The Bottom Up and the Middle Out – Bidenomics Is Great for the Economy! Part 2

by Sheryll Bonilla, Esq.

Obama inherited the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. Elected in 2008, Obama came into office having to pull the country out of not just a national problem but also the global economic impact of massive banking and stock market dishonesty and greed.

Obama’s economic policies got us safely out of the intense financial danger the country faced. His tax policies pulled us out of the deficit he inherited from President Bush and gave us a surplus.

Trump’s tax cuts to the wealthiest 1% caused a $1.9 trillion deficit.  It’s startling that the people who shout against debts and fiscal irresponsibility that they don’t want their children to pay – are silent on the $1.9 trillion deficit of Trump’s tax cuts.

Trump’s COVID policies and practices prevented us from coming out of the pandemic sooner.

It’s next to impossible to reach “herd immunity” when Republican leaders (Gov. Larry Hogan being the notable exception) encouraged people to not wear masks and to believe that the globally deadly virus was no more dangerous than the flu.

If you didn’t know this, Trump routinely diverted shipments of personal protective equipment (PPE) that Democratic governors paid for and bought for the citizens of their states, and sent them to Republican governors who had not paid for the PPE.

Trump also eliminated the pandemic preparation agency and canceled the contracts to maintain ventilators, so that there was no preparation in place for the pandemic and no ventilators in time to save lives.

Gov. Hogan’s wife is Korean. To prevent Trump from knowing that Gov. Hogan bought PPE for Maryland citizens, Hogan’s wife made the purchase in Korean.

Gov. Hogan hired private security to make sure that Trump forces didn’t steal the Maryland purchase when it arrived.

Trump’s economic policies, like his Republican predecessors, shifted money to billionaires who won’t give their driver employees the time for bathroom breaks (you’ve heard of the Amazon delivery truck pee bottles, haven’t you?) and whose $13 per hour, part-time only jobs force their employees to use Medicaid for medical insurance (including Walmart, whose owner family is the among the very richest in the country).

It’s been calculated that those billionaires could take ½ day of their own executive profits to pay for health insurance for all their workers, and still have 364-1/2 days’ profit to be rich.

The pandemic hit in 2020. Trump’s $1.9 trillion deficit tax cuts were enacted – without a single hearing – in December 2017. The highest the DOW climbed during the Trump administration was 28,939.67.

When Republican tax and economic policies hoard wealth for the richest 1%-2%, without any regard for the well-being of the other 98% of Americans, the economy suffers.

Superyachts and rockets for private space rides don’t spread dollars into the sea of commerce. Reagan’s “trickle down” is a lie and has been a lie for over 40 years.

People need money in their hands and that means fair tax policies and fair economic policies that put money in their hands.

Businesses prosper when ordinary customers have money to eat at restaurants, shop online and in stores, pay for activities and programs for themselves and their children, to buy plate lunches and clothes and cars and other things.

Businesses prosper under Democratic presidential administrations who understand that “when the tide rises, everyone is lifted up.”

Democrats are truly fiscally responsible and give tax cuts that put money into the hands of consumers to flow into the stream of commerce, which creates jobs.

Trump’s highest DOW, following his extremely unfair tax cuts to the wealthy, only got to 28,939.67.

Biden’s “bottom-up, middle-out” economic tax policies have been busting the stock market for four whole years.

The optimism started after his election when people dancing in the streets nationwide began feeling hope.

Biden’s forgiveness of $143.6 billion of student loans put that much disposable income into the hands of 3.96 million Americans.

With this monthly debt forgiven, they could use that money to spend, to send into the stream of commerce, flowing into businesses that could then hire and pay other workers.

The Republicans keep fighting for the forgiveness of student loans which puts money into the hands of consumers and keeps the economy bustling.

Republican tax cuts to the richest 1-2% of wealthiest Americans, hurt the economy because they don’t circulate those dollars to create jobs and fund paychecks. Those 1 -2% put their money overseas and build luxury for themselves.

“Bottom-up, middle-out.”  It works.

Look at the DOW and see how progressive economic policies that spread out the wealth among the middle- and lower-class lead to a very healthy economy.

Biden doesn’t brag like Republican presidents do, but his policies gave us a strong economy.

This is Part 2 of a two-part article. Read Part 1 from our previous issue on thefilipinochronicle.com.