Obamanomics still failing, Washington Post discovers

Fareed Zakaria, a columnist for the Washington Post and Editor of the left-liberal Newsweek magazine, was wondering why, despite the great and wonderful Obama stimulus package, businesses still were not investing or expanding. He talked to some businessmen (hat tip: Rush):

[T]hey kept talking about politics, about the uncertainty surrounding regulations and taxes. Some have even begun to speak out publicly. Jeffrey Immelt, chief executive of General Electric, complained Friday that government was not in sync with entrepreneurs. The Business Roundtable, which had supported the Obama administration, has begun to complain about the myriad laws and regulations being cooked up in Washington.

One CEO told me, "Almost every agency we deal with has announced some expansion of its authority, which naturally makes me concerned about what's in store for us for the future." Another pointed out that between the health-care bill, financial reform and possibly cap-and-trade, his company had lawyers working day and night to figure out the implications of all these new regulations. [Emph. added]

So, in what must have been shocking news at the Washington Post, he found that it is Obama's policies which are prolonging the recession. The businessmen told him this despite the fact that the businessmen he chose to talk to were mostly liberal:

Most of the business leaders I spoke to had voted for Barack Obama. They still admire him. Those who had met him thought he was unusually smart. But all think he is, at his core, anti-business. [Emph. added]

Another telling point is this. Zakaria talked about Obamanomics "to a series of business leaders, all of whom were expansive on the topic yet did not want to be quoted by name, for fear of offending people in Washington." [Emph. added] The Obama administration, with design for ever increasing power, creates fear.

In his conclusion, Zakaria amazingly seems to miss the point entirely:

Obama needs to outline a growth and competitiveness agenda that is compelling to the business community. This might sound like psychology more than economics, . . . . .

No, Mr. Zakaria, the problem is not "psychology." Obamacare, Cap-and-Tax, and financial reform are not "psychological" issues. Outside of the beltway, in the world of business, those policies increase risks and add real costs.

PREVIOUSLY on the subject of Obamanomics and how it differs from economics:
•Russia goes supply-side
•Study: Liberals are economically illiterate
•Obama's health care and economic policies explained
•Obama modeling US economy after Europe's
•Irresponsibility pays!
• Obamanomics prolonging the recession
•US Aaa bond rating threatened by Obama's budget says Moody's
•Obamanomics illustrated II
•How Dems are prolonging the recession
•How Obamanomics destroys jobs
•Obamanomics illustrated
•Deficits: Obama goes where no man has gone before (illustration)
•How to raise the standard of living
•Obama's anti-intellectual economic theory
•Obamanomics and the test of science
•Obamacare may raise insurance costs by 54%
•Harvard economist explains why Obamacare will raise premiums
•HHS says Obamacare will cause costs to go up and cause employers to drop coverage