Research Briefing

Democrats Prioritize Big Government Ideology Over Solutions For Families And Businesses

TODAY: “Governor Tim Kaine, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, will discuss his party's prospects in the 2010 elections, including how Democrats will talk to voters about the party's differences over priorities with Republicans, at a National Press Club Luncheon...” (“Governor Tim Kaine, Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, to Address the National Press Club,” Press Release, 3/26/10)

DEMS TOP PRIORITY IS VAST NEW SPENDING PAID FOR BY YOU AND YOUR CHILDREN

This Year’s Deficit Is Projected To Be A Historically High $1.5 Trillion.  “If the President’s proposals were enacted, the federal government would record deficits of $1.5 trillion in 2010 and $1.3 trillion in 2011. Those deficits would amount to 10.3 percent and 8.9 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), respectively. By comparison, the deficit in 2009 totaled 9.9 percent of GDP.” (“An Analysis Of The President’s Budgetary Proposals For Fiscal Year 2011,” Congressional Budget Office, March 2010)

According To Obama’s 10-Year Spending Plan, Debt Held By The Public Is Projected To Be $20.3 Trillion In 2020, Equaling 90 Percent Of GDP.  “Under the President’s budget, debt held by the public would grow from $7.5 trillion (53 percent of GDP) at the end of 2009 to $20.3 trillion (90 percent of GDP) at the end of 2020—$5 trillion above what CBO projects for 2020 in its baseline (see Figure 1-2).” (“An Analysis Of The President’s Budgetary Proposals For Fiscal Year 2011,” Congressional Budget Office, March 2010)

DEMS’ STIMULUS PRIORITIZED CHECKING OFF LIBERAL WISH-LIST OVER JOB CREATION

In February 2009, Obama Signed $862 Billion Stimulus Bill. “The two-year American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which Obama said would create or save more than 3 million jobs, was originally estimated to cost the federal government $787 billion. … The Congressional Budget Office revised its cost estimate for the recovery act up to $862 billion from $787 billion last month.” (Lisa Lambert, “Factbox: The U.S. Stimulus, One Year Later,” Reuters, 2/17/10)

Since The Stimulus Was Passed, 2.6 Million Private Sector Jobs Have Been Lost While 2,000 Government Jobs Have Been Created.  (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, www.bls.gov, Accessed 5/18/10)

• Even Though Obama Claimed: “More Than 90 Percent Of The Jobs Created By This Plan Will Be In The Private Sector.” (“Transcript: Obama’s Prime Time News Conference,” The New York Times, 2/9/09)

Obama’s Infrastructure Spending On Roads And Bridges From First Stimulus “Has Had No Effect Of Local Unemployment.” “Ten months into President Obama’s first economic stimulus plan, a surge in spending on roads and bridges has had no effect on local unemployment and only barely helped the beleaguered construction industry, an Associated Press analysis has found.  Spend a lot or spend nothing at all, it didn’t matter, the AP analysis showed: Local unemployment rates rose and fell regardless of how much stimulus money Washington poured out for transportation, raising questions about Obama’s argument that more road money would address an ‘urgent need to accelerate job growth.’” (“What Stimulus?  Road Projects Aren’t Boosting Jobs Much,” The Associated Press, 1/11/10)

State Stimulus Funds Went To Plug Budget Holes Instead Of Implementing New Reform Goals. “But investigators found repeated examples in which, either out of desperation or convenience, states favored short-term spending over long-term efforts such as education reform … In Flint, Mich., for example, new schools haven’t been built in 30 years but the school superintendent told auditors that he would use federal money to cope with budget deficits rather than building new schools or paying for early childhood education.” (Kimberly Hefling, “Audit Finds States Using Stimulus To Stay Afloat,” The Associated Press, 7/7/09)

DEMS’ ENERGY PLANS PRIORITIZED GLOBAL WARMING OVER AMERICAN FAMILIES AND BUSINESSES

Obama To Allow EPA To Regulate 70% Of Emissions In United States. “The ‘tailoring’ rule would subject to regulation under the Clean Air Act sources emitting more than 100,000 tons of greenhouse gases annually. The law’s current threshold is 250 tons annually for other pollutants… EPA officials said exempting small polluters would still allow the agency to regulate about 70 percent of the U.S. economy’s greenhouse gas emissions… ” (Coral Davenport, “Prodding Lawmakers On Climate Change, EPA Issues A ‘Tailoring’ Rule,” CQ Today, 5/13/10)

Even Though Obama Knows “Electricity Rates Would Necessarily Skyrocket.” “[U]nder my plan of a cap and trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket. Even regardless of what I say about whether coal is good or bad. Because I’m capping greenhouse gases, coal power plants, you know, natural gas, you name it, whatever the plants were, whatever the industry was, uh, they would have to retrofit their operations. That will cost money. They will pass that money on to consumers.” (Sen. Barack Obama, Interview with San Francisco Chronicle Editorial Board, 1/17/08)

Obama’s “Cap-And-Trade” Legislation Could Cost American Families Up To $1,761 Per Year. “The Obama administration has privately concluded that a cap and trade law would cost American taxpayers up to $200 billion a year, the equivalent of hiking personal income taxes by about 15 percent ... the total in new taxes would be between $100 billion to $200 billion a year. At the upper end of the administration’s estimate, the cost per American household would be an extra $1,761 a year.” (Dean McCullagh, “Cap-and-Trade Redux: $1,761 Annually Per Family? Or Not?” CBS News’ “Taking Liberties” Blog, 9/16/09)

Dems' Cap-And-Trade National Energy Tax Could Mean Nearly 1 Million Jobs Lost Per Year. “Overall, a cap-and-trade system that reduces annual GDP by 0.34 percent per year can be expected to reduce U.S. employment by roughly 964,900 jobs per year, reduce household earnings by $37.8 billion, and reduce total U.S. economic output by $136.1 billion." (Andrew Chamberlain, "Who Pays For Climate Policy?," Tax Foundation, 3/09) 

OBAMACARE PRIORITIZED WASHINGTON BUREAUCRATS OVER DOCTORS, PATIENTS

ObamaCare’s Changes For Children With Pre-Existing Conditions “Not Really That Helpful” According To A Mother With Two Uninsured, Special Needs Children. “Starting later this year, President Barack Obama’s health care law requires insurers to accept all children regardless of medical history. But the law doesn’t limit what the companies can charge, and the Thompsons fear that could leave them in the same predicament: still no insurance for two children because it costs too much. ‘If that’s the way it’s going to shake out, it’s not really that helpful,’ said Mary Thompson. She checked with her insurer recently and was told Andrew probably would have to have his own policy. ‘I could be looking at a $500-a-month policy for just the two of them,’ she said.” (Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, “Premiums May Undermine Coverage Guarantee For Kids,” The Associated Press, 5/10/10)

Senate Dems’ Bill Would Raise Premiums For Americans Purchasing Insurance Individually By Up To 13 Percent. “CBO and JCT estimate that the average premium per person covered (including dependents) for new nongroup policies would be about 10 percent to 13 percent higher in 2016 than the average premium for nongroup coverage in that same year under current law.” (Douglas W. Elmendorf, Letter To Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN), 11/30/09)

Former Georgia Medical Association President Says Dems Will Create “Interference In The Physician-Patient Relationship.” “[Dr. Michael] Greene, a family doctor and past president of the Medical Association of Georgia, is not a fan of what he’s heard or read … Greene’s biggest issue with the plans? ‘From a physician’s standpoint, the interference in the physician-patient relationship … We’re handing over a tremendous amount of power to an appointed branch of government… It creates a monstrous level of bureaucracy.’” (Rodney Manley, “Middle Georgians Weigh In On Health-Care Reform,” The Macon Telegraph, 8/16/09)

ObamaCare’s Incentives To Get More Doctors To Take Medicaid Patients Are Inadequate As Payment “Increases Are Temporary, And Do Nothing To Encourage Specialists To Participate.” “To encourage more doctors to participate, the federal government will raise Medicaid payments for primary care to Medicare levels in 2013 and 2014, and will not require the states to share the extra costs. But the increases are temporary, and do nothing to encourage specialists to participate, experts say. Beyond the payment problem, many physicians shun Medicaid patients, saying they tend to have complicated medical problems, skip appointments and ignore their treatment plans.” (Roni Caryn Rabin, “With Expanded Coverage For The Poor, Fears Of A Big Headache,” The New York Times, 4/26/10)