“You should be happy I’m a Republican … We can’t all be on welfare.” Anonymous
It’s been an assumption (by Republicans) that government run by Republicans enacts economic policies that create a more efficient, effective and stronger economy for everyone. But is that true?
First, it’s helpful to list some key elements of a typical Republican economic platform. According to republicanviews.org/republican-views-on-the-economy, Republicans favor limiting regulations, lowering taxes for corporations and the wealthy with the expectation that benefits will “trickle down,” balancing budgets, targeting spending to items such as defense and security, securing as much private funding as possible for infrastructure and privatizing areas that typically have been provided through public funding, such as education, prisons systems, health services and retirement plans.
They support “right to work” and abolishing unions, or at least reducing their impact. They believe taxes that “redistribute wealth” or fund “unnecessary” programs should be eliminated. Basically, the smaller the government, the better.
Grover Norquist, the poster child for small government, has said, “I don’t want to abolish government. I simply want to reduce it to the size where I can drag it into the bathroom and drown it in the bathtub.”
Investopedia.com (7/28/2018) also discusses key differences between the parties’ approach to the economy. While Democrats support the profit motive as an important vehicle for full employment, they also support regulations to assure that businesses and corporations don’t take advantage of workers. Protections that support clean air and water and consumers, assistance to workers during economic downturns – even if it means running budget deficits – and government intervention when necessary to help influence the economy are part of their approach. They support viable Social Security and Medicare as earned benefits and are against privatizing services when the goal is to make money rather than serve the public. Support for a living wage and labor unions that advocate for their members are important components of their economic approach and philosophy.
So what actually works? The states are a great place to look. They’re often described as a laboratory or testing ground for ideas and policies.
One way to determine the success of both Democratic and Republican economic strategies is to look at the performance of blue and red states in terms of poverty level, median income and unemployment rate. The 2018 rankings are based on these metrics as compiled and analyzed by RoadSnacks (roadsnacks.net). It should be noted that other sources (thestreet.com, politicsthatwork.com, 247wallst.com/special-report) have reported either identical or similar inclusions and rankings.
The poorest State is Mississippi, followed by New Mexico, Alabama, Louisiana, South Carolina, Kentucky, Georgia, North Carolina, West Virginia, and Arkansas. Florida is ranked the 11th poorest.
Now let’s look at who runs the government in these states to see if there’s a pattern. There is. Seven of the 10 lowest-performing states have both a Republican governor and legislature (both houses) and that’s been consistent over time. In other words, Republicans have had a free rein in terms of implementing their economic policy. The remaining three states have a Democrat governor but the legislature is Republican, thus acting as a constraint on democratic economic legislation.
So which states perform best economically? So glad you asked. The richest is Maryland, followed by Alaska, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Hawaii, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Virginia, California and Washington State. Again, the rankings and inclusion may vary somewhat depending on the metrics used, but these states appear consistently.
And yes, there’s a pattern, but it’s the opposite of the one cited for the poorest states. Six states have both a Democratic governor and legislature. Only one, Alaska, has both a Republican governor and legislature. The other three have Republican governors (all moderate), but the legislature is Democratic.
Politicsthatwork.com confirms blue states consistently have significantly higher per person median household income and lower poverty levels than red states. Blue states have a consistently higher standard of living; people even live longer in those states.
Here’s another statistic provided by hungerfreeamerica.org. They ranked states with the highest percentage of the population receiving SNAP (food stamps). With one exception, Oregon, every state is run by Republicans and all but two voted for Trump. And FYI, Florida ranked eighth with 18 percent of the population receiving SNAP support.
An article in The Atlantic (updated March 2017) cited a study by WalletHub that depicted the most “dependent states” in terms of tax dollars sent in vs. money returned to each of the 50 states. The most dependent are Mississippi, New Mexico, Alabama, and Louisiana. South Carolina receives $7.87 back for every dollar paid in federal tax. Regardless of metrics used, note the consistency among the various studies.
The fact is, based on hard data and not assumptions, it’s Democrats whose economic policies result in higher standards of living, less unemployment, less dependency on the federal government, lower poverty rates and higher median incomes.
So tell me again, who are the takers? Norquist was prophetic about one thing: “We don’t need someone who can think. We need someone with enough digits who can hold a pen.” That’s exactly what he got. The results are programs like the recent tax cut that help the rich get richer to the detriment of everyone else.
Seems the anonymous quote at the beginning of this piece should substitute the word Democrat for Republican. And in their own self-interest, voters should do the same.
Marsha Shearer is a Villager and a frequent contributor to Villages-News.com.
