruits of their labor and sprinkle it on the masses.
Government and government jobs and programs are 100% funded by the private sector. As long as government strangles business the economy will suffer.
Gary,
Coal as a cheap source of power has been in the process of being phased out since the 1950s. It’s simply too dirty to use. Back in the 19th century and up into the 1950s London was famous for its fog. Great Britain banned the burning of coal in cities after a series of air inversions created polution so bad that thousands of people died of suffocation and respiratory failure. The result? There is no London Fog. And people can breathe the air
There are, of course, other factors to consider, but the shear filth of burning coal is one of the more dramatic
Tax policy, your version of it, doesn’t make any sense. You don’t explain anything. You just assume. As for your statement “strip successful people of the fruits of their labor and sprinkle it on the masses.” sounds like a plan to me
When you talk like that, when you pit “successeful people” against “the masses” what you are demonstrating iis that you don’t understand why Romney lost his bid for president or why so many people, deep down in their gut, really did not like him
Maybe they should fix themselves first!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Gary
The u.s. constitution gives the congress the right to create money and regulate the value. Without the governments action there would be no money, so how can you say the government gets its money from the private sector? without the government (we the people) the private sector would have no money to play with.
This is not a question that would have made any sense to the men who fought the Revolution, who set up a new government, who wrote the Constitution.
What is the business of government if not business? Article I Section 8 of the Constitution grants Congress the power to protect and promote commerce in the United States, between the various states, and between the United States and other countries.
it is perhaps too bad that our Founding Fathers did not subscribe to the philosophy of Ayn Rand but it seems that they did not
It would save a lot of confusing thinking by conservatives if they would read the u.s. constitution more often. The Preamble to the Constitution sets out the purpose of this government and it doesn’t mention business, commerce or trade as a purpose of this government.
Article 1 Sec.8 gives Congress complete control of the economy.
The Declaration of Independence claims the duty of a people’s government is to protect the lives, liberties and the (means) to the pursuit of happiness.
We seem to have forgotten and now believe we are to sacrifice all for foreign corporations.
Actually, Dean Owens, the Preamble to the Constitution does mention business, commerce or trade as a purpose of this government. It comes under the heading of “promote the general Welfare”. The Blessings of Liberty mean nothing if people are cold and hungry and sick and without shelter and dying.
Securing these Blessings, however, does not mean that the government gets out of the way to allow the most rapacious among us to grab all the wealth. It means the government has the duty to ensure these Blessings for all of the People, not just some of the People.
You are absolutely right that it would be nice if conservatives would actually read the Constitution instead of just wave it around. That they would yatter about ‘enurmerated powers” and then point to the Tenth Amendment is proof enough that they haven’t read it.
I can accept your point. Now all we have to do is get the members of congress to accept it too.