The solution to regaining our confidence in America is simple. The results are obvious. The implementation is beyond difficult.
Unless we are certain the future is secure, we, the American people, will not spend. And, spending is the only way out of our current malaise — individual spending, that is you and I, not government. Government spending temporarily creates jobs, but its spending only gets us deeper in debt and the continued loss of confidence in our future.
When we say, “I am not sure” and decide to put off buying that new car and make the old one last another year we are holding back employment growth. Only when manufacturers and retailers say,
“The demand for my product or service has outgrown my ability to meet demand” will they go out and hire more employees. It’s just that simple.
The myth that reducing income taxes for the wealthy will result in their hiring more employees is just that, a myth. No one spends money hiring more employees than they need. I wouldn’t. And I am sure you would not.
The middle class will spend if they feel confident in the future. There is the key word — confidence. What will make you and I feel confident about our future? Many factors, but No. 1 is our belief that our elected leaders have our best interests at heart, and are less concerned about their own futures. What they seem to miss is the fact that we would return them to office over and over again if we feel that they are working for us.
Our elected officials in Washington, DC, can make or break the public’s confidence. The battle between Democrats and Republicans for political dominance, a concern for political party over the best interest of America, is at the root of our problem. Retiring U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman said it all in his retirement speech from the floor of the Senate a few weeks ago. It is worth quoting:
“Today I regret to say as I leave the Senate that the greatest obstacle that I see standing between us and the brighter American future we all want is right here in Washington. It’s the partisan polarization of our politics, which prevents us from making the principled compromises on which progress in a democracy depends, and right now which prevents us from restoring our fiscal solvency as a nation. We need bipartisan leadership to break the gridlock in Washington that will unleash all the potential that is the American people.”
Lack of confidence works its way all the way down to local government. Here at home in Miami- Dade we would not have fought so hard, for so many years, to limit county commissioner terms in office if we felt they put the public’s interest first. We would have been happy to let them die in office, if they put the citizens of the county ahead of their futures.
Lack of trust and confidence in our political leaders must be restored to turn around America. And only our elected leaders in Washington, Tallahassee, Miami-Dade and our local municipalities can resolve the loggerhead.
Compromise is the word. Do it now, Washington, before it is too late.
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