I’ve finally found something I agree with President Obama on. Let me say it out loud, “Obama is right.” America was not built around fighting inequality. Never. America was not built around equality, fairness, or social justice. Those have never been the cornerstones of our economy. Those have never been the central tenants of our country, or our Constitution. Let’s all admit that Obama is 100% right.
Yet somehow we managed, even with inequality not even on our radar screen, to build the greatest nation in world history — and the greatest economy in world history. Coincidence?
We built an economy more powerful than most of the world combined. An economy so great that people the world over tried to escape their countries to come to ours.
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An economy so great the world gave it a name: “the American Dream.”
An economy so great that people the world over believed America’s streets were “paved with gold.”
We managed to create more jobs than the rest of the world. Good paying jobs that produced the strongest middle class ever. We managed to lift more people out of poverty than the rest of the world ever imagined possible.
Even if not everyone got rich in America, the entire middle class lived a quality of life richer than “the rich” in other countries.
We managed to create more millionaires and billionaires than the rest of the world. We managed to win two world wars. And we managed to invent pretty much everything the world cares about.
Can you imagine? This all happened without inequality on our minds.
Without worrying about inequality, millions of immigrants like my grandfather Simon Reis came to America without a dime to their name, but loads of ambition, dreams of greatness, and unmatched work ethic. My grandfather turned a 4-man butcher store into his American Dream. That couldn’t happen in any other country in the world.
But that’s wasn’t good enough for Obama.
Obama comes along, obsessed with inequality. He lectures us about it in every speech. His entire agenda and every policy is intended to create equality, fairness, and social justice. He vows to “fundamentally transform the United States.”
The result? Suddenly the unstoppable American economy is stopped cold in its tracks.
Our GDP is in quicksand.
The great American jobs juggernaut is in reverse.
We have chronic unemployment.
The lowest work force participation rate in 35 years.
Massive deficit and debt.
We have millions unemployed. Millions more under-employed. Forty-seven million on food stamps — more than the population of Spain. Over 10 million on disability. More Americans on entitlements than working in the private sector. Over 46 million living in poverty — twice the population of Syria. Over 6 million more Americans living in poverty just in Obama’s first term. The number of Americans without a job has increased by almost 10 million under Obama.
Thousands lined up for menial jobs, with a better chance of getting into Harvard than getting a job in a fast food restaurant.
Under Obama, with this focus on inequality, suddenly America is no longer America. Suddenly we aren’t the greatest country or economy in the world. Suddenly we are rather ordinary. Under Obama, “Yes we can” has turned to “No we can’t.”
But we actually owe a debt of gratitude to Obama. He has proven, once and for all, the answer to the question, “What made America the greatest nation in world history?” It isn’t the air. It isn’t the water. It isn’t the dirt.
If those things made us great, why aren’t Mexico and Canada great? They share our borders. Why isn’t Cuba great? It’s right off our Florida coast. Why didn’t those countries dominate the world? Why only America?
And it sure wasn’t a focus on equality, fairness and social justice.
Every country in world history that made those principles the centerpiece of their economy became a dysfunctional economic basket case. Name anything great that ever came from Venezuela, Argentina, Angola, or Zimbabwe?
Why didn’t the old Soviet Union or China dominate the world like we did?
Why are North Koreans starving to death?
Why isn’t Europe a powerhouse like America? Why are Greece, Italy, Spain and France facing economic Armageddon? Why do they have 25% unemployment, 55% youth unemployment, and massive unsustainable debt? Those countries all cared far more about equality than we ever did.
Thank you Mr. Obama. You have proven exactly what made America great. Not just great, but THE greatest in world history. Our obsession wasn’t inequality, it was opportunity and economic freedom.
Our Constitution never talks about inequality or social justice. We never guaranteed happiness or wealth — only that everyone would have the opportunity to pursue happiness and wealth with economic freedom.
It’s opportunity and economic freedom that creates mobility and massive growth. That’s what creates jobs by the millions. That’s what created the world famous “American Dream” and those famous streets “paved with gold.” That’s what created the American middle class that was the envy of the world.
As if on cue, the “2014 Economic Freedom Index” came out yesterday, listing all the countries in the world.
Under Obama the United States has dropped all five years on the list, for the first time in history. Under Obama the United States has dropped out of the top 10, for the first time in history.
Tragedy has befallen the United States. We are officially headed in the direction of Cuba, Venezuela, North Korea, Zimbabwe and Iran.
Obama, with his obsession with inequality, has killed the goose that laid the golden egg (and the golden streets).
Obama with his obsession with inequality has led us straight to shared misery.
Obama has done something no one thought possible. He has made America…ordinary.
Because of Obama, now we know exactly what made America great. And we know not to ever take it for granted again.
Now we have a choice to make. Which path do you choose for your children’s and grandchildren’s future? Think long and hard. Because the answer will change the course of history.
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