You’ll hear all the claims and allegations. Now get the facts—culled from the pages of America’s most fearless and independent-minded defender of democracy: The Nation.
BUNK: THERE SURE IS A LOT OF IT THESE DAYS, ISN’T THERE?
Drivel about the economy; hooey in our political discourse; hogwash about our future; claptrap about our options. The Nation is here to help—ready, willing and able to debunk some of the most prevalent myths you’ll encounter during the upcoming election season.
THE UNIONS ARE BREAKING US:
It’s teachers and other unionized workers—and their fat job packages—that are bankrupting states!
In Wisconsin, two-thirds of corporations pay no taxes, and the share of state revenue from corporate taxes has fallen by half since 1981. The same is true in other states. [John Nichols, The Spirit of Wisconsin]
THE LEFT’S SET OFF A ‘CLASS WAR’:
The Occupy movement and threats of higher taxes on the “rich” are demonizing the wealthy.
In 1971, corporate lawyer (later Supreme Court Justice) Lewis Powell, perceiving an “attack on the American free enterprise system,” urged the Chamber of Commerce to push the corporate agenda. Soon afterward, business-funded “think tanks, legal foundations and front groups” launched—in effect—“a call to arms for class war waged from the top down.” [Bill Moyers, How Wall Street Occupied America]
REGULATION IS KILLING OUR JOBS:
Government rules stifle the country’s “job creators” (corporations) and discourage new investments.
A string of disasters—from oil spills and mine explosions to the financial crash that threw 8 million out of work, are actually due to inadequate (or unapplied) regulatory protections. [Robert Weisman, The GOP’s Deregulation Obsession]
FORGIVING MORTGAGE DEBT IS WRONG:
Letting failed borrowers off the hook encourages—even rewards—bad financial habits.
Forgiving the debtors is the right thing to do—not only because the bankers have already been forgiven but also because reducing principal will stop the destruction of so many communities, encourage those whose mortgages are currently “under water” to spend again, and make companies more confident about hiring. [William Greider, Debt Jubilee, American Style]
THE PRESIDENT IS A FOREIGN POLICY WIMP:
Obama and his people have abandoned Bush-era tough policies for (in the words of Dick Cheney) “half-measures” and “compromise.”
The team of US Special Operations Forces who killed...bin Laden were led by elite Navy SEALs from the Joint Special Operations Command....President Obama has taken concrete steps to once again integrate JSOC more fully into the broader US military strategy globally.... he has doubled down on the Bush-era policy of targeted assassination as a staple of US foreign policy. [Jeremy Scahill, JSOC: The Black Ops Force That Took Down bin Laden]
AMERICANS ARE REJECTING THE LIBERAL AGENDA:
The Tea Party and the November 2010 Republican sweep show that Americans are moving to the right.
In referendums in Ohio, Mississippi and Maine, voters decisively chose to support abortion, immigrant and voting rights, and labor unions. And Kentucky and West Virginia elected Democratic governors. Says Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown: “The 99 percent is pushing back.” [John Nichols, The 99 Percent Election]
ALTERNATIVE ENERGY IS A BIG BOONDOGGLE:
The Solyndra bankruptcy—after the feds guaranteed a $535 million loan—shows that government has no business subsidizing private companies.
Yes, the Energy Department erred, but the whole point of industrial policy is to encourage ventures that might produce big breakthroughs but can’t attract private investment because of the risk.... “The real lesson...is that in the area of renewables, the government should be giving big subsidies to wind, not solar.” [The Editors, Tale of Two Scandals]
CLIMATE CHANGE IS A SOCIALIST CONSPIRACY:
Scientists manipulate the data to get funding; lowering global emissions would require higher taxes and greater government intervention.
97 percent of the world’s climate scientists stick by the data, but it is true that “there is simply no way to square a belief system that vilifies collective action...with a problem that demands collective action on an unprecedented scale and a dramatic reining in of the market forces that created and are deepening the crisis.” [Naomi Klein, Capitalism vs. the Climate]
OUR NATIONAL DEBT IS ALL THE DEMS’ FAULT:
Our $14-trillion national debt was caused by free-spending—Democratic—congresses and presidents!
Big deficits began in 1981, with Reagan’s fanciful “supply side” tax cuts. Federal debt was then about $1 trillion. By 2007 it had reached $9 trillion, thanks to George Bush’s tax cuts for the wealthy and his two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan....The 2008 financial collapse and deep recession generated most of the remainder, as tax revenue fell drastically. Obama’s pump-priming stimulus added to the debt too, but a relatively small portion. [William Greider, Obama’s Bad Bargain]