A rose by any other name would smell … . Wm Shakespeare
George Rebane
Well, the last bits of doubt about our Democratic Party have been swept away by the new House resolution describing a fundamental transformation of America (Barack Obama, call your office). The Green New Deal, sponsored by AOC and Senator Ed Markey (whom we have met on these pages), is socialism writ large. So large in fact that the reporter interviewing AOC on NPR this morning had a hard time keeping from audibly gulping as he asked the feather head details and sources of funding for the individual mandates of the GND. She, of course, had no answers other than taxing the bejeezus out anybody and everybody in the land who could still create wealth after the proposed strictures derive their power from the barrel of a gun.
So what do these two socialists propose in their fundamental transformation? You can read the resolution here, and some more expanded analysis here, here, and here; but let’s just lay out a few of them in short form for the sake of discussion.
- US carbon neutral in 10 years. “…this would mean a complete remake of American electric power, transportation and manufacturing.”
- Guaranteed government job for all. “… provide all members of our society, across all regions and all communities, the opportunity, training and education to be a full and equal participant in the transition, including through a job guarantee program to assure a living wage job to every person who wants one.”
- Government control of all medium and large corporations. “Employees would elect 40% of directors, who would be obliged to consider “benefits” beyond returns to the owners.”
- Vastly higher taxes. Top rates for death taxes, income tax, and payroll taxes would increase markedly. Also proposed is the institution of a “wealth tax” on assets.
- Government take over of industries like healthcare, insurance, manufacture of certain products like pharmaceuticals, etc.
Now all this is based on the fundamental socialist tenet that tax rates do not affect economic behavior. This belief by the Left is totally immune to historical data, including what France just had to rescind, and what has made NK, Cuba, Venezuela, … what they are today, and what caused the downfall of the USSR, and the massive shifts in the economies of China, Vietnam, … .
So there you have it. Just keep your eye on the slated 40+ Democrats who sign up to sponsor this resolution – their true colors will wave proudly. And also see how many more Democrats will be looking at their shoes while mumbling something about not belonging to the new socialist party of America. Our Founders are spinning in their graves.
[8feb19 update] It appears that Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez may turn out to be the liberal loon for all seasons. Both sides of the aisle seem to be happy dancing at the advent of this good looking 5-star ignoramus. The Dems claim that her GND plan is just a negotiating “anchor” point stuck into the land of the ludicrous, a strategic starting point to get people dickering with each other about where we should really wind up. Their hope is that any surviving putrid pot of progressive public policies will still be close enough to the GND anchor, and by comparison will look good to their light thinking constituents who will then support it as a ‘compromise’ with the Right.
Meanwhile, the Republicans are convinced that AOC (along with mini-minded Markey) have handed them the penultimate political prize for 2020. WSJ’s national correspondent Kim Strassel details the blessings in her ‘The Socialist That Could’, and offers a succinct summary of “AOC, the secret Republican weapon for 2020.”
It’s a GOP dream, especially because the media presented her plan with a straight face—as a legitimate proposal from a legitimate leader in the Democratic Party. Republicans are thrilled to treat it that way in the march to 2020, as their set-piece example of what Democrats would do to the economy and average Americans if given control. The Green New Deal encapsulates everything Americans fear from government, all in one bonkers resolution.
And can you imagine the profusion of optics AOC has already provided and will provide during the next 18 months for Republican ads. This woman has turned out to be a horn of political plenty for the Right that is scaring hell out of the Democrat leadership – “They should be scared. Ms. Ocasio-Cortez is a freight train gaining speed by the day—and helping Republicans with every passing minute.”
Given all this political largesse, my concern now is for AOC’s safety. The RNC should offer to share with the DNC some of the costs for added security for the congresswoman. No conservative in the land wants anything to still her voice, or deter her from advocating the clear path she has set out for America.
rebanesruminations.com 
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