The Sun Rises

            I’m an early riser, up before the sun during winter months. That gives me a chance to check out the sunrise, and on some mornings my spirits also rise as I am treated to a spectacular display of nature’s palette of yellows, oranges, pinks, and purples spread across the sky. Last Tuesday was one such morning, whose brilliance coincided with the renewed optimism for our country’s economic future. With Senate Republicans falling into line, we learned that the tax bill was sure to pass. In spite of the false rhetoric coming from Democrats, this bill is bound to grow our economy and add to a picture that is already rosy. I expect that the voting public will soon realize how much better off we are under this Administration’s economic policies.

            Unemployment, at 4.1%, is at a 17-year low. Black unemployment is also at a 17-year low, and Latino unemployment is at its lowest ever. With 171,000 new manufacturing jobs created this year, unemployment in the manufacturing sector is down to 2.6%, also the lowest ever. Participation in the job market is inching up, as people who had stopped looking for work are now encouraged to re-enter the workplace by Help Wanted signs popping up all over.

            After two straight quarters of 3% real economic growth, the fourth quarter looks like it might hit 4%. Compare that to the anemic 1-2% under the previous Administration. Consumer spending is up, a sure sign of confidence in the country’s economic future. The stock market is booming, also a sign of confidence in the future.

            Why the optimism? Because this Administration and the Republican-controlled Congress are focused on growth, not income redistribution favored by Democrats. They know that reducing taxes on business and individuals is sure to stimulate growth even further.

Yet, all the Schumer-led partisans on the Left can do is protest the tax bill’s favorable treatment of business and the rich. These tax-and- spend hypocrites cry that the tax bill will increase our national debt, when they and President Obama added over $9 trillion in debt in the last eight years. They adamantly refuse to accept that growth is the best way out of debt.

            As we begin this new year, let us rejoice that the rising sun of capitalism and free enterprise is once again painting this country’s economic fortunes in brilliant colors.