Posts Tagged ‘stimulus plan’

An “Eye-Opening Book”

Sunday, November 22nd, 2009

This is from the blog “In Another Country:’

Sunday, November 22, 2009
The Audacity of Help

Benito Beck is quite right–President Obama does want to transform the United States with his policies. Thomas Friedman of the New York Times laments that a political system such as ours with so much special interest money blocking up the works may actually thwart our ability to solve large global issues. Unlike Beck who seems to believe in a libertarian utopia devoted to Jesus Christ, Friedman is extolling the current Chinese system with its authoritarian capitalism. We’ ve been here before, folks, when people get all weak in the knees about democracy. That’s why I support Eric Holder’s decision to try the 9/11 perpetrators in New York City. He matter-of-factly defended the strength of our constitutional system and our ability to deal with terrorists using our own laws.

John Wasik has written an eye-opening book about Obama’s Economic Plan and the Remaking of America called The Audacity of Help. ( 2009, Bloomberg Press) Anyone watching the health care debate might sympathize with Tom Friedman’s remarks since the financial forces aligned against making any reforms have been awesome. In his book Wasik outlines the basic assumptions of Obama’s economic plan and analyzes what has been promised and what Congress has or has not delivered. His previous work The Cul-de-Sac Syndrome: Turning Around the Unsustainable American Dream gives you some idea where he comes from. He has a keen eye of what Obama was and is trying to do with the Stimulus Plan and notes the pitfalls in stimulating a bottom-up financial recovery but sees there are not alot of alternatives.The most rewarding sections of his book concern the making of a Green, Digital Economy and the initial seed money the Administration has allotted for the development of alternative fuels and technology.

For my money, the most important speech given by President Obama was his MIT address where he outlined the transformation he envisions for the American economy. I would rank it up there with JFK’s Moon speech. But that may be the problem–Obama takes a long view of our problems which he should but the short term hurt of the recession may slow if not stall the long term objectives entirely. Like Bruce Bartlett in another entry of mine, Wasik also is keen on a single-payer solution to health care, something that is off the table now. But as Wasik notes, Obama has taken on some of the most divisive issues in our political economy and contrary to his critics of the Left have stepped on alot of toes of entrenched interests. To make it to the Green Deal, Obama has to show that his stimulus package does heal the economy and help the unemployed and has made an impact on starting the transition to a more Green economy.

In a way, the whole healthcare issue is not only essential to resolve but also to build momentum for the other initiatives outlined in the book. As Wasik points out President Obama has vowed to cut the national deficit in half by the end of his term in office. While plans have been started from the first days in office to tackle this issue, President Obama will have to use his ability to explain complex problems to address frontally and fully the nature of our national debt. This will lead him into the territory of the third-rail of American politics–entitlement reform.

Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare all need funding overhauls and no recent administration has even come close to addressing this urgent issue. In addition, there is no consensus solution. Not only will the tax code have to be reformed but also the Administration must develop new revenue sources to maintain these programs at the present level just as the Baby Boomers are about to swamp them. This is the Administration’s Herculean task if the American dream is going to be revived at all.

The Audacity of Help is an excellent primer on the Obama Economic Plan as well as its emphasis on the needs of people in an economic system. The format of the book lends itself well to following the different aspects of the plan and what needs to be done. The Economic Plan is ambitious and unfortunately it appears to be necessary in all its aspects. For those who want the President to fail, it is a challenge to them to present an alternative view of how to maintain and sustain the American dream.

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Tackling Economic Issues

Tuesday, October 13th, 2009

This is a profile that ran in the Daily Herald, a suburban newspaper in Chicagoland:

Author John Wasik of Grayslake looks at writing in different ways.

“Writing a column is like a sprint, you do it in a specific period of time,” he said. “But writing a book is like a marathon with writing, editing and promotion.”

With more than a dozen published books, Wasik’s marathon has focused on a variety of consumer and economic issues, including his latest releases: “The Audacity of Help,” about President Obama’s economic plan and the remaking of America, and “The Cul-De-Sac Syndrome,” about the sustainability of neighborhoods during the real estate downturn.

While the former newspaper reporter has worked for various publishing houses, the latest two books were under Bloomberg Press. They are available through Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble as well as other book stores.

“In some ways, John follows in the footsteps of Jessica Mitford, especially with ‘Cul-De-Sac,’” said his agent Robert Shepard of Los Angeles.

Mitford, one of the famous and politically active Mitford sisters from England, hosted author dinner meetings in San Francisco many years ago that Shepard attended. Wasik had interviewed Mitford for a story and mentioned how he was looking for an agent for his books. Before she died, Mitford connected Wasik to Shepard in the late 1990s.

Still, Wasik draws much on his suburban roots for his books and has even touched on his own neighborhood in “Cul-De-Sac.” That book examines what caused the housing meltdown, how sprawl and tax breaks contributed to unaffordable homes and what could happen next.

As part of his examination, he even coined the term, “spurb,” or the sprawling urban area that’s not conveniently located near anything, like suburbs that seemingly spring out from the middle of a corn field, he said.

His life here has helped to guide his career, like a sprint around the suburbs.

Wasik was born in South Suburban Chicago Heights and grew up in Matteson. After he married, he and his wife, Kathleen, moved to Libertyville and then to Wauconda before settling into a home in Grayslake. They’re raising two daughters: Sarah, 12 and Julia, 8.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology at University of Illinois-Chicago, but later decided to go into journalism. He started his reporting career at the Star Publications, a weekly chain that covers the South Suburbs. He often covered mob-related activities connected to a Chicago Heights city council, he said.

He later joined Consumer Digest magazine and produced several award-winning investigative projects involving treatment of the elderly and financial fraud. That work led him to writing a column for Bloomberg News and writing books, starting in 1987.

Since then, he has won numerous awards and appeared on NBC, NPR and PBS. He’s also a regular speaker around the area. He appears regularly for promotional spots, including at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14, at Common Ground in Deerfield, and at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 20, at the Schaumburg Library.

Colleagues believe Wasik has the unique ability to dissect complicated financial problems and explain them in a way that makes sense to everyone.

“I really enjoy having him as a guest on my radio shows because I know we’ll have fun exploring the topic of the day and I’ll wind up thinking a little differently about the issue because of a point he has raised,” said Ilyce Glink of Chicago, a syndicated real estate and finance columnist and commentator.

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Will Obamanomics Work?

Monday, September 21st, 2009

This is a review from the conservative blog “Associated Content.” While I don’t agree with the author’s conclusion, it’s important to consider his point of view.

The Audacity of Help by John F. Wasik is a defense of President Obama’s economic policies, based on his campaign promises, the passage of the stimulus package, and the proposal of his first budget. It is not very convincing.

The main virtue of The Audacity of Help is that it contains a very detailed description of what President Obama proposes to do, with a rationale of why he proposes to do it. The Audacity of Help falls down where it attempts to persuade the reader that these new economic policies are
desirable. The reason for this is in the underlining assumptions surrounding those policies.

The first chapter of The Audacity of Help is a brief description of the New Deal, from a liberal point of view, and about how it allegedly saved capitalism by creating a government bureaucracy to “manage it.” The implication is that Barack Obama is FDR reborn, come to fix the alleged excesses of capitalism that were allowed to run rampant under President Reagan and President George W. Bush.

The problem is that modern scholarship on the New Deal suggests that it actually prolonged the Great Depression by stifling private, economic activity and causing uncertainty about government economic policy. If Barack Obama wants to make a second New Deal, which John F. Wasik calls “the Green Deal”, after some of the more environmental aspects of Obama economic policy, then we’re in trouble.

There is a lot of verbiage about how the economic stimulus package was supposed to work, with the “shovel ready jobs” and more spending on science and technology. The reality of the stimulus package, as we know now at the close of the seventh month of the Obama Presidency is that it has not stimulated anything but the growth of government and pork barrel spending.

Indeed, reading The Audacity of Help against the background of the open revolt by the American people, as manifested by the tea party protests and the town hall confrontations, one gets the impression of reading a document whose time has already passed and whose relevancy has been
destroyed by events. The question about Barack Obama’s economic policies is no long how they will help, but rather how much they will hurt before they are stopped and hopefully reversed.

Source: The Audacity of Help, by John F. Wasik, Bloomberg Press, 2009

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The Zen of Audacity

Friday, September 18th, 2009

The following is review of Audacity from zenpundit.com:

The Audacity of Help: Obama’s Economic Plan and the Remaking of America by John F. Wasik

Initially, I was reluctant to accept a review copy of The Audacity of Help because I blog primarily on military and national security issues and straight domestic politics posts tends to attract tiresome, angry, commenters who type in caps ( I do not want traffic, I want influential readers). Nor am I an expert on business or finance issues, Wasik’s forte as a journalist and an area best judged from a position of extensive personal experience, which I do not have. John Wasik though, after I checked him out, impressed me as an evenhanded and experienced reporter, so I accepted.

If you are a “political blogger”, Left or Right, order a copy of The Audacity of Help today, it’s an invaluable, factual ”scorecard” on the domestic agenda of the administration of President Barack Obama, especially the outcome stimulus package and the positions of all the players, executive vs. legislative, promises vs. reality and Democrat vs. Republican. The appendix and bibliographic resources alone will be fodder for many a blog post. Wasik offers a theme of “cui bono” from policy status quo or change that is refreshing and informative (and I say this as someone who would much rather write about Bernard Fall, the Haqqani Network or Herodotus than how Obamacare will impact senior citizens or the elections in 2010) accompanied by various textual, factoid, ”asides” that extend each chapter.

Here are the chapters of The Audacity of Help, which runs 202 pages:

1. First Aid and Income Boosters

2. Rebuilding Infrastructure, Creating Jobs,

3. Bottom Up Economics: Small-Business Benefits

4. Job Creators and the Green Collar Bonus

5. Get Smarter

6. Borrowing Wisely

7. Restoring Home Ownership: Keeping the Dream Alive

8. Health Care Reform

9. Unifinished Business: Long Range Goals in Entitlement Reform

10. The Road Ahead

I don’t agree with everything Wasik has to say in terms of policy but Wasik is measured in his praise and criticism on all parties and is ultimately, a fiscal realist (”How will all this money be paid back?”). He gives a fair hearing before offering his own opinions and policy recommendations toward the conclusion of the chapters which allows me to give Wasik the ultimate compliment to a writer of non-fiction:

The Audacty of Help is useful.

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Audacity an “Impressive Read”

Tuesday, September 15th, 2009

This is a review from Michele Malsbury on www.americanchronicle.com:

John F. Wasik, author of The Audacity Of Help, has written twelve other books and pens a regular column for Bloomberg News. He is a public speaker, and co-founder/president of Citizens for Action that is tasked with organizing people toward holding our government to being transparent and accountable for their actions and legislation. John Wasik has a personal blog regarding this book on www.audacityofhelp.net .If you would like to read more about Mr. Wasik you can do so by logging on to his personal web site at www.johnwasik.com or for information about his not-for-profit action group log on to www.citizensactionproject.org .

Mr. Wasik does not appear to favor any one of our political parties in his writing of The Audacity Of Help. Most of this book is dedicated to talking about what candidate Obama promised on the campaign trail and comparing that to what President Obama and congress are accomplishing thus far into his presidency. John Wasik tackles the questions about who wins/loses with regard to proposed legislation in the areas of energy, taxation, education, stimulus funding, and healthcare. His analogies are thorough and well researched. He points out which sectors may benefit investors in each proposal floated by this Administration and why he believes that to be the case.

This book traces the falling down of our economy back to specific incidents in 2008 beginning with Bear Strearns being absorbed by JPMorgan/Chase to nearly 8,500 homes being foreclosed per month that summer to Fannie and Freddie being taken over by the government to Lehman Brothers bankruptcy to the Bernake/Paulson three-page plan to un-freeze credit to massive jobs being lost month after month to what President Obama and congress are attempting to do to stop this downward spiral/depression from worsening. (2009, p.10-14) Mr. Wasik believes that the plans put into place under President Obama will need a couple of years to bear fruit.

Unlike previous President´s, President Obama´s economic plans hinge on “placing social concerns before the alter of economic expansion….and emphasize people-centered principles by focusing on healthcare and education…in order to show how social goals can be combined with capitalism….to create a culture of sharing and responsibility for the entire population.” (2009, p.18) Typically this type of economic planning is called bottom-up and varies greatly from the top-down proposals used by prior Presidents because in this form of economic reform [paraphrase] contends that the government is not the enemy [contrary to what the right says], but can be co-benefactor toward achieving better socio-economic goals for the sinking middle class, those on fixed incomes, and the poor.

Key to the success of this plan according to Mr. Wasik is flexibility of this Administration. He then said that “The way major project money is allocated will also determine how Obama´s policies could re-shape the United States….focuses on giving the lion´s share of the funds to cities and suburbs, then it could trigger a new focus on urban renewal….(2009, p.43) if the Green Deal succeeds on a large scale, it will employ millions in the building trades alone, perhaps offsetting the horrendous job losses of the last several years.” (p.77)

John Wasik states that [paraphrase] analysts and scholars compare The New Deal (Roosevelt) to what President Obama is doing now with regard to stabilizing our economy and creating jobs, but nobody can deny that under The New Deal four million jobs were created by 1934 and if President Obama can do the same he is going to be heralded as a great president. (2009, p.5) Mr. Wasik calls what President Obama is trying to do The Green Deal and says that it “means redefining connections between government investments and economic growth. (p.8)

Regardless of what party you affiliate yourself with this book should be a must read in helping to shape the direction of future arguments and/or discussions on the topics and issues of import to all of America at this tumultuous time. The premises and arguments are logically presented and researched and flow to well-founded conclusions. The tips for investment in the financial sector make good common sense for those of you with money to invest toward the long term economic growth of this country. Thank you Mr. Wasik for a very credible, timely, and impressive read.

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“A Must Buy:” Black Men in America

Saturday, September 12th, 2009

This is a review from the Website “Black Men in America:”

Reviewed by Gary A. Johnson

What a timely book. The Audacity of Help by John F. Wasik is one of the most comprehensive books about Barack Obama’s Economic Plan and his vision for America. Wasik is no slouch. Unlike many so-called experts, Wasik is uniquely qualified to write this book having spent time studying and following President Obama for years.

Given all of the media attention to the President’s economic plan and the distortions and misrepresentations about the President and his policies, The Audacity of Help is a comprehensive and yet easy to understand breakdown of Barack Obama’s economic plan and challenges for America.

The Audacity of Help is like reading a history book. The author provides charts and blueprints about packages passed by Congress and allows you to understand the bills and what they really mean. Wasik also takes a look at how the President’s policies will affect health care, education, the environment and taxes.

Each chapter is clearly structured to show “what Congress passed,” and “who benefits most,” on issues such as Unemployment Insurance Benefits, COBRA, Home Energy Credits, Early Childhood Education, and more.

This book is no joke. It deals with issues that matter to all Americans.

For me the best part of the book are the thought-provoking questions. These questions forced me to think about the impact these policies will have on my family now and in the future. For example:

* How will it stimulate the worst economy in a generation?
* Who will gain?
* Who will lose?
* What are his plans for reviving public education, small business, the environment, credit reform, health care, homeownership and entitlement programs?
* Which industries will benefit?
* What new jobs will be created?

This book appears to leave no stone unturned as it also compares the President’s plan with the New Deal.

Honestly, reading the book I felt as if I was studying toward an economic degree and liking it. And I hate math and economics, but I could not put this book down. The current economic climate and the author’s knowledge about the economic plan are a great match.

When President Obama took office, banks were severely impaired, companies were cutting pensions, and market disruptions and unemployment left more than 45 million people without health insurance or retirement security.

The book end asking the $64,000 dollar question: Who will pay?

The soaring national debt begs the question: How will this money be paid back? According to author Wasik, the Obamanomics mission will ultimately lead to President Obama being judged on how well his can restore and maintain prosperity. Or in other words, how will he remake or preserve the American Dream.

If you want to understand what is going on with our country’s economy, THE AUDACITY OF HELP: Obama’s Economic Plan and the Remaking of America (Bloomberg Press, August 2009), is a must-buy.

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“Required Reading for All Americans…”

Wednesday, September 9th, 2009

This is a review from blogcritics.org:

The Audacity of Help: Obama’s Economic Plan and the Remaking of America offers a journalist’s take on the compelling issues facing the 44th president of the United States, and the long road from campaign promise to reality.

Author John F. Wasik, a Bloomberg News columnist, brought this book out at lightning speed, encompassing an overview of Obama’s major campaign promises, pitted against their outcomes. The introduction includes a section on Obamanomics and a chronicle of Bush-Era Bust with a balanced explanation of the factors leading to recent issues such as “The Age of Froth Ends,” “Mortgage Madness” and “Reality Show Time.”

This is a lively and relevant look at the critical turning point in American history we’ve lived with in the past year. Wasik’s meticulous research in The Audacity of Help provides an analysis of all Obama’s major promises, then looks at what legislation was actually passed by Congress. Going further, the book shows who benefits most from various legislation, and what needs to be done next.

Obama’s promise to make college affordable is a prime example of the value of this book to consumers, business owners, and those who want more clarity that they get through news soundbites:

“While Obama proposed an American Opportunity Tax Credit of $4,000 toward free college education, Congress actually adopted that name for the former Hope Scholarship, offering only as much as $2,500/year, just through 2010. Eligibility stipulations include an income limit. Congress also did nothing to simplify the cumbersome financial aid process, which Obama promised to eliminate.”

Wasik is an expert on housing issues, as I recently reviewed here in his The Cul-de-Sac Syndrome: Turning Around the Unsustainable American Dream. As population growth forged ahead, homes became more elaborate and expensive. By 2006 an average of 37 percent of monthly income went to housing expenses. The realities of “house lust” meant people were no longer keeping up with their parents’ lifestyles and no longer able to stop the debt spiral.

In The Audacity of Help, Wasik skillfully weaves Obama’s policies and plans throughout an entire chapter entitled: “Restoring Home Ownership.” This should be required reading for all Americans interested in getting to the heart of the housing crisis.

All of Obama’s promises require capital, and Wasik looks at the obstacles, including the enormous political capital Obama needs to push his agenda along.

Wasik walks us through what a new economy agenda would look like and how it may reshape America. Top points are:

* People come first, not markets
* Corporate democracy is key
* Phantom wealth should be taxed
* A pluralistic partnership should displace patrimony and corporatocracy.

The progressive manifesto and bottom-up approach to lifting the middle class and poor up the economic scale can potentially motivate and mobilize an entire nation. Here, Wasik quotes Obama:

“Just as a family has to make hard choices about where to spend and where to save, so do we, as a government. There are times when you can afford to redecorate your house and there are times where you need to work on rebuilding its foundation. Today, we have to focus on foundations.”

http://tiny.cc/he9gX

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What Obama is Really Promising

Monday, August 24th, 2009

This is an excerpt from my new book:

The Audacity of Help: Obama’s Economic Plan and the Remaking of America Excerpt from The Audacity of Help: Obama’s Economic Plan and the Remaking of America

by John Wasik

Basic Obamanomics
Boiled down, what Obama promises is a more ecological sense of shared responsibility. By ecological, I’m referring to interrelationships within society and the economy and not just the environment. Green jobs for inner-city residents mean better education and opportunity. Reshaping the energy infrastructure translates into less dependence on foreign energy sources, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and lower home-ownership expenses. Can the more than $350 billion the U.S. spends annually on energy imports be rechanneled into domestic energy production and jobs? Obamanomics provides the impetus to transform the United States into a greener economy.

This new economy, in Obama’s plan, means redefining connections between government investments and economic growth. Spending money on health-record digitization, renewable energy, and general education will better position the United States to compete in global trade. More affordable and portable health care will create more economic security for everyone, particularly entrepreneurs.

Job creation and economic stimulation, naturally, topped the “to-do” list — in addition to a comprehensive bank bailout. The $787 stimulus plan passed by Congress, the focus of most of this book, was the first salvo. In his January 8, 2009, speech, when he introduced the main parts of his “American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan” (which I refer to throughout simply as the “stimulus” plan), he echoed FDR and laid the groundwork for his economic policy on the ruins of the ownership society and the botched bailouts of 2008:

If nothing is done, this recession could linger for years. The unemployment rate could reach double digits. our economy could fall $1 trillion short of its full capacity, which translates into more than $12,000 in lost income for a family of four. We could lose a generation of potential and promise, as more young Americans are forced to forgo dreams of college or the chance to train for the jobs of the future . . . . This crisis did not happen solely by some accident of history or normal turn of the business cycle, and we won’t get out of it by simply waiting for a better day to come, or relying on the worn-out dogmas of the past. We arrived at this point due to an era of profound irresponsibility that stretched from corporate boardrooms to the halls of power in Washington, DC . . . . Banks made loans without concern for whether borrowers could repay them, and some borrowers took advantage of cheap credit to take on debt they couldn’t afford. Politicians spent tax-payer money without wisdom or discipline, and too often focused on scoring political points instead of the problems they were sent here to solve. The result has been a devastating loss of trust and confidence in our economy, our financial markets, and our government.

The above is an excerpt from the book The Audacity of Help: Obama’s Economic Plan and the Remaking of America by John F.Wasik. The above excerpt is a digitally scanned reproduction of text from print. Although this excerpt has been proofread, occasional errors may appear due to the scanning process. Please refer to the finished book for accuracy.

Copyright © 2009 John F. Wasik, author of The Audacity of Help: Obama’s Economic Plan and the Remaking of America

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KoganPage Reviews Audacity

Friday, August 21st, 2009

This is a short review from Koganpage.com:

The Audacity of Help provides an in-depth assessment of the winners and losers in President Obama’s newly-signed economic stimulus package.

The US is currently facing its greatest economic crisis since the 1930s. President Obama has taken quick and decisive action to enact an economic stimulus package strong enough to address problems of historic proportions. But what does this new package really mean for American families, businesses, investors, taxpayers, as well as an international audience?

The Audacity of Help unrolls the blueprints and offers insights on how the economic stimulus package - as passed by Congress and signed into law by President Obama - will affect healthcare, education, the environment, energy, taxes and more. The book includes analysis of sectors and industries that stand to benefit, as well as those that will not. The author’s conclusions are firmly grounded in a comprehensive and enlightened evaluation of the final economic package passed into law, and his analysis is underpinned by extensive research and interviews with experts from each of the relevant economic sectors.
BOOK DETAILS :

Paperback, 208 Pages, Dimensions 216 x 135 MM Language English.

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Welcome to the Audacity of Help

Monday, July 27th, 2009

This blog is designed to monitor the Obama administration’s economic plan. Much of the groundwork for this site is laid out in my book The Audacity of Help, in which I examine the thinking behind the stimulus plan and first Obama administration budget. I hope you enjoy it. Come back often for updates!
I available to speak on this topic. Email me at johnwasik@gmail.com.

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