Great column today in the NYT by Joe Nocera. I sometimes disagree with Nocera, as when he famously called Tea Partiers who objected to raising the debt ceiling “terrorists” (yet later apologized for it). But I loved his piece two years ago on the utter absurdity that is the U.S. Postal Service.
Now he has drawn more attention to an absolute outrage — the chicanery emanating from the National Labor Relations Board in the matter of Boeing. If you want a refresher on my views, see a post I did in June.
Essentially, Nocera makes the indisputable point that the Obama administration is standing in the way of job creation in South Carolina in order to appease organized labor back in the state of Washington. Could someone explain how this is helpful to the economy?
I know. Both political parties accuse the other of lacking ideas in the area of job creation, because — frankly — no one really seems to know what to do to get this economy moving again. Contrary to Republican dogma, Obama can counter the claim that tax increases kill jobs. After all, look to other vibrant economic eras that saw robust growth in spite of significant tax increases.
But here is an example of an American corporation that wants to invest billions of dollars in this country’s manufacturing sector. And there is simply no way to get around the fact that the actions of the NLRB are designed to punish a right-to-work state and reward big labor in another state. And the cost? Thousands of jobs, Mr. President! Don’t you get it? Or don’t you care?
The headline on Nocera’s column linked on RCP says it all: “The Boeing Case Should Embarrass Democrats.”
