As someone who went to the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), I was able to view the entirety of Rush Limbaugh’s address to the nation live.  The mainstream media has played miniscule sound bites of the speech and completely taken them out of context.  Although I find some of Rush’s antics objectionable, I believe that the media has unfairly mischaracterized Limbaugh.  The purpose of the speech was to tell the conservative movement to stay true to the principles of Ronald Reagan and to resist any attempts to abandon them. 

            The accusation that Limbaugh’s speech lacked ideas is ridiculous.  Limbaugh clearly stated in the speech that certain obstacles, such as “onerous taxes, regulations, and too much government,” need to be removed in order for people to be successful.   While most of Limbaugh’s speech was criticism, the criticism was still sustentative.  Limbaugh mentioned that the reason why President Obama never compares the current financial crisis to the recession of the 1980s was that America recovered from the 1980s recession because of tax cuts. 

            It is not childish for someone like Limbaugh to oppose government policies that spend money the government does not have, that place an enormous burden of debt on future generations of Americans, and that raise taxes during an economic crisis.  Although conservatives are currently out of power in Washington, the Republican Party can return to power in Congress by maintaining the conservative ideals of lowering taxes, cutting government spending, and promoting capitalism.  Keen leadership from true conservatives, such as Minority House Whip Eric Cantor, is also necessary.  Just as former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich called for the “Contract with America” to spur the Republican victory in the 1994 midterm elections, a congressman like Cantor will lead a return to conservative principles.  

When the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) completed the task of pulling out every Israeli settler and soldier from Gaza in September 2005, an internationally recognized terrorist organization, Hamas, gained control over Gaza and proceeded to fire more than 6,000 rockets aimed at civilian population centers in southern Israel.  Israel’s retaliation against these rocket attacks has been subjected to harsh international criticism, even though any country that experienced the same amount of rocket attacks as Israel would have taken action to defend itself.  After all, when Barack Obama visited the Israeli city of Sderot, he stated, “If somebody was sending rockets into my house where my two daughters sleep at night, I'm going to do everything in my power to stop that. And I would expect Israelis to do the same thing." However, the Palestinian leaders continue to condemn Israel’s actions by pushing the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate “Israeli war crimes” during the recent conflict in Gaza.

            Many in the international community who criticize Israel of war crimes in Gaza refuse to acknowledge Hamas’ war crimes and violations of international law. While Israel places military bases far away from civilian areas, terrorist organizations such as Hamas put their own people in danger by surrounding their military targets with civilian shields.  Even though Hamas commits a double war crime by deliberately attacking civilian centers and by utilizing human shields, the world has turned a blind eye to Hamas’s placement of rockets and weapons in mosques, schools, civilian houses, and hospitals.

            Many of the critics who blame Israel for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza ignore the fact that Hamas confiscates humanitarian aid shipments.  Hamas has gone so far as to block ambulances from reaching Palestinian civilians in desperate need of medical care.   Hamas even attempted to hijack ambulances in order to move Hamas fighters to safety.  More evidence of Hamas’ abuse of humanitarian aid shipments was uncovered when the IDF found grenades made from medicine bottles in Northern Gaza. 

            In addition to calling for the destruction of a member-state of the United Nations, Hamas is guilty of violating international law on other counts.  Although the Geneva Convention expressly prohibits the use of children under the age of fifteen as soldiers, Hamas routinely utilizes children to carry out suicide bombings and to shoot rifles at Israeli soldiers.  Amnesty International, a human rights organization that has been unfairly critical of Israel, has reported that Hamas tortured and killed Palestinians who were believed to be collaborating with the Israelis.  Amnesty said that Hamas security forces shot Palestinian civilians point-blank with pistols, in addition to severely beating and maiming others. 

Although the constant Qassam rocket attacks were enough to justify Israel’s proportionate attacks against Hamas, the Israelis compromise their own security in order to reduce civilian casualties.  During the Gaza conflict, Israeli intelligence determined that rockets were being manufactured inside of a family’s house in Gaza.  After the IDF warned the family that they had half an hour to evacuate, Hamas placed mothers with infant children inside of the house.  Israel called off the attack and the rockets were later used to attack Israeli civilians. 

The international community must realize that Israel’s conduct during the Gaza conflict was consistent with international law and that Hamas is guilty of war crimes and multiple violations of international law.  

President Obama has frequently argued that America is facing the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, even though the more logical statement is that America is facing the worst economic crisis since the Carter Administration.   It is also important for Americans to understand the implications of the actions of the federal government during the 1930s.  In the words of the late historian, George Santayana, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”  Unfortunately, the Obama administration is pursuing the same economic policies of Herbert Hoover and of Franklin Roosevelt that prolonged the Depression. 

The conventional historical interpretation of the period is that Herbert Hoover’s “laissez-faire” policies led to the collapse of the economy and that government intervention, in addition to economic recovery programs (often referred to as the “New Deal”), rescued America.  Neither of these assertions is correct because Hoover actively intervened into the economy and because Roosevelt’s policies ultimately exacerbated the Depression. 

The recession that resulted from the 1929 Stock Market Crash did not become a depression until Hoover signed into law the Smoot-Hawley Tariff, which substantially raised the tariffs on many goods that were imported into the United States.  An atmosphere of global protectionism and trade wars was created as foreign countries responded with retaliatory tariffs.  As global trade stalled, a worldwide depression ensued.  Hoover worsened the economic situation in the US by signing the Revenue Act of 1932, which doubled income taxes on many Americans. He also doled out substantial government subsidies to farmers and businesses.¹ One of Roosevelt’s top aides, Rexford Tugwell, went on to claim in 1974 that, "practically the whole New Deal was extrapolated from programs that Hoover started."²

            Although Roosevelt’s government programs were well-intentioned, the New Deal ensured the continuation of the economic crisis by discouraging investment, stunting job growth, and creating additional economic hardships for the American people.   From 1933 to 1936, Roosevelt increased government spending by 83%. Even though Hoover recklessly increased income taxes on the upper class from 24% to 63%, Roosevelt decided to push taxes even higher by increasing the rate to a 79% tax on the income of the wealthiest Americans.¹ Unbelievably high taxes on personal and corporate income, as well as on “excess profits,” removed any incentive for private investment or the creation of capital during these years.   

The New Deal did not revive the economy, as evident by the average of 17% unemployment during the 1930s and by the further slowdown in 1937, which amounted to a depression within a depression.³ It was not until the early 1940s, that World War II and sound monetary policy rescued America.   

            It is frightening that the Obama Administration is making these same mistakes as Hoover and Roosevelt.  President Obama wants to punish companies that send jobs overseas and to raise taxes on the wealthy. He has already signed a trillion-dollar “Stimulus” Bill with a “buy American” clause.  In addition, he supported a budget that burdens the middle class with a hidden energy tax. Yet, protectionism, tax hikes, and government spending are precisely what worsened the Depression. 

Capitalism is often wrongly accused of igniting the Depression when the underlying cause was actually government actions.  However, history has shown that the combination of liberalizing trade, lowering taxes, reducing government spending, and encouraging private investment is the recipe for economic growth.  During this financial crisis, America must heed Santayana’s warning and not pursue policies that failed in the past. 

Sources:

1. Reed, Lawrence. “ Great Myths of the Great Depression.” Mackinac Center for Public Policy 2005. < http://www.mackinac.org/archives/1998/sp1998-01.pdf>

2. Hoff, Joan. Herbert Hoover, Forgotten Progressive. Library of American biography. Boston: Little, Brown, 1975.

3. Powell, Jim. “FDR’s Folly: How Franklin D. Roosevelt and His New Deal Prolonged the Great Depression?(Crown Forum, 2003).” Video. The Cato Institute. 3 December    2003. < http://www.cato.org/event.php?eventid=592 >