Republicans demand praise for the US's modestly-growing
economic pie, despite trying to shrink it. It's an Olympian level of chutzpah.
Several news reports, including this one, recently stated that the GOP wants
some credit for getting the US economy growing once more. To me it's an
unassailable example of the GOP leadership suffering from political
Alzheimer's. John Boehner, Mitch McConnell and their congressional amnesiacs expressed
upset that President Obama has received (deserved) praise for helping to lower
the unemployment rate – now at 5.6% - and increase the GDP's growth – now at
5%.
In my book, their consistent efforts
to thwart the Obama administration's every attempt to increase government
spending and offer vital economic benefit for middle- and working class
citizens earns them a leaden medal, certainly not a bronze one.
Speaker Boehner actually criticized
the administration for average hourly wages failing to increase. It's yet another
example of the GOP's empty fiscal pot calling the economic kettle black. After all, the Republicans have stymied any rise in the federal minimum
wage, as well as predominantly opposed increases in state-based minimums. Ominously, their new
control of Congress will likely result in Congress doing nothing to help the majority
of Americans escape continuing economic challenges. Why? Because they're "austerians."
Austerian is an inventive term applied
to politicians (and economists) who have dogmatically stuck to austerity-focused
public policies – ones that reduce debt and government expenditures – despite
elevated unemployment and frail growth. Austerians in Congress have prevented needed
expansionary fiscal policy efforts from being enacted during the past 5 years
and regularly raised the fearful specter of high inflation if the government
spends more on unemployment support, infrastructure or education. Their fears
are completely unfounded. How much have overall prices increased during our
fragile recovery? The latest Consumer Price Index increased 1.3% on an annual basis. That's almost 50%
lower than the Federal Reserve's 2% inflation rate target. With broader
austerian policies in place, Europe is actually experiencing deflation,
elevated unemployment and an incipient recession.
Austerians include virtually all GOP
and Tea Party members in Congress, as well as several governors; including Sam Brownback
in Kansas whose disastrous
fiscal efforts have burdened everyone in the Sunflower State. Other members of
the austerian alliance include foreign heads of state like German Prime
Minister Angela Merkel. In 2 weeks she'll likely face another show-down with a
new Greek government. This face-off could lead to the Grexit (the departure of
Greece from the Euro-zone), if the European Community (economically lead by
Germany) doesn't re-negotiate with Greece and it defaults on its loan
obligations. Once again, we'll see who blinks first, and whether her
long-standing austerianism bends at all. I bet not.
The nascent Austerian school of
economics, just across the philosophical border from the Austrian
school of economics, is populated with conservative
economists and similarly-minded politicians, who aren't burdened by the facts
of recent history. In sum, the austerians have done nothing to get the economy growing again (or improving the lives of
99.5% of its citizens). Austerians have been myopically focused on halting the
Affordable Care Act, increasing income and wealth disparity and ending nonexistent
inflation.
Yet they want credit for doing worse
than nothing. It's enough to turn a skeptic of American politics into a true cynic.
