Mike Lester for May 23, 2017

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    jorgen Premium Member almost 7 years ago

    Easy: the Democrats – in particular Obama – created President Trump, made both houses and thousands of seats all over the country Republican.

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    emptc12  almost 7 years ago

    I predict that in History’s view, Obama will be the light that failed; Trump the darkness that descended: the final years of perceived American greatness.

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    KenseidenXL  almost 7 years ago

    WRONG!!!!Trump was the inevitable result of 50 years of their “Southern Strategy” combined with their war on the poor.

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    superposition  almost 7 years ago

    Trump is a symptom of decades of trickle-down neoliberal economics endorsed by both political parties. The military industrial complex, medical industrial complex, and the finance sector have absorbed the wealth that was more equitably distributed under Keynesian policies leaving an underclass that is unable to participate in the growth in the economy as the well as the urbanites have been able to. As we look around there is work that needs to be done -—- repairing infrastructure, training the unemployed in current skills, etc -—- yet, with all the work to be done, there are no corresponding jobs. The jobs that are available benefit the profit of corporations not the American population. We have two political parties that in spite of what they say, and who they say it to, once re-elected serve the needs of the corporations over the needs of the people. When we start electing representatives that care more about people than profit we will restore the equilibrium of our society.

    Bush’s “Compassionate Conservatism”, Obama’s “Hope and Change”, and Trump’s “Make America Great Again” seem the same to me as Congress has shown no sign that they intend to DEPART from their dedication to the needs of the military industrial complex, the medical industrial complex, and the finance sectors and have great plans to take care of the middle class by converted the work that we see need to be done into jobs for the American people.

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    rossevrymn  almost 7 years ago

    Yes, you’re correct, latent, unconscious, racism

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    Mr. Blawt  almost 7 years ago

    I love how every time the Republicans make a huge mess of the country (see W years, Trump) the only think they can do is blame the democrats. How does Obama have anything to do with an unpopular racist who treated the president worse than he himself has been treated? How did Obama get Trump to win the Republicans primaries? How did he get the Electoral college vote to install this incompetent idiot? Only a Republican would have so little responsibility for their own actions that they would blame everyone around them for what they’ve done. Is it great yet? haha go blame a democrat you big baby.

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    tengu99  almost 7 years ago

    Bah. The foundation for Trump was put in place by years for Fox, Breitbart, and everyone else who packages news with a heavy dose of anger, bile, and panic. If this is all you hear then your bound to stop thinking critically and get swept up in it.

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    Nantucket Premium Member almost 7 years ago

    The media giving all the free publicity to Trump because it resulted in ratings / clicks, the repeated Benghazi hearings that the GOP admitted were done to lower HRC’s poll numbers, Comey feeling the need to reveal irrelevant emails right before the election while not feeling that he needed to reveal Trump connections to Russia all led to Trump winning the electoral college. Also people are frustrated by both parties being fueled by Wall Street and the 1%. Even though Trump constantly contradicted himself, often in the same sentence, too many people liked what they heard from Trump and somehow convinced themselves that he could accomplish anything of value for the American public. You cannot hire someone with no experience or knowledge that claims they know all the answers – that is just wishful thinking and now Trump asks “who knew ’fill in the blank” is so complicated?".

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    Mr. Blawt  almost 7 years ago

    I am sorry you posted this as well, Keynesian hasn’t been proven as big of a failure as trickle down. Capitalism doesn’t given people the ability to support themselves and families by economic means. It hasn’t separated power from Government and has not strengthened our ability to function. Trump didn’t bring any jobs back to the US. Your post is a big spin of a lie that doesn’t even need to be. You are just pretending Trump has fixed everything and made America great. Didn’t happen.

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    Uncle Joe Premium Member almost 7 years ago

    @Jack- “China used Free Enterprise to bring four hundred million out of poverty, Venezuela is a failure, the Soviet Union failed. Venezuela redistributed money right to people who did not know what to do with it.”

    China used Central Planning & massive government subsidies to create their huge tech manufacturing centers. They were able to take hundreds of millions of people from a very low performing agricultural sector & create something of a middle class. They still have hundreds of millions left behind & growth is slowing. Trying to maintain growth without real financial, let alone political freedom looks like an iffy proposition.

    In Venezuela, Chavez rode promises of redistributing wealth from their oil boom to the masses into political power. Unlike the Chinese, Venezuela wasn’t investing in any sort of diversified economy. They bet it all on black gold. When oil prices tumbled, the payouts tumbled.

    Neither is an example of Keynesian principles. Keynes understood that developed economies are based mainly on domestic consumption. Keynes simply noted that economies recover from downturns more quickly if the government spends more money to replace consumer spending during those periods, whether it’s in the form of tax cuts, infrastructure spending or handing out checks to people who need help getting food & paying rent. When the economy is thriving, it’s good & responsible to pare down government spending.

    American capitalism is once again turning into an oligarchy. Teddy Roosevelt understood the danger of letting a few men hold too much wealth. Sad that you don’t.

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    Uncle Joe Premium Member almost 7 years ago

    And seriously, focusing on Obama as the ‘cause’ of Trump suggests that Obama pushed for policies that put more money into the hands of a few very wealthy people. It’s more than fair to argue that he wasn’t aggressive enough in pushing back on the greed of Wall Street & multinational Mega-Corps, but the GOP is actively pushing policies that will make them even richer & more powerful, while making the lives of working Americans less secure.

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    Addled Brain  almost 7 years ago

    JACK, to my way of thinking, your regarding growth as an attribute is a false praise. Look what over-growth has done to us. If you had said we were, not bigger but better, i.e. more moral or better stewards of what God gave us, your argument for the attributes of Capitalism would be more impressive and persuasive.

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    DrDon1  almost 7 years ago

    Perhaps Lester, too, has been drinking D.C. swamp water ….

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    Nantucket Premium Member almost 7 years ago

    JACK, Trump has CLAIMED that he brought jobs back to US but the companies have all had these plans in the works for a long time. Carrier even got more money out of Indiana for fewer jobs than they previously agreed to, and most of those are slated for automation. Until all Trump manufacturing is done in the US, he has nothing to be proud of.

    .The “free enterprise” in China has people working in dismal factories. Foxconn started having a problem with workers committing suicide by jumping off the roof so their solution was to put nets up around the building.

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    rossevrymn  almost 7 years ago

    The ever-increasing dysfunction of right-wing populists.

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    Nantucket Premium Member almost 7 years ago

    JACK, workers in China have started to ask for more money. The result was that companies started to switch their production to other countries, such as Vietnam. There were many problems in early industrial age in US, but there are far more differences in governments and rights than there are similarities between China and US. You might think it is OK to exploit desperate people, but I don’t.

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    Addled Brain  almost 7 years ago

    JACK, I guess you feel transportation, space exploration and communication can only be done in the private sector. Check out your history. Businesses are latecomers or are, at best, opportunists and profiteers, planting business in ground the government had plowed.

    Don’t get me wrong. I’m not against private enterprise. It’s responsible for innovation and providing jobs to folks. As long as they remember, only by the grace of the people do they prosper.
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