"Obama makes another pro-business move; GE chief given economic post; choice might rankle unions" by Sheryl Gay Stolberg, New York Times / January 22, 2011
SCHENECTADY, N.Y. — President Obama, sending another strong signal that he intends to make the White House more business-friendly, named a high-profile corporate executive yesterday as his chief outside economic adviser....
Here in the birthplace of General Electric, Obama introduced the new appointee, Jeffrey R. Immelt, the company’s chairman and chief executive, as chairman of Obama’s outside panel of economic advisers. Immelt succeeds Paul A. Volcker, the former Federal Reserve chairman, who is stepping down.
Related: The Engines of the Massachusetts Economy
The selection of Immelt, who was at Obama’s side during his trip to India last year and again this week during the visit of President Hu Jintao of China, is the latest in a string of pro-business steps taken by Obama.
Meaning pro-corporation, of course.
Related: Obama in India
China Visit a Corporate Trade Show
Just bringing good things to life, right?
He installed William M. Daley, a former JPMorgan Chase executive, as his chief of staff; is planning a major speech to the US Chamber of Commerce next month; and just this week ordered federal agencies to review regulations with an eye toward eliminating some.
Also see: Obama Banking on a Change in the Chief of Staff
Together, the moves amount to a carefully choreographed shift in strategy for the White House, both substantively and on the public relations front.
I'm so sick of the bamboozling bullshit called politics.
Obama has started making the case that the United States has moved past economic crisis mode and is entering “a new phase of our recovery,’’ which demands an emphasis on job creation.
And with corporate profits healthy again, the president has begun engaging business leaders more on what it will take for them to start investing again in new plants and equipment and stepping up hiring.
The measure of your economy, Americans.
As he moves into the second half of his term and lays the foundation for his 2012 reelection campaign, Obama is trying to frame the national conversation on the economy around this crisis-to-job-creation narrative.
I thought we got rid of propaganda with the last guy?
Republicans, who have spent their first weeks of the new Congress talking about repealing Obama’s health care bill and cutting federal spending, have given the president an opening to do so....
No one is better at wasting time than the U.S. Congress.
It is not clear how much substantive influence Immelt’s new role will give him. Under Volcker, the panel met relatively infrequently, and Volcker at times appeared frustrated by a lack of access to the inner circles of White House decision-making.
The appointment of Immelt, who will retain his posts at GE, is not without complications for Obama. GE, one of the nation’s largest companies, routinely has a variety of regulatory, trade, contracting, and other issues before the federal government, on matters as varied as television mergers, military hardware, and environmental cleanup.
Isn't that a CONFLICT of INTEREST?
During the 2008 financial crisis, the Federal Reserve provided $16.1 billion to General Electric by buying short-term corporate debt from the company at a time when the public market for such debt had nearly frozen.
Translation: Banks and corporations are running this country.
Having the chief executive of such a company advising the White House on job creation at a time when Obama is assuming a more deregulatory posture could further alienate liberals and be seen as undermining the White House’s commitment to reducing the influence of lobbyists.
Oh, who cares about them anymore? Does anyone even hear them?
Another complicating factor is union uneasiness about outsourcing by GE. Officials at the United Electrical Workers Union said the company has closed 29 plants in the United States and one in Canada in the past two years, eliminating more than 3,000 jobs....
All part of the plan.
But Gary Sheffer, a General Electric spokesman, said the company has also been shifting operations back to the United States and has added 6,000 jobs in this country, for a net increase.
Bulls***!!
For example, Sheffer said, GE is moving all of its refrigerator manufacturing business back to the United States.
U.S. wages must have bottomed out.
WhyTF were the job$ moved away to begin with, GE?
--more--"
"Obama orders broad review of federal regulations; Wants to drop rules that stall growth of jobs" by Jackie Calmes, New York Times / January 19, 2011
WASHINGTON — President Obama ordered “a governmentwide review’’ yesterday of federal regulations to root out those “that stifle job creation and make our economy less competitive,’’ but he exempted many agencies that most vex corporate America.
The immediate effect is likely to be more political than substantive....
Wait a second, let me put on my waders.
Obama’s executive order would not apply to federal agencies created to be largely independent of the White House and Congress. That includes those, like the Securities and Exchange Commission and Federal Reserve, that are writing new rules for banks and other institutions, informed by financial laws aimed at preventing another economic crisis.
See: Wall Street Writing Washington Regulations
Imagine my COMPLETE LACK of SHOCK!
It also won’t apply to other agencies, like the Federal Communications Commission, that have sway over large sectors of the economy.
Control of communications!
The order would cover executive branch departments that are drafting regulations in order to carry out the new health care law and environmental rules that also have been the focus of intense battles....
That translates into NEW TAXES -- as if that is going to help this economy!
The president has made no secret of his desire for detente with businesses after the fights of the last few years.
I'm unhappy; however, it pales in comparison to the disappointment liberals must feel.
He recently met with about 20 corporate executives to discuss ideas for economic growth and will speak to the US Chamber of Commerce on Feb. 7. He also named William M. Daley, formerly an executive of JPMorgan Chase, as his chief of staff.
Obama announced his executive order with a column on the op-ed page in The Wall Street Journal yesterday....
Those last two paragraphs pretty much tell you all you need to know.
More broadly, Obama’s order also reflects his effort to regain support from centrist and independent voters, who will be crucial to his own reelection....
Meaning bankers and Wall Street.
Both sides and nonpartisan policy analysts expressed skepticism, however, that much would come of Obama’s order....
Translation: Big business and banks call the shots in this country.
--more--"
And why all the print over nothing, NYT?
Related:
"Tax break favors the high-fliers; With no code change, fund managers still pay much lower rate" by Donovan Slack, Globe Staff / December 29, 2010
WASHINGTON — Hedge fund managers, venture capitalists, and other financial high-fliers have more to celebrate this holiday season than year-end bonus checks.
Thanks to a $4 million lobbying campaign in Congress, and the support of key senators in both parties, these financial managers are still paying much less in taxes on income they get from successful investments, because of a special federal tax break. While wage earners are taxed as high as 35 percent, the investment managers pay the lower capital gains rate of 15 percent on this income.
Venture capitalists and similar investment managers argue the tax break is an essential economic tool because it provides them with an incentive to make successful investments that create jobs.
You know, tax loot losers like greentech and biotech.
Related: VenCap Vroom-Vroom
Btw, WhereTF are those jobs?
Mass. employers cut 2,000 jobs in Dec.
During the holiday hiring season?
Massachusetts has some of the nation’s most prominent venture capital and private equity firms, and a sizable community of hedge funds, so its members have been prime beneficiaries of the special tax break....
Nicole Tichon, a specialist at US PIRG, a Washington, D.C.-based association of consumer groups, said the tax break is an enormous windfall to some of the nation’s wealthiest people....
Yeah, that is who Congress works for.
One reason the tax break survived is that some senators sought to exempt sectors of the industry they represent back home, such as Senator Scott Brown, a Republican from Massachusetts who wanted to protect the venture capital industry in Greater Boston.
Brown wrote to the Senate Finance Committee leaders in May, asking to have the tax break preserved for venture capital fund managers who “contribute to the viability of our start-up community.’’ Four Democrats joined Brown in signing the letter, including Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire.
Brown’s office did not respond to messages seeking comment.
Meanwhile, Democrat John F. Kerry separately said he didn’t support eliminating the tax break outright, but rather wanted a compromise “that avoided any unintended consequences for Massachusetts.’’
In May, Kerry argued the tax should differentiate between responsible, long-term investors from those who invest for quick profits....
--more--"
Meanwhile, Democrat John F. Kerry separately said he didn’t support eliminating the tax break outright, but rather wanted a compromise “that avoided any unintended consequences for Massachusetts.’’
In May, Kerry argued the tax should differentiate between responsible, long-term investors from those who invest for quick profits....
--more--"
