Our economy is obviously in serious trouble, with nationwide unemployment about 10 percent and joblessness even worse in some places.
There are lots of reasons. But among the biggest ones are wrong things that the federal government is doing — spending far too much, taxing too much, regulating too much and imposing burdens that hinder free enterprise.
Unfortunately, Congress is trying to apply some ineffective salve instead of addressing the real illness.
For example, the Senate voted 68-29 this week to offer $18 billion in tax breaks and spend $20 billion more on highway and other programs. It would exempt businesses from paying their 6.2 percent Social Security tax through December for newly hired people who have lacked jobs for 60 days, and give a $1,000 credit for new hires who last a year.
In the absence of sounder economic remedies, this so-called “jobs bill” will do little lasting good. That’s why Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee, Sen. Saxby Chambliss and Sen. Johnny Isakson of Georgia, and Sen. Jeff Sessions and Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama voted against it. The only tri-state senator for it was Tennessee’s Sen. Lamar Alexander.
With the federal government budget sending our country $1.5 trillion deeper into debt, the fallacies of the so-called “jobs bill” will add to the problems: Government is taxing too much and spending still more — unproductively.
Congress should quit doing so many of the obviously wrong economic things and “get out of the way,” so less-hindered free enterprisers could provide more real, productive jobs through commonsense economic action.