There’s an old proverb that says “the road to hell is paved with good intentions.” The policies recommended by the Democratic presidential candidates during Monday’s town hall forum were very much like this proverb; well-intended but disastrous in practice.
Although, I’m not even sure they were well-intended in the first place.
Democrats like Sanders and Clinton love to pat themselves on the back for fighting for “change” and “progress,” yet their actions fall short of their lofty aspirations. The problem with “progressive” policies is the gross lack of creativity.
For the democratic candidates there is simply never a problem that more government can’t fix. There are really only two things these candidates know how to do: regulate and tax, neither of which are progressive solutions.
Take, for instance, the candidates’ view on raising taxes on corporations. It sounds great, like Robin Hood stealing money from the rich and giving to the poor. Except somewhere along the line we’ve forgotten that Robin Hood actually stole from the government, which stole from the people. The sad reality is that corporations don’t pay taxes. Taxes are costs that decrease a corporation’s profit. In order to sustain profits, these taxes are simply passed onto consumers in the form of higher prices, and onto workers in the form of lower wages.
The fact is that the United States has the highest corporate tax rate in the world. Our rate isn’t even considered progressive in socialist countries like Norway and Sweden. American corporations would be better off paying less in corporate taxes on Karl Marx Street in Murom, Russia than on Independence Drive in Washington D.C.
Consider the candidates’ view on raising the minimum wage to increase job growth. It sounds great. After all who wouldn’t want a raise? Except, it seems the candidates have again ignored a crucial detail. It’s something called economics. Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?
The minimum wage increases the price of labor. Unfortunately when the price of a commodity increases, the demand for that commodity decreases. So the candidates’ solution to creating jobs is to make employers less likely to hire workers.
If I didn’t know better that’d sound like a great idea. But that’s just it, I do know better, and I’d be willing to bet these candidates do too. I just don’t think they care. There is really only one thing they care about and that’s getting elected. When it comes down to it, these candidates think that the best policies are not those which actually work, but are those which function as a sort of insect light that you hang outside your porch at night; it’s pretty, distracting, and will eventually destroy us all in the end.
Tyler Grudi is a contributing writer to the Bona Venture. His email is
gruditj15@bonaventure.edu
