President Obama’s outsourcing talking points have been silly and intellectually dishonest even by the standards of political rhetoric, which is saying something. Bain Capital isn’t in the business of creating jobs, it’s in the business of maximizing return on capital. Its principals would be violating their fiduciary duty to their investors if they maximized U.S. job creation instead. Investing overseas is not outsourcing. Outsourcing results in lower costs (otherwise, why outsource?) which means lower prices, which means that American consumers have more money to spend on other goods and services, which creates more American jobs. And so on and on.
But there is a major outsourcer running for president, one who has prevented tens of thousands of American jobs from being created and who has sent those jobs overseas instead. It is not Mitt Romney.
Obama’s obsession with “green energy,” and opposition to traditional fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas, has resulted in a significant drop in permits for drilling on federal land. These permits increased 58 percent under President Clinton, 116 percent under Bush and are down 36 percent under Obama. But energy is a fundamental economic input. So, for every barrel of oil that is not explored for here, it is explored for in some other country. Every well not drilled here, is drilled there.
And that means that good jobs that could be American ones are not, because Obama won’t let those jobs be created here. On a visit to Brazil, he told the Brazilian president that he looked forward to America being a big customer for the oil coming out of Brazil’s spectacular new offshore oil fields. There is considerable evidence that we, too, have spectacular offshore oil fields. But Obama would rather see Brazilian oilfield workers be paid good wages than American ones.
Despite the best efforts of the Obama administration and its environmentalist allies, the country is undergoing a huge energy boom on lands that Obama does not control. North Dakota is now number three among the states in oil production, surpassing California, thanks to the Bakken oil field. Oil imports are down from 60 percent of annual consumption to 45 percent in just a few years and are sure to fall further. Vast new gas fields, made accessible by hydraulic fracturing (fracking) has caused a dramatic fall in the price of natural gas. One result is that for the first time, coal is no longer the dominant fuel in electricity generation, natural gas—far lower in carbon emissions—now is.
This is no small part of the reason that carbon emissions in this country are falling, not rising. In 2007 they were 6.02 billion metric tons. In 2011 they were 5.473 billion metric tons, down almost ten percent in five years. This year they are down another 7.5 percent over the first quarter last year. In other words, carbon emissions in 2012 will be down to a level lower than when the Kyoto Protocol was signed in 1997. It’s one of the great success stories to come out of the U.S. energy boom (although a weak economy has contributed, to be sure). But because it doesn’t fit the green agenda—they’d rather build windmills and tilt at fossil fuels—it’s been a non-story.
It is capitalism that is lowering American carbon emissions, not government edict. It is government that is sending American jobs overseas.
in Obama's policies promote outsourcing, or worse, direct purchase of foreign goods vs domestic. n nWhat has happened since 2006 when Congress went D and 2008 with Obama in. n- Obamacare – at least a $2,500 cost per worker added or 5% of a 50K wage. Also, nthe labor to build the plant is probably up 5% also. n-NLRB – recent rulings etc make it more likely the plant will go union, another 5% say. n-Environmental and Permitting – added costs to comply and many months more getting napproved. Probably a 5% plant cost hit. n-Energy-the administration has made energy costs uncertain. Electricity costs are rising and nno improvement of grid reliability. nTaxes – certainly have gone up. n nHaving a sister overseas company (partially shared ownership) allows the making of the good offshore by the sister and adjustment of the price to shift the profit overseas. It is very easy to have the sister inflate their cost so instead of a 15% profit, you have say 8% here. The same investors can collect more profit in a low tax country, less profit the high tax country.
Unfortunately, you entirely undercut Mr Romney's chief claim to competence. n nHe asserts that he has created jobs, and knows how to do so. But according to you, "Bain Capital isn’t in the business of creating jobs, it’s in the business of maximizing return on capital." n nYou cannot be intellectually honest and hold two mutually-exclusive propositions. Mr Romney's "business" has been to maximize return, regardless of consequence to American employment. For him, outsourcing is just another profit center. n nThis turns out to be a very poor recommendation for Mr Romney. You'll have to try harder. So will he. n nBTW, Mr Obama saved Detroit, and GM is once again the leading automaker on the planet. Mr Romney opposed him. His assertions of competence resound hollow. Please try harder. He won't.
Interesting. The article admits oil drilling and production is up under Obama. Certainly the administration COULD have imposed NEW regulations and NEW restrictions. But they didn't. Even this article admits production is UP. And yet, somehow, it's still down. Are conservatives EVER honest?
Ah, maximizing return on capital. Regardless of the cost. Bank robbers do this, too. And this leverage buyout (LBO) financial engineering…how's that working out for America? The hijacking of our economy by the financial sector that drove our country into the ditch…this the type of free market the right extols as making a country strong?
Add this to your outsourcing pot, I read that 7 out of 10 cars built by GM (Government Motors) is built in China as opposed to virtually none brfore the financial bomb went off and Obama got control of them. To add to that the head of GM's china operation is proud as punch about it
Unfortunately, you have totally undermined Mr Romney's sole claim on the Presidency.
Investing in other countries and not our own does not create jobs stateside. Please explain how not maximizing jobs in America creates more jobs in America? n nYour statement below makes no sense. n n"Investing overseas is not outsourcing. Outsourcing results in lower costs (otherwise, why outsource?) which means lower prices, which means that American consumers have more money to spend on other goods and services, which creates more American jobs. And so on and on."