Democrats are at a crossroads shortly after taking control of the government in January. Should they take a lesson from Barack Obama and be humble, or should they ram through progressive and costly programs that transfer wealth to people at lower socioeconomic levels on the shoulders of the affluent? How will this philosophy impact the growth and well-being of our economy and society?
President Obama responded aggressively to the Great Recession, although many of his advisers believed he did not go big enough in deference to Republican objections. An $800 billion spending plan in 2008 was a seemingly bold plan involving federal government support. It was the largest amount of fiscal aid that has ever been provided. No one knew what the ramifications of such a large capital infusion would be at the time. Progressives said it didn’t matter, and Republicans predicted it would have a significant impact on inflation caused by astronomical spending by the federal government.
Biden and his fellow Democrats are once again testing the limits of fiscal giveaways by enacting a law that provides $1.9 trillion of assistance. The new president ignored the warnings of his rivals about the national debt, the weakening of the dollar and other things such as support of state budgets. Not one Republican senator voted for the legislation.
Progressives lauded the amount of money dedicated to minority causes, climate control, etc. The financial impact of the Covid pandemic was the impetuous upon which progressives passed this legislation. The total Covid related funds provided by the federal government are now several trillion dollars, although a large amount of the funds will be used for unrelated purposes. How will this impact the country economically?
The result of this overfunding will ultimately determine the fate of Democrats politically in the near future. If the country bounces back and inflation remains low, liberals will be celebrating more gains electorally. If the aid package does not do what progressive say it will, or if the country is subjected to inflationary pressures, the Dems will be struck down in the 2022 midterm elections.
Biden has gotten off to a horrendously bad start on the immigration front. The problems, suffering and confusion on the southern border, will be painful politically to liberals. The US is enabling thousands of destitute illegals to enter into the country without an infrastructure to manage the process. Towns and cities across the country will be hard pressed to accommodate these poor individuals.
The next thing on Biden’s agenda may be elimination of the filibuster. This will give liberals an opportunity to tear down our capitalistic society and keep the spigots open to fund illegal immigration and costly new entitlements. Forgiving college debt will soon be discussed, another trillion-dollar adventure.