A few weeks ago Erin proposed that the environment and global warming would — or rather should — be a major issue this election cycle. That is simply not going to be the case. To quote President Clinton, “it’s the economy, stupid.” More importantly, that hurts Democrats and their overall standing with midterm voters. Unfortunately for Erin and Harry Reid (D-NV), in a ranking of issues and their importance to voters, a 2014 Gallup poll found that voters consistently rank economic issues and healthcare as top priorities. Gallup also found voters consistently placed social issues and global warming in second to last and last, respectively. To make matters worse for Democrats, Gallup also finds that most Americans trust Republicans more with the economy.
To make matters even worse, the Obama recovery from the 2008 recessions has been dismal. Sure, unemployment went down, but, as William Galston aptly points out, the labor force participation rate is still as bad as it was in 2009, with very little change over Obama’s tenure in office. Some of that is due to an aging workforce, but most of it is due to discouraged workers dropping out of the labor force. Median household income has also dropped for the average American under Obama’s watch. So the voters are in need of some change this November.
Take a minute to let that all soak in.
The likelihood that Obama will use the word “shellacking” this November is slim, but that doesn’t mean that he will be happy. Most polls show Republicans will gain control of the Senate and hold their majority in the House. On its face, this looks really bad for Democrats. However, if the GOP drops the ball and wastes this opportunity by grandstanding and partying (pun very much intended), the Democrats will gain it all back and more in 2016.
The goal of my columns, when I am not responding to Erin, will be to propose ways in which I feel the GOP needs to move forward to prove to Americans that we are more than simply the loyal opposition. We need to prove to everyday Americans that the GOP is the party of reform and economic growth. This entails that when the GOP controls both houses of Congress, they sponsor and pass bipartisan legislation that the President would be hard pressed to veto. The good news is that these don’t need to be new bills. The “Shaheen-Portman Energy Bill” that got tabled because of last October’s fiasco would be a great start. More good news is that there are plenty of bills (that would need to be resubmitted next Congress) that the House has passed and that Harry Reid (D-NV) has refused to put to a vote in the Senate. The GOP simply cannot afford to allow for there to be two more years of stalled government. Republicans need to do some re-branding before the Presidential race gets underway, or else we will get crushed.
This lofty goal will not be easy, and righting the economic ship going into 2016 is a must. As much as I would like to replace Obamacare (happy birthday by the way, you’re still awful; but that will be a topic for another week), the solution is putting Americans back to work and reforming our education system. Jobs and education are the best ways to combat inequality and right the ship. In my home state of California, Neel Kashkari is providing a model for what I hope the GOP will become.
Mr. Kashkari is taking up the noble task of unseating Gov. Jerry Brown on a platform of “Jobs. Education. That’s it.” This is exactly the direction the GOP needs to be going. Although I like that California is more fiscally sound than it once was, Brown and the Democratic supermajority have still managed to make the Golden State finish 46th in jobs and 46th in education. But wait, we also have the highest poverty levels in the union as well. It’s a difficult task screwing up one of the world’s largest economies (if California were its own country), but the Democrats aren’t doing it any favors. California gets low marks in business friendliness as well, says a 2014 Thumbtack report, scoring an “F.” Texas, by contrast, received the highest marks. It should also be no secret as to why Texas has been almost recession proof. Just ask Toyota and Tesla, both of which are fleeing California. Toyota is moving its US headquarters to Texas and Tesla is building its new factory in Nevada. Elon Musk (Tesla’s owner) is also moving his space company to Texas. This trend is not contained to California, it’s a pandemic among “Blue States” across the country.
With all this said, between now and 2016, Republicans have a choice to make. They can either simply oppose Obama the next two years as Americans suffer through an ailing economy, or they can put bills on the President’s desk, daring him to veto them. The GOP needs to action on the major economic issues facing our country in 2015, or we may be looking at eight more years of economic turmoil.
Artwork by VAASU TANEJA
