Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I would like to speak a bit about the two competing philosophies of economic growth. The first version I will discuss is the so-called Keynesian economics, which has been the basis of the Obama administration's economic policy since January 2009 and, I would add, with little to no success in reviving our economy and reducing unemployment. Keynesian economics relies on the theory that in recessionary times, increased government spending can take the place of private sector activity, hence the administration's nearly $1 trillion stimulus package, the Cash for Clunkers Program and a litany of other government programs, transfer payments, and temporary tax credits. This administration's insistence on enacting these temporary Keynesian policies to stimulate consumption is misguided and has ultimately failed. As the Wall Street Journal editorialized in a piece called ``The Obama Economy:'' Never before has government spent so much and intervened so directly in credit allocation to spur growth, yet the results have been mediocre at best. In return for adding nearly $3 trillion in Federal debt in 2 years, we still have 14.9 million people unemployed. What happened? Well, I will mention three problems with Keynesian economics that I think help to answer that question. First of all, someone without a job is not going to be fooled into spending more money because of a one- time payment that he or she received from the Federal Government.…”