October 3, 2007
On Giuliani's Menu: Criticism of Clinton, Then an Omelet
As he made the rounds of the diners of New Hampshire today, Rudolph W. Giuliani got in a dig on Hillary Rodham Clinton and one of her recent college-savings ideas, according to The New York Times’s political blog.
He criticized Ms. Clinton’s plan to give every child born in the United States a $5,000 “baby bond” that could be used to pay for college or for a buying a house.
“It’s interesting that Hillary is taking something from George McGovern’s playbook,” Mr. Giuliani, a Republican, was quoted as saying in the blog item. He pointed out that Mr. McGovern had proposed a similar plan when he ran unsuccessfully for president as the Democrats’ nominee in 1972. Mr. McGovern had suggested creating a “Demogrant” that would have given $1,000 to every citizen in the country, an idea which he later dropped, the Times said.
For those interested in what Mr. Giuliani ate as he traipsed through all those breakfast joints, his wife apparently ordered up two vegeterian egg-white omelets and two Diet Cokes, the blog noted.
Sara Hebel | Posted on Wednesday October 3, 2007 | PermalinkComments
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On the one hand, Sen. Clinton won’t allow people to have private Social Security accounts. These would be substantial, revenue-producing accounts that each worker would own, control, build, and eventually bequeath, thus motivating both a commitment to work and greater interest in the economy. Voters with this much at stake would naturally take a hard look at the economic policies and budget-management experience of political candidates.
That apparently doesn’t interest Sen. Clinton, but she does want taxpayers to award their fellow citizens a fully owned $5,000 Demogrant account merely for being born. We should ask what that kind of policy would and would not motivate. It doesn’t take a village of social scientists to see the social advantages of private accounts or the likely unintended consequences of Demogrants.
The current versions of Social Security and Medicare are in deep financial trouble and need serious correction, but Sen. Clinton — who has never managed a significant budget — is touting new government spending of $110B/year for a sketchy universal-health-care plan (which critics estimate will cost a great deal more) and, now, additional billions for Demogrants. At the same time, she refuses to say when she expects war costs to drop dramatically and certainly knows they might, in fact, rise dramatically, because of the time-bomb ticking in Tehran.
I hope we see a full discussion of Sen. Clinton’s economic theories and policies early in the presidential campaign next Fall.
— S. Britchky Oct 4, 05:56 AM #