NewsViewz.com

Where are the real economic conservatives?

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D95VULUO0&show_article=1

This article discusses President Obama's willingness to compromise on the so-called "stimulus package" that is likely to be voted on by Congress today.

Some Republicans quoted in the article say that they are getting more hassles from Democrats in Congress than the Democrat in the White House.  While I assume that's true, I think there is a bigger concern that Republicans (many - not all) have conceded the argument over whether it's the government's job to stimulate.

The argument they should be having on Capital Hill is whether they should even be spending any money to "stimulate" the economy.  Republicans seem to have conceded that core issue.  All that's left to discuss is the level to which it's appropriate for the government to spend.

If they truly believe that the economy is best recovered through government spending, then why stop at $800 or $900 billion?

Don't be fooled by "tax cuts" in President-Elect Obama's Stimulas Proposal.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/05/AR2009010502752.html

There has been a considerable amount of buzz in the media about the President-Elect Barack Obama's forthcoming stimulas package and the inclusion of some $300 Billion Dollars in so-called tax cuts.

His positions during the campaign on "tax cuts" should be cause for worry on this front, and smart observers will pay close attention to the details of the plan and not just the talking points.

For starters, a tax cut is only a tax cut if the person receiving the tax cut is already paying taxes.  Otherwise, it's just another form of welfare.  Part of President-Elect Obama's plan has always been to take tax revenue from those paying taxes and give it to those who do not pay taxes.  His so-called "tax cuts" are mostly targeted toward those people who already pay very little to no taxes.

To give him credit, the President-Elect Obama is discussing cutting business taxes, and that part of his plan needs to be discussed and thought through a bit more.  There may be some good there.

But, in general, President-Elect Obama's tax cut philosophy will always be centered around the idea that your money belongs to the government, and only through redistributionist policies will the government determine who gets how much back.  This is accomplished through tax credits and other incentives that first require the government to collect the money.

This is a big difference between traditional conservatives and big government liberals (both Democrat and Republican).  Conservatives argue that it's our money (private property rights are paramount), and that the government has a very short list of enumerated powers granted to them by the States through the Constitution for collecting and spending our money.