Sunday, June 10, 2007

A Tale of Two Cities

In today's Washington Post, conservative columnist George Will aptly observes that the democratic presidential hopefuls are not, as they did in 2004, harping on the economy. Gone are John Edwards' persistent "Two Americas" and Carville's memorable "Don't forget the economy, stupid."

But the economy has not gone completely forgotten by the democratic hopefuls.

According to Wills, in last Sunday's debate, Senator Obama proclaimed that "'the burdens and benefits of this new global economy are not being spread evenly across the board' and [he] promise[d] to 'institute some fairness in the system.'"

Republicans have responded to Obama's proclamation in force. They've pointed to 65 months of uninterrupted growth. They've screamed about the unemployment rate. And they've jumped up and down about low inflation. But none of these defenses address the crux of Obama's argument: that the benefits of the economy are not reaching the common people.

It is as if the right and left are having two entirely separate debates about the economy--one about growth and the other about fairness.

Republicans are right to suggest that the benefits of the economy have never been spread evenly across the board. But Senator Clinton is right to decree that looking at today's economy is "like going back to the era of the robber barons."

Aren't there a few things we can all agree on?

1. A return to Laissez-faire economics is not in the best interest of America or the world. Anyone who disputes this fact should return to high school and read a few Dickens novels.

2. Democracy needs a strong middle class to survive, and government should do what it can to support the middle class.

3. The government should play some role in leveling the economic playing field. We need a minimum wage. We need child labor laws. We need the Family and Medical Leave Act. No one disputes these government actions; no one argues that they are not good and fair for America. But anytime a liberal asserts that government should help even the playing field, the right goes nuts--probably a lot like they did when child labor laws, the FMLA, and the federally mandated minimum wage were instituted.

4. There is a lot of physical work that government at all levels needs to accomplish. For instance, the infrastructure of our cities is crumbling. The good work done by laborers in the New Deal programs is beginning to fall apart, leaving Americans all over the country with infrastructures in perilously dangerous conditions. One avenue to create jobs is to make sure that these problems get fixed by government at all levels. Employ the unemployed to accomplish these goals, and we'll see the benefits of this economy further spread to all people.

5. The economy has a way of rewarding the superbly brilliant, ambitious thinkers like Bill Gates. And that's good. We want the economy to reward the best and brightest.

Instead of having two separate debates, Republicans and Democrats should admit that there are serious problems with this economy--just as there have been in every economy in world history--and sit down to fix the problems.

We don't expect the President to preside over a perfect economy. But we do expect him to use the power of the presidency to provide better opportunities for all the citizens of this great nation rather than sit back and allow his defenders to preach about what a great job he has done. We expect our chief executive to try to form a more perfect union and to ensure the blessings of liberty for all our American family. And we expect the political opposition--the Democrats--not to be scared away from a debate about the economy simply because they can't combat in a soundbite Republican statements about growth.

America is the greatest power--the greatest idea--on God's green earth. Talk is cheap. We should be working to better our system, empower our people, and train Americans for a better tomorrow.

Otherwise, we'll forever be telling the tale of two cities.