2012
100th NYYRC Annual Dinner Thank You
Thank you to all those who attended the 100th Annual Alumni Dinner Gala and to all who have contributed to ensuring its success. We had an outstanding lineup of speakers, an amazing band, great food, and above all, wonderful company. We were delighted to have with us:
- Congressman Louie Gohmert, this years recipient of the New York Young Republican Award
- 81st Attorney General to the United States, Michael B. Mukasey, this years recipient of the Herbert Brownell Lifetime Achievement Award
- Chris Wight, this years recipient of the Candidate of the Year Award
- Stephen Baldwin, this years emcee
- Nick Palumbo and the Flipped Fedoras
We thank them for their support and generosity towards the Club.
No Room for Vice in Vice President
As this has been a very tight primary race with Romney finally emerging as the much anticipated Republican nominee, the vice presidential candidate will be more important than ever. In a race that is most likely going to come down to the crosshairs, the difference between gaining the most votes from independents, women or minorities could indeed come down to the Republican nominee’s choice for second-in-command both on the campaign trail and in an eventual White House takeover.
As Romney is gaining momentum as the Republican leader to unify the GOP, it will be indispensable to have more than a sidekick, but a strong and willful republican candidate in his own right. This potential running mate must possess strong qualities that people can trust and relate to. Furthermore, this person must be ready to fulfill the duties of president, no babbling Biden’s or unknown newbies.
Chris Christie, the New Jersey governor who many were rooting for in the early stages of primary season, would be a choice that could bring together Republicans from all ends of the spectrum, uniting the political party come election time. Meanwhile, Senator Rubio of Florida would help seal more of the Hispanic vote both in his own swing state and around the nation, a growing demographic that has the potential to decide an election.
This is Romney’s most crucial decision prior to the November polling period , and his team is most likely already in the process of experimenting with possible players. Right now the field is full of hungry thoroughbreds ready to run, and Romney must decide who has the greatest chance of helping him reach the finish line first. Christie’s deliberate mannerisms and debating skills would indeed give Governor Romney an edge as a no-nonsense political pundit who is ready and willing to take on President Obama. Rubio is a gentle faced Latino who won the hearts of voters in the Sunshine State, quickly rising up the ranks as a favorite frontrunner. His young family and vivacious vibrancy would bring great enthusiasm into the race, appealing to a new generation of young voters, a group known to sway more to the liberal left. It’s been said that JFK seemed to be the obvious choice for President after viewers noticed his Old World charm and good looks during a televised debate, and Romney and Rubio would certainly be quite a presidential looking pair.
A most ideal vice presidential candidate must have a strong record of supporting Republican ideals while also understanding what people are most unhappy with under the Obama administration, from healthcare to failed economic policies. He must rally the American spirit in the country, Independents and Tea Party consorts alike, a strong presence while also bringing an unrestrained enthusiasm for his candidate.
Those who helped establish Romney as a presidential figure during the nomination have most probably been receiving phone calls, such as Senator Rob Portman of Ohio, an undeniably crucial and close voting stomping grounds. In a race that is expected to be one of the closest in recent times, the state might very well determine the election.
While women’s issues have been a major concern in the country with contraception issues becoming a national religious as well as political debate, Romney has his pick of six diverse women in governorship roles throughout the country, yet it is unclear whether Romney will find it necessary to pick a woman to address these concerns. He will most likely want someone with some experience to fall back on so as to strengthen the long standing argument that Senator Obama was less than qualified to take on the role of president, leading to the country to fall into an even deeper recession, with failed economic policies and social reforms. Back on the campaign trail in 2008 when Obama promised to create a brighter future for the US, who voted for the one time senator on the premise he was planning to add healthcare for all onto the agenda? Rather, he was voted in to move the economy and create job growth, and now Romney and his soon to be VP must follow through on this failed promise.
As Romney just weeks ago clinched the nomination, he and his advisors will most definitely be researching and reviewing the candidates who will propel the fight even further. From prominent states to political pundits, the chosen one must possess the background and energy to make 2013 the year Republicans take back the reins.
2012
New Crisis, Same Thinking
There’s been plenty for conservatives to celebrate in the wake of Scott Walker’s big win on Tuesday. When the right’s biggest asset is a loose-mouthed Bill Clinton, you can be pretty sure that something’s up with the American electorate. Still, as much as voters’ opinions have changed and the prospect for Republican electoral success looks ever-more assured, the mentality under-girding official economic policy remains staunchly neo-Keynesian.
This week, Greece and Spain entered a new phase of crisis. Greek politicians suggest that repayment of German loans is unlikely, while Spain insists that the European Central Bank bail out Spanish banks, rather than Spain (thus avoiding what would apparently be “humiliation”). With European economies teetering on implosion, and the effects being felt here at home, what is the response of Ben Bernanke and European economic bureaucrats? (This is not a trick question.)
“More spending!”
“The situation in Europe poses significant risks to the U.S. financial system and economy and must be monitored closely,” said Bernanke, while urging European authorities to stem the crisis.
From MarketWatch:
Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics, said Bernanke only promised to act “if the sky falls.”
That may sound prudent, until you consider that the sky is most definitely going to fall. Not only have actions taken over the last three years failed, but they’ve taken a problem that threatened large international banks, and have turned it into a problem that threatens sovereign states.
European authorities are similarly brainwashed. Again, from MarketWatch:
European officials slowly, and with much public squabbling, appear to be coming closer to a massive shift in the way they’ve handled the region’s debt crisis — the creation of a new fund or entity that would spread the credit risk among euro-zone countries.
In other words, just another way to issue more debt to temporarily prop up economies in which spending and entitlement programs remain the culprit. While, in theory, a euro bond would avoid the acrimony that arises from country-to-country direct bailouts (presumably the entire EU would bear the burden of repaying such loans to itself), if sentiment remains staunchly and violently against “austerity” the problem will only grow.
The neo-Keynesians who run the academy really do expect the laws of economics to bend to their will. When common sense and experience dictate that healthy economies demand more production, not consumption, they defiantly decree more borrowing. However, academic economics, such as it is, is on their side.
Over the last century, it has been America who has lead Europe from its self-destructive tendencies. With the ouster of Obama looking more likely by the week, one can be mildly hopeful that Romney will take the necessary steps at home to avoid financial catastrophe. Would a president Romney show Europe the way to economic stability? Do European leaders possess the wisdom to change course? And finally, considering the decade long rout of livelihood wrought by neo-Keynesianism, does the academy possess the requisite humility to rewrite their textbooks?
Or, does the failure of neo-Keynesian socialism cause a swing to a more authoritarian right wing, as it has in Greece and France?
These are some of the questions that will be answered after Europe unravels.
2012
May 2012: Unemployment 8.2%, 69,000 jobs
From MarketWatch:
The U.S. added just 69,000 jobs in May, the smallest increase in a year, the government reported Friday. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch expected a 165,000 increase. The unemployment rate, meanwhile, rose to 8.2% from 8.1%, mainly because more people entered the labor force even as hiring slowed. The average workweek fell 0.1 hour to 34.4 in May, while average hourly earnings climbed 2 cents to $23.41. Employment gains for April and March were revised lower. The number of new jobs created in April was reduced to 77,000 from an original estimate of 115,000, while March’s figure was trimmed to 143,000 from 154,000.
In month 42 of the Obama administration, the official unemployment rate stands at a staggering 8.2%, ticking upwards. The broader measure of unemployment, which takes into account underemployed as well as discouraged workers, hovers at an astronomical 19.9%, or 1 in 5.
It would be difficult to overstate the immense psychological trauma caused by such bleak prospects to millions of families, recent college graduate, and an entire generation of youth. Home prices across the nation continue to plunge, while high fuel costs reduce private discretionary spending. Fewer and fewer high school students can afford the high costs of college; teenage unemployment is at 24.9%.
America’s experiment with Keynesian “stimulus,” bailouts, and hyper regulation has added more than $5 trillion of debt in a mere 3.5 years. Private property rights and the concept of affordable power are under dramatic assault vis-a-vis the Environmental Protection Agency. Monetary expansion by the Federal Reserve has doubled the monetary base. Despite their efforts, the U.S. has had its credit downgraded and Europe teeters on total economic collapse.
There is a crisis in government and a crisis in confidence in government. Congressional approval rating is a sclerotic 14.6%. Only 34% think the country is headed in the right direction. Yet somehow, President Obama retains approval from nearly 50% of the electorate. (Source: RealClearPolitics.com).
For the sake of the civilized world, Governor Romney cannot afford to lose. The case is overwhelming: the Democrats have been a catastrophic failure. To live through these times is to witness the destruction wrought by a rogue party. Victory in the fall should be as easy as humbly referencing what is in front of our own eyes.