Obamanomics is almost dead

Here are two short articles that succinctly explain why Obamanomics has not worked. Enjoy!

Solyndra, the logical endpoint of Obamanomics

The bankruptcy of solar-panel maker Solyndra neatly encapsulates the economic, political and intellectual bankruptcy of Barack Obama's Big Idea. It was the president’s intention back in 2009 to begin centrally reorganizing the U.S. economy around the supposed climate-change crisis.

To what end? Well, Obama claimed his election would mark "the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal." But that was just the cover story. At its core, Obamanomics is about the top-down redistribution of wealth and income. Government spending on various “green” subsidies and programs, along with a cap-and-trade system to limit carbon emissions, would enrich key Democrat constituencies: lawyers, public sector unions, academia and non-profits.

Oh, and Wall Street, too.

Kiss of Debt for the Flagging U.S. Economy

Why can't the economy grow? It's the debt, stupid.

That is the reminder from the Federal Reserve's quarterly data dump. Added up, household, business and government debt now amounts to some $36.5 trillion, a new nominal record. And that figure excludes the government's unfunded liabilities for Medicare and Social Security.

This debt overhang remains a key problem for the U.S. economy because it limits growth drivers like consumer spending. Consumers who still face big mortgage payments and credit-card bills have less flexibility to increase spending on goods and services, which in turn keeps a lid on job growth.