If you ever watched one of those Tarzan movies and wondered
what it would be like to listen to a witch doctor describe how he would treat a
patient with brain injury, you have something that comes close to that now. Believe
it or not, to read an article on economics written by the Republican Majority
Leader of the House of Representatives Eric Cantor, has the same effect as
listening to a witch doctor describe how he would perform brain surgery.
Under the title: “An America That Works” Cantor wrote an
article that was published in National Review Online on February 13, 2014. In
it, he supposedly describes how he and his party will get the American economy
to perform better, thus create enough jobs to have one ready for every American
that wants to work and seeks one. But by the time you have gone over the
article, you find that it is empty of descriptions as to what concrete steps he
and his party will take to deliver on the promise.
What you will find instead, is that from the first word in
the article to its last, Cantor does nothing outside of two things. First, he
demonizes President Obama and his administration for one thing or another.
Second, he performs what you might call the haunting chant of the cantor; a
ritual that entails the repetition of words he imagines will drive the demons
away. And you get the sense that in his mind, he truly believes that this kind
of sorcery will do the trick.
In the first paragraph, Cantor tells the reader what the
Obama demons looks like. He says they look like “a European style
social-welfare state” where “able-bodied adults retreat from the work force.”
And he promises to fashion an America
where “each generation will enjoy more liberty, opportunity, and prosperity”
which he says is the old American Dream, after all.
He warns that Obama threatens this dream because “One in six
working-age men [is] out of work.” As to what he and his party will do to
change things, he promises there are “conservative solutions to the most
pressing problems … an agenda to help build an America that works again.” To do
this, he says that he and his colleagues in the Congress will focus on 4 key
areas. They are the creation of jobs and economic growth, easing the squeeze on
the middle class, finding an alternative to ObamaCare, and creating new
opportunities.
As to the creation of jobs and economic growth, here is how
the haunting chant of the cantor goes: “America doesn't work if Americans
aren't working.” Okay, but how are you going to fix that, Eric the cantor of
haunting chants? And here is his response: “regulatory relief” and changes in
“tax policy,” he says. In short, he promises more of the old potions that got
the economy in this mess in the first place.
As to easing the squeeze on the middle class, here is how
the haunting chant of the cantor goes: “America doesn't work if
middle-class families are working more but taking home less.” Okay, but how are
you going to fix that, Eric the cantor of haunting chants? And here is his
response: “stopping regulation” and “updating our tax code,” he says. In short,
he promises more of the old potions that got the economy in this mess in the
first place.
As to finding an alternative to ObamaCare, here is how the
haunting chant of the cantor goes: “If America is going to work, we need a
health-care system that works.” Okay, but how are you going to fix that, Eric
the cantor of haunting chants? And here is his response: “Repeal of Obamacare
and reform.” But that has been tried for a hundred years and nothing came of it
till ObamaCare won the approval of the electorate, the Congress and the Supreme
Court. If you repeal it now, how are you going to fix that, Eric the Cantor of
the haunting chants? And here is his response: “Americans deserve a health-care
system in which insurers compete for our business, keeping prices down and
quality high.” You know what, you sorcerer of the deep, I give up. You're not
good enough to be a witch doctor, and here you are, trying to talk brain
surgery.
But let's move to opportunity. How are you going to provide
more opportunities for the American people, you cantor of the haunting chant?
And here is his response: “America
doesn't work if college is out of reach for most families.” Okay, but how are
you going to fix that, Eric the cantor of haunting chants? And here is his
response: “we will push for a high-quality education, work-force-training and
vocational-education programs.”