From Denny: President Bill Clinton sits down for in-depth interview with Jon Stewart on what it will take to revive the American economy and create jobs. His new book, "Back To Work," (Why We Need Smart Government For A Strong Economy) lays out specific plans for doing just that, recommending several strategies to current President Barack Obama.
In fact, just recently the Obama political hacks, Axelrod and Plouffe, met with President Clinton in the hopes to help the 2012 campaign. Yes, the same political hacks that have F'd up this economy by advising Obama to cater only to the Republicans and ignore Democratic principles to help the middle class. Those same guys that the Democratic Party should throw from the train.
Apparently, Axelrod and Plouffe were rattled by the recent poll in New Hampshire - the state that has picked the presidential winner in the last four out of five elections - where Obama is 10 points down from Romney as the favored candidate for the 2012 election. Axelrod and Plouffe peppered Clinton with questions about the Independents since Obama is clearly out of favor with that voting block.
Well, you can always tell when Team Obama is not listening to Smart. Clinton always shows up on all the talk shows and writes a new book. Clearly, they don't take his sage advice. There is even a new poll out about how Obama should step down and Hillary should step up to run for 2012. Obama is that out of favor with voters and his party. Hillary is that IN favor with said folks, polling well with Independents. Of course, it does look suspect that Bill Clinton probably had a friend commission that poll but hey, the numbers still tell the story.
Clinton's new book spends the first half discussing the three decades leading up to our economic crisis. The second half gives several specific prescriptions to return the economy to health...
Clinton cites 49 million Americans are now living below the poverty line. Out of 150 million plus working Americans you can figure out the current lack of health of the economy. He says that every time there is a financial meltdown throughout history that it typically requires at least five to ten years to recover.
Of course, if there is a mortgage collapse it will take longer. Right now there are 20 million homes about to be foreclosed. Millions have already been foreclosed and glutted the market, causing those not foreclosed to be worth far less than the homeowners owe. At the moment there are about six to seven million foreclosed homes affecting the market.
Can you imagine what will happen when another 20 million hit the market? It could easily implode the entire economy. Yet, this White House continues to allow fraudulent lenders like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, along with the Big Banks, continue to foreclose at an alarming rate. These guys can't even prove they own those houses and yet evict folks. What's wrong with that picture?
Clinton wants to restore America's competitive position in the world. He complains about how our politics are geared to conflict instead of cooperation to solve big problems. The public agrees with him and are equally frustrated. One way for that to change is if the Democrats lit a fire under their voters to vote in every election, including primaries. Yet, Democratic voters continue to be apathetic.
Clinton agrees that the stimulus was necessary to put a floor under an imploding financial sector and automobile industry, saving at least 80,000 jobs. The stimulus was too small to have enough of an effect. "You can't fill a multi-trillion dollar hole with only 800 billion dollars.At least I can't; I can't figure out how to make the math work. It put a floor under the recession and prevented it from becoming a depression but it couldn't lift us all the way out." Of course, he did not address how just this year, Ford sent another 5,000 jobs overseas.
Clinton puts forth the idea of when to deal with the long term debt problem. After all, austerity measures only work when the economy is growing. Otherwise, austerity measures can implode the economy and skyrocket the deficit.
Clinton also discusses how during his years in the White House he learned to maneuver the Republicans into position where they would have to compromise. Clearly, that is a skill this Obama White House lacks. Only now are they showing some small interest in doing so. Too little, too late. That's why you see those low numbers in various polls about reelecting Obama.
Clinton talks about how America could easily be competitive in solar and wind energy as opposed to Germany, one of the leaders. After all, he argues, "Germany gets about as much sun as London." Germany gets 300,000 jobs net out of the solar industry. America is capable of generating 2.5 million jobs out of the same energy because we are four times larger than Germany.
Both solar and wind energy will be competitive with coal within five years. Both solar and wind energies are cheaper than nuclear energy. Sure would be nice to shut down all those nuke plants in favor of solar and wind.
What Clinton suggests is to get competitive through tax incentives to bring those solar and wind jobs here to America. His most notable suggestion is to create a Research and Development Tax Credit because it will bring manufacturing jobs back to America. The trend in business is they prefer to keep their research and development close to their manufacturing.
Clinton winds up the interview with advocating how we need to get corporate America to return to the early 1970's model of accountability and responsibility to the community. The trend away from that over the past three decades has created this short term profit grab that actually hurts the long term health of those corporations. He also discusses corporate ethics need an overhaul for America to restore our economic health.
Corporate America and Big Business need to work together to build the economy. Currently, they waste our time with political machinations and Congressional legislation to destroy individual rights and employee rights. In the end, Big Business is in the process of creating a middle class mired in financial slavery.
The only real way things are going to change in this country is to vote out all those who are selling us down the road. That's on both sides of the political aisle. We should vote out every politician every two to four years until they understand the American people mean business, real business.
The people ARE the economy. As long as we are denied good paying jobs, or jobs at all, thrown out of our homes because of underemployment or job losses going overseas, the economy will remain in trouble.
It's time for this White House to get serious about real leadership instead of campaigning for another term. To date, Team Obama have not done anything significant to restore the health of the middle class, and, therefore, the economy. If President Obama does not get serious about properly handling this housing crisis it's the American voters who will get serious.
Bill Clinton Pt. 1
Bill Clinton discusses his book "Back to Work," which reviews the three decades leading up to America's economic crisis and provides a plan for reviving the U.S. economy.
Bill Clinton Pt. 2
Bill Clinton Pt. 2
Bill Clinton discusses the compromises he made during his presidency and the direction he believes America should move in to get its manufacturing jobs back.
* * * See also: Jon Stewart Interviews Bill Clinton, Extended Unedited Interview
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