A recent criticism that I have had of John McCain (and Sentor Obama too for that matter) is that he always talks about his comprehensive economic plan that will create millions of good American jobs, ensure our nation's energy security, get the government's budget and spending practices in order, and bring relief to American consumers but I have not heard the specific details about what he plans to do to get America out of the current economic and financial crisis.
That all changed today when I visited the McCain website and on the main page saw "Jobs for America- Read the Plan." Needless to say I was pleasantly surprised. They broke the McCain Economic Plan down into eight sections: workplace flexibility, relief for families, government reform, supporting small business, cheap and clean energy, better health care, simpler and fairer taxes, and lower barriers to trade. The sections are brief but specific and informative.
A lower corporate tax rate is essential to keeping good jobs in the United States. Under the "Supporting Small Business" section it talks about what McCain plans to do. For example, he will keep the top tax rate at 35%, maintain the 15% rates on dividends and capital gains, and phase-out the Alternative Minimum Tax, cut the corporate tax rate from 35 to 25%, allow a first-year deduction ("expensing") of technology and equipment investments, and establish a permanent tax credit equal to 10% of wages spent on R&D.
Each one of these initiatives is explained briefly in plain English that any American can understand. There are also links to "tell a friend" and to "download, print, and share" the plan. Wow! I know that in a debate format there is limited time to propose a plan and share all the details, but I think McCain should direct people to his website where everything is clearly explained. I was really impressed- go to the McCain website and see if you agree.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
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2 comments:
I really do not understand why McCain lacks so much confidence in his understanding of the economy. His economic plan encompasses the very fundamentals of creating economic growth in a market driven economy. I realize he has advisors and experts to help him formulate his policies but in the end he has final say over what his plans will be. For any economy to grow, investment is required. How do you get people to invest when it is so unstable though? Ensure they will make a profit by maintaining or raising capital gain rates, which is part of McCain's plan. The problem I learned in my macroeconomics class is that when you increase only one of the elements required for economic growth, another becomes a constraint. If there is more investment in capital (we acquire more buildings, machinery, etc.), then labor will become a constraint eventually because we will exceed our labor force capacity (not enough people to work machinery--capital accumulation) If there is investment in human capital (labor), then capital will become a constraint (not enough jobs to go around). Economist David Colander says that the only factor contributing to economic growth that will never serve as a constraint is technology. It breaks through these barriers and will lead to more and more technological improvements. McCain's plan includes giving a tax credit to research and development wages. It really is a no brainer. The fundamentals of a market economy are fairly simple and mostly require commonsense. I think he gets it. He needs to act like it.
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