The State of the Union and Presidential Race

Parts of Warren Buffet’s annual letter to shareholders, published in the March 7, 2016 edition of Barron’s, speaks to his rosy outlook that the next generation of Americans will do better than the previous.  He says “The babies being born in America today are the luckiest crop in history.”  For proof he offers projected growth in GDP, life expectancy and concludes that “America’s golden goose of commerce and innovation will continue to lay more and larger eggs.  America’s kids will live far better than their parents did.”  However Mr. Buffet ignores the state of the national government. 

The Constitution has been shredded over the past 80 years and the debt and liabilities of the government are over $120 trillion and growing at over a half trillion dollars annually – and this does not include the debt of the States.  If Greece is a financial basket-case with debt at some $40,000 per capita then what does that make America with debt at over $54,000 per capita.  Entitlements are unsustainable with no political will to rein them in.  Regulations cost the economy over $1.8 trillion annually, which is chocking investment and growing larger every year.  Taxes must double to even start to approach what the true cost of government is. 

For a man who knows well the danger of debt, taxes and over regulation, Mr. Buffet’s optimism seems out of place, as financial reality will crush the golden goose that Mr. Buffet relies on.

The question for America is not whether the next generation will do better than the prior, but will the American dream even be available for the next generation.  This brings us to the state of the presidential race – abysmal! 

The Democrats have fielded candidates that are almost dead and red.  Hillary Clinton at 68 and Bernie Sanders at 73 were born in the 1940s.  Their far left policies date back to the failed central control communism that brought the collapse of the Soviet Union and are seen in the mass misery in Cuba, Venezuela and North Korea.  Free stuff for all is not free.  Someone pays and eventually those that pay get tired of paying for those that do not pay. 

Then there is the Republican field.  The presidential debates that have turned into the old Saturday Night Live skit of Point-Counter-Point where Dan Aykroyd’s first response to Jane Curtin is “Jane you ignorant slut”.  Political discourse has been reduced to making comments of Trump’s hands or Rubio’s height.  Each of the front runners call the other a liar.  Policy is not even a serious discussion as the media goads the other candidates to attack Trump about this or that.

After, what would be 16 years of arguably the worst back-to-back presidencies in history, of Bush and Obama, the state of the union is in doubt.  Together these presidents have quadrupled the debt to $19 trillion, recklessly expanded entitlements, gave private companies bailouts, spent nearly a trillion dollars on a failed stimulus, produced an economy of anemic growth of barely 2%, stabbed job creation to leave real unemployment (U-6) still at 9.8%, encouraged welfare rather than employment so that there is the lowest workforce participation since the 1980s, and took us into two wars, enabled the rise of Islamic terrorists, set the Middle East in turmoil, put Europe at threat from Russian aggression, rewarded Iran’s disregard to U.N. resolutions with permission to continue nuclear and ballistic missile programs, allowed China to build a military base in international waters, and saw North Korea develop long range ballistic missiles that can carry nuclear warheads.

A clear-eyed, non-partisan analysis of the country is that it is in a serious state.  Few give a hoot about the Constitution and limited government by the people.  Government is promoted as the source of solutions but the problems it creates are ignored.  Most think government decides what rights people have instead of the other way around.  Waste, fraud and abuse easily claims a half trillion dollars annually but remains only a campaign slogan and not a serious policy issue.

We need to rise and demand better, for if there is truly a responsible citizenry then it does not matter who we elect.  Join the dialogue, get informed with facts – not media blather, and reason a judgement toward your vote.  Our nation and the light of liberty are in the balance this very important election cycle.