Running for the Congress in the 10th district, Bob Dold claims to be the ‘small business candidate’. At first glance this seems logical, considering Dold’s greatest achievement is receiving the job of president of Rose Pest Solutions from his father in 2007.
However, after reading about Dold’s plans to use his small business experience to rebuild the economy, it became clear logic was not at all part of his campaign.
Dold’ resume includes two short stints in Washington at less than prestigious jobs, as well a few years at a struggling multi-million dollar communications company. Yet despite jumping between government and corporate jobs for most of his career, Dold’s campaign ads show him as an ‘innovative’ entrepreneur.
Leaving behind a career at a struggling corporation to return home to his parents’ company was not very innovative. Neither is Dold’s economic policy. Recycling any key phrases he could remember from FOX News, Dold threw them all together in a policy that makes no sense.
Dold’s proposal to rebuild the economy has two main prongs: give tax cuts to small businesses, and reduce the federal debt. The only problem with this plan is that it cannot work.
With tax cuts, less revenue coming in would mean the government the deficit increases. To account for this, Dold would evidently prefer to cut spending along with cutting taxes. Add this to Dold’s commitment to fiscal austerity and reducing the federal debt overall, and the result is a giant reduction of government spending. If these strategies sound vaguely familiar, it’s because Herbert Hoover used them during his presidency – and we all know how that ended.
As any college student learns in introductory economics, the last thing to do in a recession is to slash government spending. Today, unemployment are very high. The government is not only a major employer, but a major consumer of the services and products of firms in the US. The double cuts in government spending Dold is advocating would lead to many more jobs being lost (not only in the public but also in the private sector), and would further depress the entire economy. (If you do not believe me, read what Paul Krugman has to say in his New York Times editorials). Even with tax cuts, businesses will be discouraged from expanding if the economy continues collapsing and they are losing customers directly or indirectly due to lower government spending.
Dold’s plans for economic recovery, just like his resume, sound good for about 30 seconds. Until you realize both are pretty much worthless.
