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GOP Should Push Education and Pro-Family Tax Reform
· Monday, January 4, 2010
Karl Rove had some good advice for Republicans in his year-end Wall Street Journal column. "It won't be enough to surf voter dissatisfaction with Mr. Obama and Democrats," he wrote. "Voters will want to know what Republican candidates would do."
It's become clear over the year just past that economic distress has not increased Americans' desire for big government spending programs. Voters are recoiling against the $787 billion stimulus package, the narrowly passed Democratic health care bills and the cap-and-trade bill that's stalled in the Senate. They don't like the smell of crony capitalism, bailout favoritism and earmark corruption.
Republicans can make political hay -- and good policy sense -- by promising to repeal such measures if they get the votes to do so. But like any political party seeking a mandate, they need to look farther ahead.
And not just to past successes. Tax cuts played a major role in sparking economic growth in the past three decades. But that growth has produced fewer and fewer jobs. Private-sector employment rose 2.4 million in 1982-90, 2.1 million in 1991-2001 and only 1 million in 2001-07. America had fewer private-sector jobs on Dec. 31, 2009, than on Dec. 31, 1999.
Economists are not entirely sure why. Increasing manufacturing productivity and foreign competition have played a role. But another factor may be at work -- what tech entrepreneur Jim Manzi identifies in an article in National Affairs as "the growing disparity in behavioral norms and social conditions between the upper and lower income strata in American society."
America, his argument goes, is failing to develop the human capital it needs, at least in what we might call the underhalf of our society.
Manzi notes that the behavioral revolution of the 1960s and 1970s produced hugely higher divorce and out-of-wedlock childbirth rates. Then, in the past two decades, the rates of divorce and unmarried parenthood have fallen back to 1950s levels among college graduates. But they have remained high, or even increased, among non-college graduates, which we may take as a reasonable proxy for the underhalf.
It's clear that there's a high correlation between lifestyle patterns and economic performance. Almost no one who graduates from high school, gets married and stays married, and gets a job falls into poverty. Many who do not do these things do.
Conservative public policy reforms in the 1990s significantly reduced bad behaviors. Tough policing, pioneered by New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and widely copied, vastly reduced violent crime. Work-oriented welfare reform pioneered by Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson and widely copied, vastly reduced welfare dependency. Economic and job growth in the 1990s and 2000s surely owes much to these policy successes.
But more is plainly needed. One possible area is education, where 1990s reforms and the Bush education law have encountered strong institutional resistance from teachers' unions and education schools. Manzi, citing models in Sweden and the Netherlands, calls for "the creation of a real marketplace among ever more deregulated publicly financed schools -- a market in which funding follows students, and far broader discretion is permitted to those who actually teach and manage in our schools."
Democrats are prevented by their teacher union paymasters from pursuing such goals seriously -- witness their battle to kill a small school voucher program in the District of Columbia. Republicans could do much better, starting at the state level and daring the Obama administration to stop them in Washington.
Another possibility is pro-family tax reform. The post-World War II tax regime, with its big dependent deductions, produced the equivalent of a generous children's allowance for married parents. Republicans should try to tilt tax policy in the same direction again.
Democrats promise to bring up an immigration bill this year. Republicans can take up Manzi's call to tilt immigration policy toward high-skill immigrants, away from job-seekers and toward job-creators.
Less likely to be of help are the issues that have raged in the culture war politics that prevailed until the current recession kicked in. Further abortion restrictions may be desirable, but the number of abortions has been falling for almost two decades. And I see no evidence that prohibiting same-sex couples from marrying will induce opposite-sex couples who have children to get married and stay married.
The point is to advance public policies on education, taxes, immigration and other issues that can encourage, reward and honor constructive personal behavior. That's a daunting challenge for Republicans -- and for America.
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Jimmy D
I don't know about these proposals.
They seem sensible and mature but that seeming posture of being the "grown-ups" is one I associate with the problem with current Republicanism, more than the solution.
Isn't this just seeking to better manipulate the public than the Democrats; to look at the social demographics and political trends and analyzing them in terms of which dials to turn and which levers to pull.
How about we go back to the free market for health care reform plain and simple and go to war on that before they're parking us on a gurney in the terminal queue.
How about we build a real border, fine the stew out of anyone hiring illegals and then set up a extremely generous entry system for those from NON-ISLAMIC countries, who can show an ability and intent to self-sustain.
How about real tax reform. The fair-tax is the only thing I really appreciate about Mr Huckabee. I hate to think of the next cycle starting out with no one else waking up and smelling the coffee there.
How about we take a page from Obama and Co. and use the current financial crisis to move radically in the direction of letting charity be charity and Government be limited.
Freedom requires independent individuals.
We have to stand on our own or be slaves.
Lets draw the line.
Posted January 4, 2010 at 9:39:00 AM
Howard Last
Karl Rove is the last person we should listen to. Remember he is the one that gave us the expansion of socialized medicine (medicare part D), pushed amnesty for illegal aliens, no child left behind, the frist stimulus plan, SCHIP program expansion, had Dubya sign every bill loaded with pork, etc, etc, etc. Karl Rove is a socialist or worse at heart. Tell me again how republicrats are different from democlians?
Posted January 4, 2010 at 1:37:55 PM
Della
I agree with the two comments. When the Republicans were in control, did they change anything like torte reform? The health plan that we have is great, it is just that the cost is so high. Take away the ability to sue the doctors and then insurance won't be so high. That is just plain common sense.Yet that is not put on the plate by either party.That is the change we need. The Republicans get in office and we get the same-oh same-oh. At least the Dems have forcefully gone after their desires which I hate. The Conservatives seem to have the best answers - less government and individual freedom to pursue life to the best of our ability. Show me the person who can lead us better than the last 100 years whereby Socialism has been creeping into our lives. Get back to the Constitution! With God that is our only hope.
Posted January 5, 2010 at 11:53:36 AM
ILEANA
I agree with Della that tort reform is necessary yet neither party brings it up because most politicians are lawyers or have lawyer friends and contributors to their election coffers.
I would like to focus on her statement,..."the last 100 years whereby Socialism has been creeping into our lives."
Why has socialism crept into our lives and has been embraced by so many of our youth who then become card carrying communist adults?
Because of our "wonderful" education system which is entirely run by marxists, spare a few conservatives who are pariahs in the school system.
Reform the school system, re-introduce religion, English as the main language of the country, and voila, you will have Americans with American values. Throw away all the revisionist textbooks written by communist educators and you have made even more progress.
Keep your traditions and culture intact such as Christmas, going to church every Sunday, celebrate Independence Day, respect the National Anthem, the Flag, the Oath of Allegiance, Memorial Day, Presidents' Day, Veterans Day, read the Constitution again and again. Don't let atheists and muslims dictate what you can and cannot do in your own country. Respect and revere family values.
Last but not least, reinforce our borders, stop illegal immigration and coddling to their every want and need at the taxpayer's expense. Require allegiance to the adopted country or send them packing to where they came from if they mock us.
Does it not offend you when History International channel broadcasts at night in Spanish with English subtittles? Why? It is o.k. by me if Spanish speakers have Telemundo, do we now have to learn to speak Spanish to accommodate them even more in our own country?
"When in Rome, do as the Romans do" - speak the language of the empire otherwise the empire will DIE. We were one vote from speaking German many years go. Do we want to reach the point where we have to speak the language of the conquerer, whoever that may be? I for one love English, its elegance, simplicity, and brevity and I vote to make it our official language before it is taken away from us.
Posted January 6, 2010 at 10:09:40 AM
Beau Bowling
People are finally tired of "being" sick and tired!
They see that Obama healthcare is not all that it was cracked up to be and it will reach down into the very middle income class' fabric of society. Too little revolt by not enough people early enough to stop the Cloward-Pivin Stategy to tear this country apart and make us a part of their socialst dream world!
Posted January 8, 2010 at 1:06:00 PM