The Social Justice President!

The President summed up his economic priorities  "This growing inequality isn't just morally wrong; it's bad economics," . "When middle-class families have less to spend, businesses have fewer customers. When wealth concentrates at the very top, it can inflate unstable bubbles that threaten the economy. When the rungs on the ladder of opportunity grow farther apart, it undermines the very essence of this country." "That's why reversing these trends must be Washington's highest priority. It's certainly my highest priority."

Ummmm....OK....So....you have had 5 years....how is it going Mr. President?

Mr. Obama has focused his policies on reducing inequality rather than increasing growth. The predictable result has been more inequality and less growth. The rich have done well in the last few years thanks to a rising stock market, but the middle class and poor have not.  No President has done worse by the middle class in modern times.

By now the lackluster growth figures are well known. The recovery that began four years ago has been one of the weakest on record, averaging a little more than 2%. And it has not gained speed. Growth in the fourth quarter of 2012 was 0.4%. It rose to a still anemic 1.8% in the first quarter but most economists are predicting even slower growth in the second quarter. What has never arrived is the 3%-4% growth spurt during typical expansions.

One ponders.....does our President know how badly he has done?  Did he not know what a historic opportunity the great recession presented (as recessions do) to promote economic growth then claim the credit?   Wait!....does he really believe in this Social justice crap!?

The core problem has been Mr. Obama's focus on spreading the wealth rather than creating it. ObamaCare will soon hook more Americans on government subsidies, but its mandates and taxes have hurt job creation, especially at small businesses. Mr. Obama's record tax increases have grabbed a bigger chunk of affluent incomes, but they created uncertainty for business throughout 2012 and have dampened growth so far this year.

The food stamp and disability rolls have exploded, which reduces inequality but also reduces the incentive to work and rise on the economic ladder. This has contributed to a plunge in the share of Americans who are working—the labor participation rate—to 63.5% in June from 65.7% in June 2009. And don't forget the Fed's extraordinary monetary policy, which has done well by the rich who have assets but left the thrifty middle class and retirees earning pennies on their savings.

Its almost like...he is trying to do this.....with the support of misbegotten souls like Baxter and Terry, he has intentionally trashed the economy....with Justice for All!...to form a permanent class of perma-liberal voters!

Mr. Obama would have done far better by the poor, the middle class and the wealthy if he had focused on growing the economy first. The difference between the Obama 2% recovery and the Reagan-Clinton 3%-4% growth rates is rising incomes for nearly everybody.