Sharpen the Economic Contrast
The Politics
As our economy falls apart, conservatives are changing their tune. Donning the garb of reformers, they pretend that they weren’t in charge of Washington over the last eight years and that they had nothing to do with the mess we face. It is vital that we hold them accountable for their record—and that we contrast conservative misrule with the progressive alternative.
The Argument
Contrast on jobs: conservative trickle-down or progressive growth. Since January, our economy has lost more than 600,000 net jobs and the current unemployment rate of 6.1 percent is the worst it’s been in five years. [Bureau of Labor Statistics] The conservatives’ answer is more tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations. John McCain’s tax plan, for example, would cut corporate taxes in half. [JohnMcCain.com] But we already tried this with the Bush tax cuts—and it produced a “recovery” with the weakest growth since World War II. In fact, most Americans lost ground financially during the Bush recovery. [Center for Budget and Policy Priorities] We need a new direction. The progressive solution is to boost the economy by investing in clean energy, better schools, and safer bridges, highways, and levees, creating millions of new jobs. Barack Obama, for example, would immediately jumpstart the economy with a $50 billion stimulus, and would create 5 million new jobs in the long term through greater investments in clean energy and advanced manufacturing strategies. [BarackObama.com]
Contrast on health care: conservative market schemes or progressive affordable health care for all. From 2000 to 2007, the cost of employer-sponsored health insurance increased by more than 55 percent and 9 million Americans lost insurance coverage. [Kaiser Family Foundation] Conservatives want to accelerate the decline of employer-based coverage and push people into the individual insurance market. John McCain, for example, would tax you for your employer’s payments toward your health care. He’d then give you a $2,500 tax credit to buy insurance on your own. Lots of luck with that. [JohnMcCain.com] The progressive solution is to give Americans options to either keep their current insurance, switch to another private plan, or sign up for a new national plan. Barack Obama, for example, would allow any American—including small-business employees and the self-employed—to choose to obtain affordable health insurance from a new national plan. [BarackObama.com]
Contrast on trade: conservative unfair trade or progressive fair trade. Because of our trade policies, more than 3 million manufacturing jobs have been shipped overseas during the past seven years and 40 million other American jobs are at risk of being outsourced to countries like China, India, and Mexico. [Associated Press] Every day, America sends $2 billion more to other countries than they send to us. Conservatives promise more of the same disastrous policies that created these messes. John McCain, for example, says he would sign more NAFTA-like trade agreements. [JohnMcCain.com] Progressives call for a time out on any new trade accords until the U.S. develops a clear strategy for competing in the global economy. This would include protecting workers, consumers, and the environment in trade accords; launching a concerted drive for sustainable energy independence; and managing trade with China and other mercantilist nations that play by a different set of rules. Barack Obama, for example, would fix NAFTA and use trade agreements to promote strong labor and environmental standards around the world. [BarackObama.com]
Contrast on Social Security: conservative privatization or progressive strengthening of the trust fund. The alarms about Social Security are exaggerated. If no changes are made, the Social Security trust fund will be totally solvent until 2049. And recipients thereafter would still receive higher real benefits than seniors today. [Congressional Budget Office] Conservatives want to declare this a “crisis” and use it as an excuse to privatize Social Security. For example, John McCain has said that he is “totally in favor” of private individual Social Security accounts “along the lines that President Bush proposed.” [Wall Street Journal] But if Social Security had been privatized under Bush, millions of seniors would be watching their retirement funds plummet with the stock market. Progressives pledge to secure the promise of Social Security for all. If our economy grows as fast over the next forty years as it has in the past, Social Security will be fine. If we change our economic strategy to ensure that wages rise, Social Security will be fine. If necessary, as Barack Obama points out, we can simply lift the cap from Social Security contribution requirements, so that people such as Bill Gates and Warren Buffett contribute at the same rate their secretaries do. [BarackObama.com]
Contrast on energy: conservative cheerleading for the oil industry or progressive energy independence. The average price of regular gasoline—about $1.50 when George W. Bush took office—has more than doubled. [Oil Price Information Service] Conservatives want to continue to rely on oil companies for America’s energy. John McCain, for example, is focusing on oil drilling as the “solution” for our energy woes. [JohnMcCain.com] Progressives know that we can’t drill our way to energy independence, and are focused on long-term solutions that harness America’s own renewable energy resources while creating millions of new jobs. Barack Obama, for example, would invest $150 billion over ten years to support the development of clean, renewable energy while creating 5 million new jobs. [BarackObama.com]
Progressive Solutions
Demand a debate worthy of a great nation in trouble. Across the country, conservative candidates are seeking to distract voters from the real challenges this nation faces—and from the mess that conservative misrule has created. The Institute for America’s Future is running an ad series in the New York Times to highlight the critical issues our country needs to address and progressive solutions that work. To read more about this ad series and join in the effort to raise the level of debate, click here.
