America today By John S. Pinto |
| The next presidential election is narly a year away. However, no candidate has made a bold statement of his/her vision for the country. Why are the candidates so timid? Despite the fact that Social Security will become insolvent, no one is talking about implementing reforms that will make it solvent. The federal deficit has been growing for years, even when we had balanced budgets in the early 2000s. The more we delay with reforms, the more burdensome the remedies. After he was re-elected, George Bush attempted to reform Social Security. The reforms were modest and his party had increased its majorities, but he was unable to enact any reforms. The phrase 'special interests' has saturated the general consciousness. Many say that America has become polarized. What is the origin of most of our problems today? We can trace the state of our politics today to the presidential campaign of 1936. This campaign marked the end of traditional American federalism and ushered in the politics of special interests. In 1932, total federal spending was still only 5 percent of gross domestic product. Spending by state and local governments was about 10 percent of GDP. At the time, the word 'liberalism' still signified a belief in individual liberty, rather than paternalistic government. There was no big tax redistribution. American workers did not view themselves as a class. They viewed themselves as moving up and down the economic ladder. In 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt talked about helping someone called the 'forgotten man.' The 'forgotten man' was supposed to be someone at the bottom of the economic pyramid. Roosevelt won handily in 1932 and went on to implement his New Deal. Three years into his presidency things were not going well. Unemployment was high and no economic recovery was in sight. The Brookings Institution published a study that concluded that Roosevelt's efforts had retarded an economic recovery. In 1935, Roosevelt made the decision to give up trying to help the general economy. During the 1936 campaign, the 'forgotten man' was redefined as a member of certain constituency groups like senior citizens, farmers, writers, artists and union members. The intent of the 1936 campaign was to alter the bonds of towns and individuals with their states and establish bonds with the federal government. One of the first important institutions was the Public Works Administration. The PWA's role was to fund buildings, bridges and other structures in towns and villages in America. It offered counties and towns a combination of grants and loans to build schools or dams or power plants, or any kind of public building. On the local end, leaders loved the plan. They were able to allocate cash, pick the architect and even the contractors. Most importantly, they did not have to raise taxes locally. This system, by and large, is still in place today, although its legacy is to place great upward pressure on local taxes as we are seeing today. In addition to buildings, the PWA also produced plays, funded arts and produced pure propaganda. In 1936, federal spending was 9 percent of GDP and has continued to increase ever since. Over the years, federal programs have forgotten the original 'forgotten man' and have created entitlements for the middle class. It is no wonder that the poor in America are still poor. There is a vested interest in keeping people poor and at the same time lamenting that we still have poor people in America. We, as new immigrants should articulate a new vision for America that eschews special interest politics and moves the country ahead so that all may benefit, not just the favored ones. |
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