As the Bush administration was shaking up its economic team, unemployment rates were being released that showed the number of jobless has reached six percent, the highest it has been in more than eight years.  Today 1.6 million fewer people are working than when President Bush took office two years ago, and minorities have been disproportionately affected.  Last month, the unemployment rate for Hispanic Americans it was 7.8%.  For African Americans it reached a staggering 11% with the unemployment rate for blacks rising about 60 percent faster than for all workers. 

The firing of Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill and White House Economic Advisor Larry Lindsey underscores what Democrats have been saying for months, the Bush Administration’s economic policies are not working.  These two departures come on the heels of the election night resignation of Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Harvey Pitt.  But it is not Bush’s people causing the problem -- it is Bush’s policies that are causing the problem.  

There is no surprise in the timing of these firings.  Prior to November 5^th, the Bush Administration skillfully took the focus off the sagging economy and its threats to the personal security of American citizens by saber rattling and exploiting Americans’ anxieties over terrorism.  However, this post-election house cleaning is an admission by the President and his advisors that the threat to the security of the American people is as much domestic as foreign.  And they are afraid a majority of Americans will come to that conclusion in time for the next election.

Regrettably, Republicans want to stimulate the economy by instituting more trickle-down economics in the form of additional tax cuts for the wealthy.  They want to make current cuts permanent and expand those cuts further, a policy outgoing Treasury Secretary O’Neill labeled as “show business.” 

            Democrats believe that there are four principles that should be followed with any stimulus package.

Number 1:  It should be fair to all Americans.  The economic numbers indicate that it is not the wealthiest one percent of Americans who need a helping hand.   Middle income Americans are being squeezed.  Even as labor markets tightened in the late 1990s, low and middle-income workers seemed to gain some wage bargaining power.  But with the Bush recession, family incomes are falling and most rapidly among lower income workers.  They are the ones who need help, and Democrats believe they should get help. 

Number 2:  Any stimulus package should be paid for in the 2003 budget.  We have yet to fund 11 of the13 spending bills for the 2003 fiscal year. So not only is this appropriate, it is also timely.

Number 3:  There should be no additional costs to the states.  This economic calamity has states reeling under combined deficits of over $60 billion. 

Number 4:  At least half of the cost of any stimulus package should go toward rebuilding our ailing infrastructure.  Investing in our nation’s infrastructure will enhance our national security, improve public safety, and instill stability in the lives of working men and women.  We should give priority to securing our nation’s airports and seaports, encouraging economic development in distressed communities, rehabilitating and restoring our water quality, and building new roadways and improving existing ones.  We can utilize existing infrastructure trust funds to lessen the cost to the Treasury, and in turn create more than 2.3 million jobs and $300 billion in economic activity.   

            It will take more than a few new faces in high profile places to accomplish real economic growth.  It is time to make some hard choices, and Democrats are prepared to make those choices. 

#   #   #