So much for “rejecting the politics of fear”

President Obama is losing the stimulus battle. Fiscal conservatives are winning the message war on the Generational Theft Act of 2009. Flailing and desperate, he has resorted to the very “politics of fear” he ran against during the campaign. In a WaPo op-ed this morning, he invokes Chicken Little tactics to scare Washington into ramming his massive, ineffective, debt-stimulating plan through Congress. At least he didn’t use Nan Pelosi’s “500 million” jobs line:
By now, it’s clear to everyone that we have inherited an economic crisis as deep and dire as any since the days of the Great Depression. Millions of jobs that Americans relied on just a year ago are gone; millions more of the nest eggs families worked so hard to build have vanished. People everywhere are worried about what tomorrow will bring.
Because each day we wait to begin the work of turning our economy around, more people lose their jobs, their savings and their homes. And if nothing is done, this recession might linger for years. Our economy will lose 5 million more jobs. Unemployment will approach double digits. Our nation will sink deeper into a crisis that, at some point, we may not be able to reverse.
The only thing we have to fear is fear-mongering itself.
If Senate Republicans can hold the line, they can avoid the same head-long rush toward repeat failure that led to bailout-mania and stimulus-palooza last year.
It’s a big “If.”
Do your part. Make a call: 202-224-3121. Go to Congress Whip. Join #TCOT’s campaign.
Kill the bill. Stab it. Stick a fork in it. Then start over from scratch.
See what others have said
Note from Michelle: This section is for comments from michellemalkin.com's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that I agree with or endorse any particular comment just because I let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with my terms of use may lose his or her posting privilege.
Trackbacks
- Columnist Doubts Democrats Threw Oreos At Michael Steele | Blue Grass, Red State
- Plumb Bob Blog » Hypocricy Fest Over Cheney Interview (Updated)
- Fiscal Suicide: Obey Obama « JoHNBRoDiGaNDoTCoM
- The Politics of fear again | Political Byline
- The Obamaworld Watch - The Impending Obama Meltdown and using the Politics of Fear « Jim Blazsik
- A Small Corner of Sanity - An Online Oasis for Conservative Thought
- Senator Critical Of President for Not Leading on Stimulus; Calls Effort “Crazy,” Bill “Monstrosity” « Peace and Freedom Global Future
- The Other McCain: The Doomsayer-in-Chief
- The President is Wrong. America Hates His Bill and Wants Tax Cuts Now. : The Sundries Shack
- Hot Air » Blog Archive » Graham goes nuclear on Obama over stimulus: “Scaring people is not leadership”
- The American Pundit » Blog Archive » Graham Attacks Obama’s Politics of Fear
- So Much for “Rejecting the Politics of Fear” | Doug Jumper
- Lindsey Graham Takes On The Sultan of Fear??? « Gunservatively!
- Gee, You Think? Stimulus Bill Will Do More Harm Than Help « Tai-Chi Policy
- Graham goes nuclear on Obama over stimulus: “Scaring people is not leadership”; Update: Stimulus worse than doing nothing, says CBO — But As For Me
- Graham goes nuclear on Obama over stimulus: “Scaring people is not leadership”; Update: Stimulus worse than doing nothing, says CBO — But As For Me
- There's My Two Cents
- Obama’s “Stimulouse” Package is a Power Grab for the Left « Riggword Weblog
- American Street » Blog Archive » What Else Happened Besides StimPak Deal?
- What Else Happened Besides StimPak Deal? | E Pluribus Unum
- The Obamaworld Watch - Is Obama Dr. Doom? « Jim Blazsik
- Michelle Malkin » Now, he thinks he’s Reagan
- Hussein Obama’s ego continues. First he’s FDR, then he’s Abe Lincoln, now he’s Ronald Reagan? | Fire Andrea Mitchell!
- President Obama Looking For Solutions in All The Wrong Places–Big Government: You Are No President Ronald Reagan! « Pronk Palisades
- Michelle Malkin » Laughingstock: President Doom does a 180, cancels fear-mongering
- Obama Declares: Economy Not As Bad As We Think | The American Pundit
- New House GOP ad and the politics of fear | The American Pundit
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Categories: fiscal stimulus
Doug Ross @ Journal
» Democrats shocked -- SHOCKED -- that Republicans won't eat the juicy, tender crap sandwich they cooked up all on their own
Green Room
» Miss Me Yet? Bush Billboard Mystery Solved
Mudville Gazette
» New Standards in Journalism
JustOneMinute
» He Played It Left Hand, But Took It Too Far
Ed Driscoll
» The Night Chicago Died

Mudville Gazette
» In this case I'm pro-abortion









Surely, you don’t call yourself a Republican. Right?
Crazy talk. Local and state costs go up because of the increase in money supply? Please detail the steps you missed in explaining the mechanism by which an increase in money supply raises state and local costs.
Reread #69 and cease your sophomoric statements.
– Mister P
Mister P is absolutely right on this note. Printing money at any rate higher than that required to replace that money which has worn-out will, to a greater or lesser extent dependent upon the volume, reduce the value of existing money, for the exact reasons he has described in his comments. It devalues our wages/salaries, as well as any savings we might have accumulated.
In effect, printing large sums of money is a tax on all our life savings and our current earnings.
1. What exactly do you mean by “printing” money?
2. I never said that such actions wouldn’t contribute to inflation. What I said, and continue to insist, that such actions aren’t defined AS inflation.
The “inflation that everybody means”? So if a lie is told often enough, in your mind it becomes the truth. But you sure are in DENIAL about the effects of an increased money supply. You seem to think one could create money out of thin air.
I am NOT a Republican. I am independant. I believe Political Parties ar unamerican. They are legalized conspiracies, and we are seeing what the Democrat Conspiracy is doing right now.
There is a myth that Bush decreased taxes. If you were an independant contractor you would know that is not true. Payroll taxes (over 15 percent) increased each year as it was taken from a larger gross limit. Bush did not balance the budget either. He engaged in Socialistic activities like (drug program, No Child Left Behind, Shamnisty, and an obviously illegal bailout).
The MUST from the earlier post comes from having too much debt and the effect it has on Income.
We are getting whacked in too ways by the BO Republicans, the Democrats and the Feds. The Fed prints money, thus devaluing the current money in circulation, and The Political Parties pass HUGE bailout/stimulous/patronage bills that increase the national debt.
It is one gigantic PONZI scheme and eventually it will lead to a crash. Again read the mises.org site as they are dead set against the Keynsian economy that we have engaged in since the creation of the Fed.
corkie, again about the definition of inflation: http://mises.org/story/908
So you resort to being paternalistic. If you want to have discussions, you must learn express opinions without resorting to such insults.
The real inflation will take place when all that money that people and businesses are squirrelling away comes out again when the MSM lets the economy be good again.
Yes, the economy is bad, but not as bad as they would have us believe. Remember the role that consumer confidence plays in all of this. The MSM have that one locked down.
On February 5th, 2009 at 3:38 pm, John Deaux said:
The real inflation will take place when all that money that people and businesses are squirrelling away comes out again when the MSM lets the economy be good again.
Yes, the economy is bad, but not as bad as they would have us believe. Remember the role that consumer confidence plays in all of this. The MSM have that one locked down.
—————————————
Convince people that they are doomed, economically speaking, and they will be afraid to spend money. Hence, they will stop spending, hence, the economy gets worse – unless people don’t let the fear of the MSM hold them back (and, no, of course they shouln’t live beyond their means; they just shouldn’t be so afraid that they cut back unnecessarily).
Kill the Bill
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w66/darthdilbert/tcot/killthebill.png
Agreed. And it isn’t just people. Corporate budgets tighten based on MSM generated fear, too.
I think that’s why we get back to “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself”…our own mental state (panic or calm) will dictate each of our individual responses (and as you noted, corporate responses, too)…not necessarily based on facts, just impulses and impressions…many times generated by the MSM.
On February 5th, 2009 at 4:06 pm, MtsEdge said:
On February 5th, 2009 at 4:04 pm, corkie said:
On February 5th, 2009 at 3:42 pm, frostrt said:
Convince people that they are doomed, economically speaking, and they will be afraid to spend money. Hence, they will stop spending, hence, the economy gets worse – unless people don’t let the fear of the MSM hold them back (and, no, of course they shouln’t live beyond their means; they just shouldn’t be so afraid that they cut back unnecessarily).
Agreed. And it isn’t just people. Corporate budgets tighten based on MSM generated fear, too.
I think that’s why we get back to “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself”…our own mental state (panic or calm) will dictate each of our individual responses (and as you noted, corporate responses, too)…not necessarily based on facts, just impulses and impressions…many times generated by the MSM.
—————————————
Each person should look realistically at his/her own situation, and act accordingly. If you have no good reason to panic, DON’T PANIC because of what you see on the news.
OK. Ya got me. I’m perpetuating the lie being told by the U.S. government, the fed, and everyone else that discusses the issue.
I wish I had known that you had some crazy passion for defining inflation as “money supply” – word which you also insist on defining broadly.
Paternalism certainly is justified in dealing with you. Reread all my comments. I’m not in denial about the effects of an increased money supply. You just wish I was. We are debating the definition of the term inflation. How many times do I need to repeat that? GROW UP!
Previously you stated:
You certainly aren’t a fiscal conservative.
Did you support Ron Paul? You’re not going to want to debate 9/11 truth next. Are you?
What do you mean we..uh..uh..dude!
The Pres. must have a mouse in his pocket because his economics isn’t exactly a share the pain kind of a moment in history.
If the Constitution is so much more important to him than the last administration, he can twist his own throttle and leave everybody else’s cycle the hell alone.
NO!!! NO NO NO NO NO!!!
Michelle, please refrain from BESMIRCHING the great and well-earned image of the one and only DOOM by linking him with a 143-day amateur!
DOOM DEMANDS IT!
By all means, then, let’s grease the skids with the stimulus package and slide full speed into the chasm.