The Selling And Buying Of America, Part 2: Obama Gets In On The Action

Yesterday we looked at the historical performance of the political class when it came to selling the assets, taxpayer wealth, and sound legislative judgment to the highest bidders. The corruption we reviewed was widespread and despicable. Today, we will look at some of the present day selling and buying of America, proving that the political class is just as bad as it has always been.

On January 4, 2012, the Obama administration released the list of names of contributors of Obama’s 2013 inauguration. According to the Sunlight Foundation Reporting Group in 2009 Obama's inauguration planning committee did not accept corporate contributions, restricted personal donations to $50,000 or less and more than a month before the inauguration, published a searchable list of all donors. That list that included who the contributors worked for, where they lived and how much they donated.

In contrast, the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Committee had a dearth of contributors, including only a link at the bottom of its website with a list of only the names of the individuals and corporations that have contributed. The list did not include the amount that was contributed, who they worked for where they lived, etc.

The Sunlight Foundation spokesperson, Keenan Steiner, also reported on the following aspects of the inauguration funding effort:

• There are no limits on how much a company, organization, or person could contribute this time.
• In fact, when the request for funding was sent out in early December, potential contributors were actually encouraged to contribute put to a $1 million if the contributor was a company and $250,000 if the contributor was an individual.
• Mr. Steiner also pointed out that the committee was aware that this was a pretty shady and sleazy fund raising operation since they did not issue a press release or make a splashy announcement, preferring instead of a low key, late Friday, discrete addition to their website.
• The Sunlight Foundation report was able to get their hands on a copy of the email which outlined what contributors would get for their donations, with the magnitude of their access and benefits contingent on how much was contributed.
• For example, an individual contributing $250,000 and a corporation contributing $1 million would be given the “Washington Premium Partner Access.”
• That level of financial support includes two tickets to a “Benefactors Reception” held two or three days before the inauguration, an invitation to an event called “The Finance Committee ‘Road Ahead’ meeting,” two tickets to The Children’s Concert, two tickets to the “Co-Chairs Reception,” four tickets to a candlelight reception at the National Building Museum, at invitation to the VIP reception at prior to this reception, two reserved seats in the bleachers at the inaugural parade and four tickets to the inaugural.
• The Sunlight Foundation reported that current corporate donors include AT&T, Centene Corporation, Genentech, Financial Innovations Inc., Microsoft, Stream Line Circle LLC, and the Whittier Trust Co but as discussed above, Obama’s people did not list how much each company donated.

Disgraceful, paying for access to the political class, access that will come with a taxpayer price at some point in time. In fact, a recent Washington Post report drew this straight line form the donor list to future crony capitalism and corruption:

• Stream Line Circle is operated by billionaire Obama backer Jon Stryker.
• Centene Corporation is a major Medicaid administration company that just happens to be one of the major beneficiaries of the Obama’s health-care law.
• Financial Innovations is a maker of promotional products that, surprise, surprise, got $1.8 million in business from Obama's 2012 Presidential campaign.
• According to election campaign records, AT&T and its chairman were heavy contributors to Romney’s campaign. Is the AT&T donation for the inauguration an attempt to buy their way back into the good graces of this administration? If that is so, then it also speaks volumes of how influence is bought and sold in D.C.

Buying and selling of America, all to satisfy a single politician’s ego and pomposity.

But the bad news goes on. According to the Washington Post article, ABC News reported in 2009 that the initial Obama inauguration cost $170 million, most of which was paid for by American taxpayers, the vast majority of which could not attend the festivities because they did not have the money, they actually had a mob to go to, or they were one of the millions and millions of Americans who were unemployed.

Which leads to a few questions relative to bad priorities and celebrating what is going to be the second part of a Presidency whose first half has been a failure on so many levels:

• Assuming that another $170 million or so of taxpayer money will be spent this year, would it have not been a better priority to divert at least some of the costs for the inauguration to the people still suffering as a result of Hurricane Sandy? Seems like Washington is more interested in getting ready for a taxpayer financed party and rewarding their financial supporters than taking care of Hurricane Sandy victims from a storm that hit over two months ago.
• Given that 23 million Americans are unemployed, under employed, or have become so discouraged that they have stopped looking for a job, would it not have been a better priority to divert at least some of the cost for the inauguration to the food banks around the country who support the food needs of many of those 23 million Americans rather than politicians partying with their financial supporters?
• Given the school shooting slaughter in Newtown, Connecticut, would it not have been a better priority to divert some of the cost of the inauguration to counseling and other needs of the grieving citizens and families?
• Given the shooting slaughter in Newtown, would it not have been a better priority to divert some of the cost of the inauguration to providing police protection in some schools to prevent future Newtown-like shootings? $170 million could put trained police officers in over 3,000 schools for one year, certainly a better priority than political receptions, political meetings, Presidential balls, etc.
• Is it so important to Washington politicians that they continue to take in money from moneyed interests and wealthy Americans while millions of Americans are unable to find a job or pressed to feed themselves and their families?

I think we all know the answer to that last question. Yes, it is that important to Washington politicians to put their campaign finances and personal wealth ahead of America and the vast majority of American citizens. From directing taxpayer money to their campaign donors to making sure that their families and friends get preferential financial and other types of government treatment to making sure that they get to celebrate with their peers and corporate and wealthy supporters, they would sell their positions, their legislative power, and their offices’ power.

America is, indeed, for sale with incumbent politicians doing the selling and buying. Several steps from “Love My Country, Loathe My Government” would help restrict the selling and buying of America:

1. Step 6 would allow only individual Americans to contribute to political campaigns. Unions, corporations, PACs, and lobbyist organizations would be barred from making any contributions at all.
2. Step 7 would allow campaign donations from citizens to campaigns that directly affect their lives. For example, someone in Kansas could not contribute to a political campaign in New Jersey.
3. Step 39 would impose term limit on all Federal politicians, “one and done.” This would eliminate the practice of incumbent politicians selling their votes and offices for their reelection campaign since reelection campaigns would be relics of the past.
4. Step 44 would prohibit the use of Federal taxpayer dollars on any program or project unless that project or program had a substantial impact on a significant amount of citizens from at least five states. This would eliminate the practice of politicians granting earmarks to the businesses and interests of their friends and family. This would also eliminate the practice of having the Federal government finance local bike trails, local road repairs, etc.

These steps would help protect the country and the liberties of its citizens from the auctioning off of America’s wealth and future. It would also protect us from the greed, selfishness, and bad priorities of the political class.

Our book, "Love My Country, Loathe My Government - Fifty First Steps To Restoring Our Freedom And Destroying The American Political Class" is now available at:

www.loathemygovernment.com

It is also available online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Please pass our message of freedom onward. Let your friends and family know about our websites and blogs, ask your library to carry the book, and respect freedom for both yourselves and others everyday.


Please visit the following sites for freedom:

http://www.reason.com/
http://www.cato.org/
http://www.robertringer.com/
http://realpolichick.blogspot.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08j0sYUOb5w

Elections Have Consequences, #1 - Obamacare's Job Destruction Impacts

This is a first an occasion series that will follow the mantra, “Elections have consequences.” Yes, the elections are over and the winners will soon take office. But the impacts from the elections did not end on November 6, they will continue, disappear, accelerate, grow, etc. for years to come.

Unfortunately, our election processes have deteriorated so much that it seems the means have become the ends. Getting elected is now the end game, not the necessary first step to getting problems resolved. Voters who voted for winners are smug, losers are bitter, problems never get resolved. The purpose of this series of posts is to remind all voters, but especially those who voted for politicians who won their elections, that elections have consequences.

Today’s topic is focused on Obamacare. If the Republicans had had a better set of election results, we may have actually seen the repeal of Obamacare and had some degree of hope that it would be replaced with a plan that actually had a chance at working. Numerous times we have pointed out the many, many faults and shortcomings of Obamacare and how it has virtually no chance of success because it never addressed the root causes of our escalating health care costs:

http://loathemygovernment.blogspot.com/2012/08/obama-care-still-constitutional-and.html

But repeal is likely not going to happen, given the election results and election results have consequences. What are those consequences relative to job creation/destruction and Obamacare? Consider:

1) The Freedom Works website has put together an excellent article:

 (http://www.freedomworks.org/blog/grusbf5/good-morning-america-heres-those-layoffs-you-voted)

that documents the many, many companies that have had to assess their financial future in light of Obamacare taxes and regulations and have regretfully decided that they need to reduce their staffs’ sizes and hours. Their findings include the following labor cutbacks, just days after the election results were tallied:

• Welch Allyn, a company that produces medical diagnostic equipment in its central New York location, announced that they would be laying off 275 employees, which is 10% of their workforce over the next three years. One of the major reasons discussed for the layoffs was a proactive response to the Medical Device Tax mandated by Obamacare.
• As recently as a week ago, a global auto parts manufacturing company in Ohio known as Dana Holding Corp., warned their employees of potential layoffs, citing "$24 million over the next six years in additional U.S. health care expenses." After laying off several white collar staffers, company sources have indicated more layoffs will be forthcoming. The company will have to cover the additional $24 million cost somehow, and labor cost is likely one of the only ways to do so. Thus, Obamacare will likely equate to numerous cuts in their current workforce of 25,500 worldwide.
• One of the biggest medical device manufacturers in the world, Stryker, will close their manufacturing facility in Orchard Park, New York, eliminating 96 jobs in December. Worse, as a result of Obamacare’s medical device tax, Stryker will likely slash another 5% of their workforce or about 1,170 positions.
• In October of 2009, Boston Scientific CEO Ray Elliott, warned that Obamacare could "lead to significant job losses" for his company. Two years later, Elliott announced that the company would be slashing anywhere between 1,200 and 1,400 jobs. They simultaneously announced they would be shifting investments and workers overseas, to China, likely to try to reduce costs to overcome Obamacare taxes.
• In March of 2010, medical device maker Medtronic warned that Obamacare taxes could result in the loss of 1,000 jobs. That prediction came true when the company cut 500 positions over the past summer and with another 500 layoffs set for the end of 2013.

Just these five companies have had to cut or will likely cut at least 3,700 jobs as a result of Obamacare burdens.

2) Other job losses cited in the article include:

• Smith & Nephew - 770 layoffs
• Abbott Labs - 700 layoffs
• Covidien - 595 layoffs
• Kinetic Concepts - 427 layoffs
• St. Jude Medical - 300 layoffs
• Hill Rom - 200 layoffs.

These additional cuts total about 3,000 jobs.

3) But the complete termination of jobs is only part of the consequences from the election. Obamacare rules insanely have defined full time workers as anyone working over 30 hours a week, not the traditional forty hours a week

Thus, the complete loss of a job position is not the only negative consequence of the election. Sean Hackbarth of Free Enterprise explains this situation in the Freedom Works article, as analyzed by a JP Morgan economist:

"Under the health care law, if a company has more than 50 “full time equivalent” workers, a combination of full and part-time employees, but doesn’t offer “affordable” coverage that meets the government’s minimum value standard, the company will have to pay a penalty. This penalty is determined by the number of full-time employees minus 30 full-time employees. So to reiterate a very important point: part-time workers are not part of the penalty formula. The health care law creates a perverse incentive to hire part-time versus full-time workers."

Although many people will still have a job, their take home pay will likely decrease by about 25% or so as a result of Obamacare. This will increase the number of part time workers far beyond the 8.3 million part time workers already in the workforce.

4) These new additions to the part time workforce likely include the employees of the following companies:

• According to the Orlando Sentinel, Darden restaurants, best known for their Red Lobster, Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse restaurants, is "experimenting with limiting the hours of some of its workers to avoid health care requirements under the Affordable Care Act when they take effect in 2014".
• The CEO of JANCOA, a janitorial services company, Mary Miller, testified before Congress that Obamacare is a career "dream killer,” testifying that one option she had to consider "is reducing the majority of my team members to part-time employment in order to reduce the amount that I will be penalized" under Obamacare’s rules, taxes, and regulations.
• Krogers supermarkets of Cincinnati, Ohio recently was reported to be planning a significant slashing of their hourly workers to avoid millions in Obamacare taxes and financial penalties. The article estimates that Obamacare could result in tens of thousands of Kroger employees being limited to working 28 hours per week.

This is unlikely to be the final list of jobs terminated or shortened by Obamacare’s poorly thought out rules, regulations, and strategies. In fact, we will review other cuts tomorrow. These impacts are on real people in real families trying to improve their lives, a process that has been made immeasurably harder as a result of the consequences from last week’s elections.

All of these casualties caused by legislation that the Congressional Budget Office estimates will fall at least 20 million people short of its overarching objective of providing health care insurance for every American within ten years. All of these casualties caused by legislation that never addressed the root causes of our high health care costs and will never attain its primary goal.

Our book, "Love My Country, Loathe My Government - Fifty First Steps To Restoring Our Freedom And Destroying The American Political Class" is now available at www.loathemygovernment.com. It is also available online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Please pass our message of freedom onward. Let your friends and family know about our websites and blogs, ask your library to carry the book, and respect freedom for both yourselves and others everyday.
Please visit the following sites for freedom:

http://www.reason.com/
http://www.cato.org/
http://www.robertringer.com/
http://realpolichick.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08j0sYUOb5w