Archive for the ‘Economy’ Category

Virginia First State to Release ObamaCare 2015 Premium Rate Proposals

Monday, May 12th, 2014

Team Obama Health Care PledgeTeam Obama Pledged: If You Like Your Health Care You Can Keep It and Promised to Lower Annual Health Insurance Premiums by $2500.00

(WSJ) Virginia residents will realize increased health insurance premiums next year ranging from 3.3% to 14.9% according to filings from the first state to release information on ObamaCare rate hikes.

The premium proposals were submitted to Virginia’s state insurance department for official approval and made public today–each health care plan expects to increase their prices in 2015 past nominal increases for inflation.

Care First Blue Choice which offers health insurance coverage to 32,000 customers has proposed the sharpest increase in premiums of 14.9%

Its likely that younger and healthier consumers will be hit with the largest  premium increases due to ObamaCare’s rule banning insurers from charging higher premiums to typically older and sicker customers who use more health care services.

More here from The Daily Caller

Related: ObamaCare Health Ins Tax Could Cost 286,000 Jobs

Obama’s ‘Hoax-n-Chains’ You Can Believe In

Tuesday, May 6th, 2014

Obama TweetOne would hope Obama may have more valuable things to do with his time such as practicing his Spelling–Uhm…that’s not how one spells ‘Excitement’  Obama deleted Tweet but Twitter is forever –Thanks!  Giveumthetweet@Twitter

This Is OBAMANOMICS…

GallupU.S. Economic Confidence remains as anemic -16 for April matching the scores seen each month since January.

California Democrat Congressional Rep Barbara Lee Proposes a $26.00 Minimum Wage Hike

Saturday, May 3rd, 2014

Rep Barbara LeeCalifornia Congressional Rep Barbara Lee, are we still on-track for them 8.8 Million new jobs by 2017??? On Friday I wrote here that according to the Dept of Labor–Bureau of Labor Statistics, Obamanomics liberated 806,000 from the workforce in April.

(Daily Caller) Rep Barbara Lee has expressed support for a $26.00 minimum wage for California–Is that sufficient? If $26.00 is good why not $50.00 or maybe $100.00 an hour would even better?

In 2012 CATO Institute discussed the ‘Negative Effects of Minimum Wage Laws’ making an excellent point:

While the (minimum wage) aim is to help workers, decades of economic research show that minimum wages usually end up harming workers and the broader economy–If the government requires that certain workers be paid higher wages, then businesses make adjustments to pay for the added costs, such as reducing hiring, cutting employee work hours, reducing benefits, charging higher prices.

Some policymakers may believe that companies simply absorb the costs of minimum wage increases through reduced profits but thats rarely the case. Instead businesses rationally respond to such mandates by cutting employment and making other decision to maintain their net earnings. These behavioral responses usually offset the positive labor market results that policymakers are hoping for.

China Offers Another Alternative…

Robots deliver dishes to customers at a Robot Restaurant in HarbinThe Future of Dining: No Minimum Wages, No ObamaCare,
No Sick Days, No Complaining…

Obamanomics Liberates an Additional 806,000 From the Workforce in April

Friday, May 2nd, 2014

Unemployment Rate

(NY Daily News) Its headline and teaser paragraph would seem to be good news:

U.S. unemployment plunges in April to (6.3%) lowest level since Sept 2008 as employers added 288,000 jobs, the most in two years.

If that was all the further a naive person would be interested in knowing, Friday’s employment data would otherwise be good news but what the NY Daily News didn’t report, would seem to be more important than what they did.

According to Market Watch some 806,000 people dropped out of the labor force and the U.S. labor force participation rate falls to 62.8% in April according to the Dept of Labor–Bureau of Labor Statistics, the lowest level in 35 years unseen since Jimmy Carter was president.

California Senate Dems Want to Disincentivize Wealth By Taxing Success, How Many More Companies Will Plan Their Exodus?

Thursday, May 1st, 2014

California Socialism

Socialism 101 –Image: Read My Mind

(WaPo) Last week, a California State Senate Committee not only discussed what they deem to be ‘economic inequality’  but by a vote of 5-2  it recommended to the full Senate, a bill that would raise taxes on companies which it determines, has a high disproportionate pay gap between corporate executives and employees.

Interestingly just this week Toyota Motor Sales & Toyota Financial Services announced  they will be vacating its headquarters from Torrance, California to the State of Texas which offered the company some $40 Million in tax incentives together with 30 years in the ‘Lone Star State’ tax free–end result, the City of Torrance, will be left a gigantic hole from losses of tax receipts in their budget they will have to somehow fill and the State of California will be losing some 3,000 more good paying jobs in addition to tens of millions in tax revenue that is gone forever.

Liberal/Progressive ideology may buy votes in my beloved deep blue State of California but it most assuredly doesn’t create a positive business climate.

In February, SF Gate reported that a new study conducted by Bain & Co for the California Business Roundtable–representing large corporations in the state found just under 60% of California business leaders said they have policies in place to restrict growth in the state and move jobs to other states–ironically the State of Texas was cited as the most frequent destination.

Another group of business executives, said their policy is to avoid adding jobs in California at all, except when absolutely necessary–the Bain study concluded, the cost of doing business in California is 30% higher than in an average Western state, together with the complexity of California’s environmental, labor and other regulations, the threat of litigation and delays in obtaining permits hamper operations, all create an anti-business atmosphere and a disincentive to continue to do business in California.

California already with the highest personal income tax in the country with a top rate of 13% compared to 0% for the State of Texas and a regulatory structure that treats businesses especially manufacturers as enemy combatants writes Investors Business Daily California has seen more than 250 major companies exit the state since 2011 and these problems are only destined to get worse, should Liberal/Progressive Democrats in Sacramento have their way of disincentivize wealth by taxing success.

How many more wealth creators (employers) and job opportunities will flee California to make somewhere, anywhere else their Golden State?

Obamanomics: Economy Slows to .01% in 1st Qtr

Wednesday, April 30th, 2014

Obamanomics...

(CNBC) The Commerce Dept reported today the U.S. economy slowed to an anemic .01% in the first quarter–the weakest pace since the end of 2012 and down from a weak 2.6% in the previous quarter.

Flashback: Reaganomics -v- Obamanomics  in 1984 alone, real economic growth boomed to 6.8% the highest in 50 years, nearly 20 million new jobs were created–increasing civilian employment by nearly 20% Unemployment fell to 5.3% by 1989

More here Economy Grows at Weakest Pace Since 2012 –FOX Business

Texas Thanks California Gov Brown for Creating Economic Opportunities in the Lone Star State

Monday, April 28th, 2014

Gov Jerry BrownCalifornia Gov Jerry Brown Creating Job Opportunities–In Texas

(Forbes) Toyota’s move from California to Texas is huge news (especially in an election year) considering the high costs of operating in the ‘Golden State’ Toyota expects to save big and many of Toyota’s employees moving from California to Texas, stand to reap significant tax savings themselves–for some workers, it may be more than $1 Million in tax savings over their lifetimes.

On the 30 July, 2012 I wrote here that Ansafone Contact Center in Santa Ana were expanding but not in California, instead they were opening a new office in Ocala, Florida and adding 300 jobs there–In June, 2012 I wrote here that ‘Road and Track Magazine’ that had been in California since the 1950s decided to move their entire operation from Newport Beach to Ann Arbor, Michigan

In March 2012 Financial Sense reported California tax revenues plunge as businesses exit “Taxifornia’ in droves.

Related: California Ranked as One of the Worst States for Business –NFIB

Obama’s Watch: Consumer Spending Stalls in March, No Year-to-Year Growth

Tuesday, April 8th, 2014

Gallup

(Gallup) The amount Americans reported spending each day in March averaged $87 for the month, identical to February.

Although government figures show that total retail sales, excluding motor vehicles rebounded in February after January’s anemic sales, year-over-year sales were up only 1.6% in January and 1.3% in February, the weakest retail growth figures since November, 2009

On the 04 April, I wrote here that the number of Women unemployed climbed 180,000 in March, which evidences a weakening economy, even though the Obama Administration claims according to Bloomberg Businessweek that the economy is ‘on track to strengthen’ and add more jobs in the next two years.

In February, Zero Hedge reported that the U.S. Labor participation rate fell to a 35 year low. So much for the Obama Administration’s forecast this year and next of a robust, job producing economy.

California Tax Freedom Day Is 6 Days Later This Year Than in 2013 and 10 Days Later Than in 2012

Tuesday, April 8th, 2014

Tax Freedom DayCalifornia Tax Freedom Day 2014 April 30 –Image: Tax Foundation

Tax Freedom Day 2013California Tax Freedom Day 2013 April 24 –Image: Tax Foundation

Tax Freedom DAy 2012California Tax Freedom Day 2012 April 20 –Image: Tax Foundation

Related: New York & California Suck for Taxpayers and Freedom

California Taxes 150% Higher than Washington State, To What Benefit?

California Growth Anemic Next 2 Years

President Obama: Why Do Men Earn More Than Women in Your Administration?

Monday, April 7th, 2014

Obama Why Do Men Earn MorePresident Obama: Why Do Men Earn More?
Image: Matt Yglesias@Twitter

(NY Times) President Obama on Tuesday, will call attention to what he has said is an “embarrassment” in America, that Women earn only .77 cents for every dollar a Man earns.

Critics of the Obama Administration are eager to turn the tables on the president arguing that Obama is a hypocrite and has been paying Women less than Men in his own administration–numbers don’t lie.

On the 21 March, I wrote here that the Obama Administration has paid Women less than Men in 2011 2012 and 2013

President Obama and his Democrat allies are doing everything they can do to portray Republicans as insensitive to the concerns of Women in the hopes of capitalizing on this work/wage issue but refuse to explain, why do Women earn less than Men in the Obama Administration?

Inquiring minds want to know and are still waiting on an adequate response from the White House.

Related: White House Press Secy Denies Women Earning Less