Corporate welfare alive and well in the Obama administration
Who is happiest with President Obama’s nominees to head the EPA (Gina McCarthy) and the Energy Department (Ernest Moniz)? As Tim Carney explains, it’s neither environmentalists on the left nor free marketeers on the right, but the lobby groups that seek as many beneficial — for their corporate members — government subsidies and mandates as possible:
Although Obama regularly talks about ending “corporate welfare,” battling the “special interests” and creating a “level playing field,” he has steadfastly supported government favors for the ethanol industry — favors that increase costs for drivers, taxpayers, ranchers and grocery shoppers.
The Solar Energy Industries Association also applauded Obama’s nomination of McCarthy and Moniz. Solar companies profit from a production tax credit that Obama recently fought to extend, and a plethora of stimulus subsidies such as loan guarantees, tax credits and grants.
Check who’s investing big in solar energy, and you’ll notice a lot of politically connected names, such as Al Gore, Warren Buffett and Vinod Khosla.
And this is not a new thing for the president, Carney notes:
Obama never has been anti-business. His stimulus amounted to billions in corporate subsidies. His health care bill is a boon to hospitals and drug-makers. He was the most important supporter of Bush’s bailout outside the Bush administration in 2008.
Carney’s right. Obama isn’t anti-business. He’s anti-markets.
As I have written before, both liberals and conservatives need to recognize the nexus of Big Government and Big Business is more problematic than either one on its own. Democrats and Republicans both have a bad tendency to scold the industries they don’t like while protecting the ones they do.
Big Green Energy is one industry the Democrats definitely like. As Carney puts it, the idea is: “Politicians and bureaucrats tell business what to do, and business gets to make a profit doing it.”
But only the biggest businesses benefit from that arrangement: Only they can afford the lobbyists who help shape the legislation and absorb the costs the legislation foists on them. The upside for them is they become further entrenched in their markets, keeping smaller competitors at bay and, in some cases, virtually guaranteeing themselves profits. That builds up a lot of economic sclerosis over time, and it’s one reason America has lost some of its competitive edge.
The good news is that our economy is still dynamic enough — as opposed to, say, many of those in continental Europe — to overcome that sclerosis if we start to unwind that Big Government/Big Business relationship. Obama’s nominees for EPA and Energy suggest that won’t be happening in the next four years. The GOP would do well to spend that time changing its own M.O.
– By Kyle Wingfield
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615 comments Add your comment
Dusty
March 10th, 2013
1:46 pm
Tiberius,
Nothing good in brussel sprouts? VITAMINS! Didn’t Kyle live and eat in Brussels? That’s why he is a strong sprouting conservative! (That’s a compliment. Tha’t’s right. A COMPLIMENT!)
Hillbilly D
March 10th, 2013
1:49 pm
Didn’t Kyle live and eat in Brussels?
He came home didn’t he?
MarkV
March 10th, 2013
1:53 pm
Dusty @ 1:16 pm
I can correct that feeling immediately.
A quiz for Dusty: How long would it take you to drink enough of your Kool –Aid to consume 16.7 trillions of water molecules?
Dusty
March 10th, 2013
1:56 pm
getalife
Come on. Get a life! Of course BurgerKIng is the bestest! And I do love some Manichevitz with fruitcake at Christmas. (I’m dreaming of a white Christmas..la la la )
I’ve got it. What you need is some Brussel Sprouts, Not that green leafy stuff you’ve been smoking.
So bon bons for you from the happy cons here. Not much happiness for the libs right now. Better ljuck next time. So give me a happy sequester SMILE!
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
March 10th, 2013
1:57 pm
Brussel sprouts are far better than brocoli. I don’t even know why brocoli exists. If this is the best that “evolution” can do, no wonder obozo’s the “president.”
Hillbilly D
March 10th, 2013
2:05 pm
So, now the question is, how many molecules of water are there in a gallon of water? The density of water is 1g/(cm3) so in 1 gallon of water ( about 3.785 Liters or 3785 cm3) the mass of the water is, 3785g. 1 mole of 6.02×1023 molecules of water is equal has the mass in grams equal to the molecular weight or 18 grams per mole. so 3785 grams corresponds to about 1.265 x 1026 molecules of water.
Don’t know anymore after I read that than I did before.
http://www.physlink.com/education/askexperts/ae367.cfm
getalife
March 10th, 2013
2:11 pm
Brocoli exists to go in my General Tso’s chicken.
Rafe Hollister preparing for an Obamanist America
March 10th, 2013
2:13 pm
Nothing like the smell of cabbage or brussel sprouts simmering on the stove, to wet my appetite for a BK Whopper, large fries, and one of those chemical based non milk shakes. Conservatives are big on more, more freedom, more money, more guns, more time off, more cholesterol.
indigo
March 10th, 2013
2:14 pm
Barry – 1:40
Do you have ANY evidence that Michelle knew about these anti-Zionist remarks earlier?
Rafe Hollister preparing for an Obamanist America
March 10th, 2013
2:15 pm
Broccoli and water run through a blender make a great “green” paint for your outdoor furniture.
Rafe Hollister preparing for an Obamanist America
March 10th, 2013
2:17 pm
Do you have ANY evidence that Michelle knew about these anti-Zionist remarks earlier?
Research requires work, so you are probably right, she didn’t know prior to.
Dusty
March 10th, 2013
2:19 pm
Well, MarkV,
I was telling you how I count every water moleule I drink (but the blog drank it up and it disappeared).
Hillbilly answered in the exact words I would have used about H2O (Oh yes!) and if he’s not right on water just let me know. I once did some surfing (in water) and I am sure that is closely related research. Us scientists have to stick together here! .
Dusty
March 10th, 2013
2:21 pm
getalife,
General Tso’s chicken is only so so.
getalife
March 10th, 2013
2:27 pm
“General Tso’s chicken is only so so”
When I order Chinese, I always order that and potstickers.
indigo
March 10th, 2013
2:30 pm
Rafe – 2:17
It looks as though the State Department decides who gets this award. I seriously doubt either the President or Michelle had anything to do with the selections.
With many here, of course, it’s “guilty until proven innocent”.
http://www.voanews.com/content/us-state-department-to-recognize-9-women-of-courage/1617653.html
Dusty
March 10th, 2013
2:32 pm
What are potstickers?
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
March 10th, 2013
2:37 pm
Mongolian beef – mmm, mmmm, mmmmm!
getalife
March 10th, 2013
2:40 pm
Dusty,
“Steve Schmidt: Republican Party ‘Doesn’t Give Equal Opportunity To Women’”
What are self defeatists?
getalife
March 10th, 2013
2:43 pm
My bad.
Not potstickers, terriki chicken on a stick.
MarkV
March 10th, 2013
2:44 pm
Dusty @ 2:19 pm
Hillbilly is quite correct as far as calculations are concerned, but I was hoping you would understand the hint of 16.7 trillion. (The answer to the quiz would be “just about no time,” because there are more molecules than 16.7 trillion than even in the tiniest drop you can drink). The point therefore was to show you that the number 16.7 trillion has no special significance, it is just a number, and it has a meaning only when compared with something else. If there were a country ten time bigger (in the economic sense) than the US, 16.7 trillion would be an inconsequential debt. For a country half our economy, it would be catastrophic. For us it is high, but manageable.
Lil' Barry Bailout - OBAMAPHONE!!!
March 10th, 2013
2:46 pm
The Obozo regime considers itself the most tech-savvy evah. And they didn’t check the award nominee’s Twitter feed?
They’re either incompetent, or they agree with her anti-American, Jew-bashing opinions.
You tell me which.
getalife
March 10th, 2013
2:49 pm
Yeah, I remember w handing out medals to those who missed 9/11.
He is famous for rewarding failures like himself.
indigo
March 10th, 2013
2:55 pm
Barry – 2:46 “they’re either incompetent, or they agree with her anti-American, Jew-bashing opinions”
This type of pseudoreasoning is know as the “false dilemma”.
It results from limiting consideration to only two alternatives when, in fact, there are others that deserve consideration.
Your shallow fundmentalist homeschooling really shines thru on this, as on virtually everything else you post.
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
March 10th, 2013
2:57 pm
They agree with her.
Lil' Barry Bailout - OBAMAPHONE!!!
March 10th, 2013
3:00 pm
Obozo didn’t think anyone would find out.
Welcome to the Internet age.
bluecoat
March 10th, 2013
4:14 pm
since we are on the culinary channel How about deep fried cauliflower.Dip in a good batter(pancake with some added corn meal) deep fry till golden brown.taste like scallops.
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
March 10th, 2013
4:18 pm
• Education Secretary Arne Duncan’s assertion that “There are literally teachers now who are getting pink slips” in Kanawha County, W.Va., because of the sequester? Wrong, Duncan later admitted.
• Obama’s threat that federal prosecutors would “have to close cases and let criminals go”? “Mostly False,” ruled Politifact.
• A White House fact sheet stating that subsidized programs such as Meals on Wheels would serve “4 million fewer meals to seniors”? At best, exaggerated.
• “Up to 70,000 children would lose access” to Head Start programs, as Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius asserted? Incorrect.
• Our favorite: Officials predicting dreadful airport delays, juxtaposed with TV images of passengers meandering casually through uncrowded airports.
http://static1.grsites.com/archive/sounds/comic/comic002.wav
bluecoat
March 10th, 2013
4:32 pm
Makes one wonder why the cons wanted the cuts.Unless these people were employed by the previous admn.just to cook the books.
Lil' Barry Bailout - OBAMAPHONE!!!
March 10th, 2013
4:37 pm
Government grants make up 4% of Meals On Wheels funding. A 5% cut to that 4% is 0.2%. Boo freakin’ hoo. Make a donation and quit whining.
Bud Wiser
March 10th, 2013
4:44 pm
I notice a lot of left wing slobberers from Bokman have slimed their way on this page. Whatsamatta, Jay throw you off for being too conservative?
He does that you know, because that is the way of the socialist agenda, to stifle free opinion and discussion.
For if you do not follow into the left line, you get “woodied” (my new slang word for the White House and the fools they made themselves by thinking they were threatening Bob Wodward).
getalife
March 10th, 2013
4:50 pm
Yeah attack the Seniors cons.
Anyhoo, back to the food thingie.
I like spinach like Popeye.
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
March 10th, 2013
5:34 pm
Senator Rand Paul @SenRandPaul
#SequesterThis: $200 million of your taxpayer dollars funded a reality TV show in India.
Darrell Issa @DarrellIssa
#SequesterThis–> @usgao finds that wasted courthouse space costs taxpayers at least $51 million a year.
Sen. Tom Coburn M.D. @TomCoburn
#SequesterThis HUD threatens cuts in services to low-income families while overpaying slumlords & housing execs http://goo.gl/dX9Nu
One should also wonder what it’s costing us to feed michelle, that’s gotta be a reather, ahem, large budget item right there. From the size of those arms and that rear end we’re talking lobster by the ton.
getalife
March 10th, 2013
5:55 pm
If a picture of our First Lady drives you mad like aesop, seek medical help asap.
We should demand a better return on investment with our tax money.
That is our job.
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
March 10th, 2013
5:58 pm
It was two pictures, gitmo, she won’t fit all the way into one.
Lil' Barry Bailout - OBAMAPHONE!!!
March 10th, 2013
6:21 pm
LOL, Aesop!
Hillbilly D
March 10th, 2013
6:29 pm
I like spinach like Popeye.
I always wondered why Bluto/Brutus didn’t just eat his own can of spinach and kick Popeye’s ass.
Why is Popeye’s nemesis sometimes called Brutus, and other times called Bluto?
Lawyers.
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1548/is-popeyes-nemesis-named-bluto-or-brutus
getalife
March 10th, 2013
6:48 pm
Nice link Hillbilly D.
I think Bluto tried the spinach but it did not work like it does for Popeye
This one caught my eye:
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2555/do-tinfoil-helmets-provide-adequate-protection-against-mind-control-rays.
Hillbilly D
March 10th, 2013
6:54 pm
getalife @ 6:48
That one caught my eye, too, but I was going to save and drop it into the middle of a serious discussion, someday.
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
March 10th, 2013
6:54 pm
Hey gitmo, when global “warming” really starts kicking in and the sea levels rise up, turn your tin foil hat over and use it as a boat.
getalife
March 10th, 2013
7:02 pm
Hillbilly D and Aesop’s Fables and other Lib Economic Theories ,
Now y’all are talking
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
March 10th, 2013
7:06 pm
Some are quietly wondering whether Atlanta is in danger of becoming “the Detroit of the South.”
These cities, after breaking away politically from urban Atlanta, have become so successful that a libertarian think tank, the Reason Foundation, has featured Sandy Springs as a model of effective government. The Economist has also applauded the northern Atlanta cities for solving the problem of unfunded government pension liability and avoiding the bankruptcy that looms over some urban areas. The new cities may soon be able to create their own school districts, which would free them even further from the issues besetting Atlanta.
Gee, I wonder why they want to get away from the Atl?
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
March 10th, 2013
7:13 pm
“Steve Schmidt: Republican Party ‘Doesn’t Give Equal Opportunity To Women’”
Steve Schmidt is a prepuce. That guy would sell his mother for a segment on PMSNBC.
breckenridge
March 10th, 2013
8:38 pm
Yeah but Schmidt he was spot-on with his analysis as Palin an unqualified idiot. I still don’t know what McCain was thinking when he picked her, it cost him any chance he had to win the 2008 election. The selection of Palin as a running mate was almost as astute as GW Bush nominating his secretary Harriet for the Supreme Court.
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
March 10th, 2013
8:48 pm
mccain is a moron and he’s working overtime to prove it. The 2008 ticket was a$$ backwards.
getalife
March 10th, 2013
9:03 pm
He picked her to get the unhinged con voters like Aesop.
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
March 10th, 2013
9:04 pm
It should come as little surprise then that conservatives—happily tuned to talk radio while they drive—remain the great defenders of the automobile. Cars appeal powerfully to one of the most important conservative values: individual freedom. Straphangers in public conveyances can only travel in groups, moving along with hordes of strangers according to schedules imposed by others. Bicyclists, free as they may be, are clearly limited by distance and time constraints. Once you get into a car, however, you go wherever you want, whenever you want, subject only to your ability to put gas in the tank.
You have to be some sort of freak to hate an automobile.
Lil' Barry Bailout - OBAMAPHONE!!!
March 10th, 2013
9:13 pm
Progs would hate automobiles even if they ran on unicorn farts, for the very reason your post alludes to–the automobile represents INDIVIDUAL freedom.
bluecoat
March 10th, 2013
9:27 pm
Teaquester this you could take any of the wasted spending and apply to any presidential administration,may not be item for item but waste will be there.
Michelle may or may not eat more than Laura did. Did you complain about the food cost for laura.Well what is the difference????
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
March 10th, 2013
9:39 pm
“Yeah but Schmidt he was spot-on with his analysis as Palin an unqualified idiot.”
Sorry, but while Palin was not the best choice for VP, she’s still head and shoulders above either of the two Incompetents leading this administration.
breckenridge
March 10th, 2013
9:44 pm
“mccain is a moron and he’s working overtime to prove it. The 2008 ticket was a$$ backwards.”
Right. McCain had the same problem Romney had – he wasn’t “conservative enough.”
Okay, for the sake of argument Romney wasn’t conservative enough. Suppose Romney would have come out and said “yep, the critics are right, I’m not conservative enough so I’m dropping out of the race.” So then the #2 candidate Rick Santorum would have won the nomination. And how do you think that would have played out last November? I’ll tell you exactly what would have happened – Obama would have been elected in a landslide of epic proportions, completely embarrassing the GOP. That’s because Santorum is a religious whack-job and that tune is not going to play again in America. Ever.