By Richard Larsen
Published – Idaho State Journal, 08/12/12
At nearly every campaign stop these days, the President
convincingly declares, “the middle class is under assault.” Looking at the
economic data produced by our own government, there can be no mistake that he’s
right. But what he obviously doesn’t realize is that it’s his own policies that
are besieging the working, producing, and taxpaying middle class of America.
We all like to think we’re part of that middle class economic
stratum, and for the most part, we are. Those who are fortunate enough to have
jobs, run businesses, hire people, pay taxes, are not on government assistance,
and not rolling in dough, are part of our middle class.
So it’s not surprising that he’d be targeting his reelection
message to us. But we mustn’t get caught up in the grandiloquence of his
oratory or his populist rhetorical appeals. We must instead look at the fruits
of his first three years of labor, which are decimating to the middle class.
The average 16% real rate of unemployment and
underemployment, based on the Department of Labor’s U-6 report, during Obama's
first three years in office, has been devastating to the middle class. With
over 15 million people not working, (28 million according to the Wall Street
Journal based on the U-6 data) there are that many fewer middle class taxpayers
and consumers, and that many more on government assistance at the poverty level
relying on income redistribution from producers.
The job situation will not improve appreciably until the
cost of doing business starts dropping. Last year the Small Business
Administration reported that regulation costs American business $1.75 trillion
per year, and costs small businesses as much as $10,585 per employee. Just the
costs of Obamacare, Financial Regulatory Reform, and new EPA regulations, are
projected to increase that cost per employee by more than 30%, according to
Investor’s Business Daily.
The federal budget has grown from $2.5 trillion to $3.8
trillion, a 40% increase, and our yearly deficit has quintupled our deficit
from $240 billion per year to $1.3 trillion per year. Our debt-to-GDP ratio, a
significant barometer of the fiscal health of a nation, has spiked to over 100%,
a nearly 30% increase in just three years. The middle class will pay the costs
of this government expansion. Even if Obama increases the taxes on “the rich”
as he desires, the most it will raise is $65 billion, hardly scratching the
surface of the deficit.
High energy prices hit the middle class harder than anyone,
and the Recent Bureau of Labor Statistics report on consumer prices shows
gasoline costs are up 130% since his election. While not totally controllable
domestically, Obama’s assault on domestic oil production and weak dollar policy
have contributed to an equivalent 130% tax increase on transportation costs.
And that’s not the only energy cost that’s increased. As a
result of the administration’s assault on the coal industry, coal-fired power production
has dropped from 44.6 to 36% in just one year. Coal is a cheap source of
energy, and moving away from it will dramatically increase the cost of
electricity. PJM Interconnection, the company that operates the electric grid
for 13 Eastern and Midwestern states indicates the new market-clearing price
for projected 2015 capacity just cleared $136 per megawatt. That’s more than
eight times higher than the price for 2012, which was just $16. When these skyrocketing
energy costs hit the middle class, it will be devastating.
ObamaCare was promised to lower the cost of health care for
nearly everyone. Instead, private medical insurance costs have soared by as
much as 59%, and hospital costs are up nearly three times the rate of core
inflation. These costs adversely affect the middle class disproportionately, as
the rich have no problem paying, and the middle class is paying the cost of the
lower income levels.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported just last
month that the U.S. average weekly wage declined nearly 2% percent between the
fourth quarter of 2010 and the fourth quarter of 2011. This is only the fifth
time wages have declined in the past 33 years.
Succinctly stated, we have shrinking income, inflation in
energy and food “skyrocketing,” just like Obama predicted four years ago, a
weaker dollar, a ballooning debt, and a national security-risking deficit. The
costs of all this “hope and change” are landing squarely on the back of the
middle class.
A strong middle class equals a strong America. We can’t have
one without the other. And our current policies are killing both. So don’t
listen to Obama’s rhetoric, for it rings hollow. Look at his actions, and his
policies, and what has been done to cripple the middle class. It truly leaves
one wondering how he can pander as he does to the middle class, and keep a
straight face while doing it.