Host Neal Asbury opened his nationally syndicated “Neal Asbury’s Made in America” show on Radio America (now on 69 stations) by weighing in on the often strange machinations of the Florida gubernatorial race that pits incumbent Republican governor Rick Scott against Republican-turned Democrat Charlie Crist.
“It’s unbelievable that Charlie Crist proposed that it would be acceptable if jobs were lost by raising the minimum wage. It’s like the people losing their jobs would be just collateral damage,” noted Neal.
Co-host Dr. Rich Roffman marveled at Crist’s ability to change his positions on a number of issues. Dr. Roffman wonders if Crist himself even knows who he is and who he wants to be.
Joining Made in America was Ed J. Pozzuoli president of Florida-based law firm Tripp Scott, who noted that Florida has become a purple state and that the race for governor is a dead heat.
“This race shouldn’t even be close if you look at all the accomplishments Rick Scott has achieved in Florida, including reducing unemployment from 11 percent to 6 percent; restoring Florida’s AAA credit rating; and revitalizing Florida’s housing market. Meanwhile, he has reduced regulations and corporate taxes to fuel job creation, while putting more money into education and even setting aside $3.5 billion in a rainy day fund,” proposed Pozzuoli.
Pozzuoli speculates that much of Crist’s appeal is his ability to connect with voters, but if voters look deeper they will see that style doesn’t trump substance. Pozzuoli also predicts that Republicans will attract a larger share of the Latino vote than in years past.
Returning to the show was Wayne Cruz, from the Competitive Enterprise Institute, who reported that regulations cost the nation $1.88 billion every year.
“The most recent Information Collection Budget report estimates that 9.5 billion hours are used on paperwork to conform to regulations. That’s like 13,400 life times if the average age of a person is 80 years. Seven billion of those hours are used by the Treasury Department. And very soon we will begin seeing the millions of hours of paperwork connected to Dodd-Frank,” predicted Cruz.
Neal reminded listeners that he was in Hong Kong during 2002, when an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), began in Hong Kong and spread to other parts of China. The poor handling of the disease by the Chinese government and the fear that resulted nearly destroyed the economy. These same fears could impact the U.S. economy if Obama can’t handle Ebola.
Wayne Allyn Root, author of the “Murder of the Middle Class” returned to Made in America and agreed with Neal’s assessment.
“Just look at what has happened in the three countries most affected by Ebola. Their economies have been obliterated. No one is leaving their home, shops are shuttered and money isn’t being spent. If we aren’t careful, this could happen in the U.S.,” proposed Cruz.
Cruz notes that with our open borders, it’s relatively easy for someone with Ebola to enter the U.S. and infect millions of people. He suggested that if even one case of Ebola turns up in Las Vegas, it will become a ghost town, costing billions of dollars.
Dr. Roffman agreed, noting that when the nurse diagnosed with Ebola traveled on a commercial jet, people stopped flying and airline stocks tumbled. It could become an “economic catastrophe” if Ebola gets out of hand.
Yet, according to Cruz, the president seems unaffected by the dangers. Cruz had called for an Ebola Czar with a deep medical background to oversee Ebola control, but an Obama political consultant (crony) with no medical training was named to the post.
The final guest on Made in America was Andy Mangione, vice president of government relations for The Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC), which is a conservative advocacy group for senior citizens.
“Our members are tired of all the government regulations which are being pushed forward by liberal elitists, who are trying to destroy coal, the cheapest form of energy we have in the U.S. And our members want Obamacare gone. They can’t see their own doctors, they have shrinking networks to go to, and Medicare reimbursements are falling. This can’t go on,” proposed Mangione, who notes that AMAC www.amac.us
currently has 1.2 million members representing all 50 states.
Neal and Dr. Roffman moved on to their weekly segment identifying rampant cronyism.
Dr. Roffman continued his prediction that robots will increasingly take the place of human workers in a variety of industries. In fact, a Gartner Research Group study predicted that by 2025, 1 in 3 jobs will be replaced by software or by a robot.
“We’ve already seen robots replacing fast-food workers, but the use of robots is growing in many industries, including transportation where a robot-controlled ship will explore for gas and oil; and the U.K. is currently experimenting with driverless buses,” according to Dr. Roffman.
On the cronyism front, Dr. Roffman referenced Senator Tom Coburn’s annual report ripping into the federal government’s spending habits. The much-anticipated “Wastebook” outlines what Coburn deems the top 100 “wasteful” federal projects that collectively cost taxpayers billions of dollars each year.
Dr. Roffman listed just some of the wasteful projects funded by taxpayers:
$100,000 for Coast Guard parties; $387,000 to give rabbits Swedish massages; $20 million for congressional vacations; $171,00 to teach monkeys to gamble and study their compulsive behavior; and an amazing $90 million to promote nose flute playing.
Each week Neal Asbury’ 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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