Democratic Views on The Economy

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There is no doubt from either party that the economy is not what it could or should be. What the parties do differ on is how the economy got where it is and how to bring it back up to par. Democrats believe that an economy can only flourish under fiscal discipline, with proper treatment of Social Security and Medicare, with new markets opening to American products, and with a government that costs less and is more efficient. Democratic views on the economy are based upon the belief that Republicans do not operate under the fiscal discipline necessary to allow an economy to grow and function optimally. They believe that the current state of the economy is due to the previous administration, and that Obama has done everything in his power to help the economy heal, stating, “President Obama inherited an economy in free fall, with huge deficits, skyrocketing health care costs, dwindling employment, and banking and housing markets on the brink of collapse. Working with the President, Democrats stabilized the financial system and helped to prevent a second Great Depression. An economy that was losing 700,000 jobs a month is now gaining jobs. We still have a long way to go, but we are now moving forward on the road to recovery.”

Middle-Out Economics

While Republicans believe in the theory of top-down economics, Democrats believe in building an economy “from the middle out.” They believe that trickledown economics is “the same approach that benefited the wealthy few but crashed the economy and crushed the middle class. It is not enough to go back to where the country was before the crisis. We must rebuild a strong foundation that ensures it never happens again.” They believe that this is the path to bring the economy back to a place where hard work is rewarded the way it should be, stating, “we gather to reclaim the basic bargain that built the largest middle class and the most prosperous nation on Earth–the simple principle that in America, hard work should pay off, responsibility should be rewarded, and each one of us should be able to go as far as our talent and drive take us.”

Democrats on Budget Discipline

Democrats believe in restoring the budget structure that existed in the 1990s, stating, “we believe in balanced budgets and paying down our national debt, while Republicans continue to put huge burdens on future generations by borrowing hundreds of billions of dollars from foreign nations. We want to restore the budget discipline of the 1990s that helped eliminate deficits and spur record economic growth.” They believe that this disciplined budget must be built upon a tax structure that taxes the upper class more heavily and the lower and middle classes less. Democratic plans to cut the deficit include a strategy to “restore commonsense budget rules that this Administration has abandoned, like “Pay-As-You-Go” rules that require the government to pay for new initiatives. We will commit to living within tough budget caps-real and enforceable limits on what the government can spend. We are committed to cutting the deficit in half over the next four years.” In 2000 the party had plans to eliminate publicly held debt by 2012. The 2000 Democratic Party platform stated, “because of the Clinton-Gore Administration, a debt-free America is within reach. This would free businesses to invest and innovate, it would provide an ever more sturdy foundation for future economic growth, and it would create good jobs. That’s why Al Gore is determined to completely eliminate the publicly-held national debt by the year 2012.”

Democrats and Housing

Democrats believe that reducing mortgage interest and providing a Low Income Housing Tax Credit is an effective way to improve the economy. They believe that this will allow middle and lower class families to own homes without over stressing their finances. They believe that these systems will ensure “that housing costs in thriving communities do not outpace the income of middle class families. We must expand the supply of life cycle housing. We must encourage the construction of affordable housing closer to places of work and to mass transit.” Democrats also believe in establishing a system to get homeless people off of the streets, get help, and get them a continuum of care.

Democrats and U.S. Goods

Democrats believe in promoting the export of U.S. goods on international markets. They also believe in providing incentive for Americans to buy American-made goods here at home. Internationally, foreign competitors provide tax incentives, investments in research, skills development initiatives, and support for infrastructure projects to help manufacturers in their home countries to succeed. Democrats believe that these tactics should be mimicked in the United States, so that our companies have the same leg up as those they are competing against. They hope to see a reliable telecommunications and physical infrastructure developed that will give us continuous access to international markets. They also hope to see an enforcement of fair trading rules. They wish to see an end to outsourcing, stating, “in order to maintain a strong economy and remain the world’s leader in innovation, we must encourage businesses to move jobs and innovation back to the U.S. where possible, and keep them here. When manufacturing moves overseas, innovation follows.” They also believe that the only way to keep the economy functioning is to feed it with well educated workers. Therefore, they wish to see an improvement in education and skills-training programs. They want to see “all those we train in high-demand skills have an opportunity to find work and contribute to our economy.”

Hillary Clinton and the Economy

Clinton believes, first and foremost, that government action should be used to tackle the recession. She opposes using large tax cuts, especially cuts for the wealthy to re-feed the economy, stating, “at some point you’ve got to have government action to really tackle these problems. The stimulus package is a start, but it’s not nearly enough. What we have to do is have an economic policy that once again creates jobs with rising incomes.” She also believes in providing housing market relief. This is particularly important, she says, with so many people out of work. She wishes to see a 90-day foreclosure moratorium on subprime mortgages and a 5 year freeze in rates on subprime loans.

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