Host Neal Asbury opened his nationally syndicated “Neal Asbury’s Made in America” show on Radio America (now on 48 stations), speculating that income inequality will be a theme that will create battle lines during the mid-term elections.
“I’ve seen abject poverty during my many years in Asia and it rips the dignity right out of people. To think that it’s happening in America is very sad, and even sadder is that our government thinks the solution is entitlements. People don’t want handouts, they want the opportunity to have a job that creates living wage,” said Neal, who added that supporting entrepreneurs will go a long way toward job creation.
Co-host Dr. Rich Roffman agreed, suggesting that the war on income inequality espoused by the left is nothing more than a subterfuge and distraction from the real issues relating to cronyism and garnering votes.
To continue the conversation, Made in America welcomed return guest Lance Roberts from StreetTalk Live, who concurred that liberal Democrats are just pandering to voters when they create the division of wealth issue.
“The left is only interested in Wall Street not Main Street. They should be creating opportunities for American workers instead of more wealth for the stock market,” suggested Roberts.
Roberts noted that the number of full-time jobs created has not changed since 2009, and most of the jobs being created don’t come with salaries that can support a household.
“What’s worse is that one-third of Americans get some kind of government assistance, and that 20 percent of every dollar of disposable income comes from the government,” noted Roberts.
Neal wondered what happened to the $17 trillion that was spent by the government as part of Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty. Most people agree that it was largely wasted since poverty has not been abated. And today, 86 million American workers are paying for the 148 million Americans receiving entitlements.
The discussion turned to three headlines that ran during the week: “Obama calls for highest sustained taxation in history;” “Middle age adults are moving back in with parents;” and “Temporary work is becoming permanent work.”
“We have to cut our taxes. The U.S. pays the highest taxes in the world. In fact, if 22 of our states were considered countries, they would be among the 22 highest paying countries in the world. Japan comes in at 23. The best way to reverse this trend is to cut taxes so that our entrepreneurs can thrive and create jobs,” said Neal.
Dr. Roffman added that we can also start bringing back or repatriating some of the $2.5 trillion dollars American companies are “parking” overseas. If this can be reversed, it would be a big boost to our economy and help create millions of jobs.
Joining the show was Dr. David Holmberg from the National Center for Public Policy Research, who has grave reservations about the supposed 8 million Americans who have signed for Obamacare.
“Nobody seems to be able to verify the numbers, but a NY Times story speculated that 20 percent of enrollees haven’t paid their first premiums and so will probably be ineligible. In Georgia, the word is that 50 percent of enrollees haven’t paid their first premium. And I think that the 38 percent of young people aged 18-34 that are needed to keep premiums down are going to be unable to pay their premiums due to their low credit scores,” predicted Holmberg.
Holmberg projected that it will hard to sustain the 8 million figure as people leave the ACA as they get jobs and are covered by their employer’s healthcare or choose to go on Medicare. He quoted a story that projected that 60 percent of Californians that signed up for ACA will not be on the program by year’s end.
Neal agreed that the numbers will drop after enrollees notice that the teaser rates they received to get on ACA will go up dramatically and will no longer be affordable.
The final guest on Made in America was Dan Simmons from the Institute for Energy Research, who predicted that the Keystone XL Pipeline will pose challenges for Democrats in states with big energy economies.
“They are going to have to separate themselves from Obama on Keystone if they want to get reelected, but Obama’s people will put their feet to the fire. But a new Rasmussen Poll found that more people than ever support Keystone. The only ones that oppose Keystone are rich Democrats who would lose money if Keystone is built,” said Simmons.
Dr. Roffman revealed a rumor that in an unreleased Rolling Stone interview, insiders at the White House indicated that Obama admitted that he will veto the Keystone XL Pipeline.
Simmons suggested that Obama made a dumb decision when he took on the Keystone XL Pipeline. He should have signed off on it.
Neal agreed, predicting that 6 Democratic senators could lose their seats over Keystone, and that by opposing Keystone, they are delaying the possibility for America becoming a net exporter of energy, which would boost the economy and loosen Russia’s energy stranglehold in Eastern Europe.
Neal and Dr. Roffman segued to their weekly segment identifying rampant cronyism.
Coincidently, a discussion of the Keystone XL Pipeline will include examples of cronyism. In this case, billionaire hedge fund manager Tom Steyer, a huge Democratic bundler, opposes the Keystone XL Pipeline and has threatened to withhold $100 million he planned to donate to the Democratic Party if Keystone is approved.
“Is Steyer being an environmentalist? Not a chance since he has investments in Kinder Morgan energy partners, which is planning to build a competitive pipeline. And of course he has investments in other companies that also will benefit if Keystone is not built. Energy progress is great when you can line your own pockets with money,” concluded Dr. Roffman.
Each week Neal Asbury’s Made in America provides Neal’s insights into the week’s top news stories and their impact on the worlds of entrepreneurship, small business ownership and the overall economy. Neal’s analysis, together with co-host Dr. Richard Roffman, a veteran 30-year publisher with extensive domestic and international experience, takes a non-biased approach based on real life experience in business as an American manufacturer and exporter. Made in America airs nationally each Saturday from 7-8:00 PM on Radio America. Link to Made in America at http://www.nealasburysmadeinamerica.com.
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