SEN. RAND PAUL, R-KY.: Good morning. WALLACE: Before we get to ObamaCare, I want to talk to you about your trip to Detroit this week where you helped open the first of what are going to be several Republican outreach centers in inner cities. You also unveiled your plan for economic freedom zones in depressed areas. Let's take a look at that plan. You would set a flat individual and corporate tax rate in those depressed areas of 5 percent. Give parents more school choice and education tax credits. And loosen visa rules to encourage foreign entrepreneurs to open businesses. Senator, critics say, well, those are all good ideas. You've got to pour more government money into those inner cities if you're going to make a difference. PAUL: Well, Chris, it hasn't worked. I mean, the president poured $1 trillion into the nation's economy. And when you divided it out, it was about $400,000 per job. The problem with a government stimulus is you pick the winners and losers. With this stimulus that I'm talking about, a free market stimulus, you simply leave the money in the hands of those who earned it. So the customers have actually picked out the successful people, the ones they choose to buy products from. Those people get more money. Like I met a young man, young African-American man, who has his own restaurant. His first question is, do you have any tax breaks for me for my business? That's what this would do. It would help people who are already in business and trying. WALLACE: But I don't have to tell you, Senator, that Republicans have a steep hill to climb in inner city neighborhoods. In the city of Detroit in November, 97 percent of Detroit voters supported President Obama, 2 percent voted for Romney. The black unemployment rate nationally is still 12.5 percent. And right now, President Obama is calling out the GOP for what he says is your party's refusal to extend long-term unemployment benefits. Take a look at what he said this week. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: For decades, Congress has voted to offer relief to job seekers, including when the unemployment rate was lower than it is today. But now, that economic lifeline is in jeopardy, all because Republicans in this Congress, which is on track to be the most unproductive in history, have so far refused to extend it. (END VIDEO CLIP) WALLACE: Senator, let me ask you a direct question. Do you personally, do you support extending unemployment benefits, or would you let 1.3 million Americans lose those benefits before the end of the year? PAUL: I do support unemployment benefits for the 26 weeks that they're paid for. If you extend it beyond that, you do a disservice to these workers. There was a study that came out a few months ago, and it said, if you have a worker that's been unemployed for four weeks and on unemployment insurance and one that's on 99 weeks, which would you hire? Every employer, nearly 100 percent, said they will always hire the person who's been out of work four weeks. When you allow people to be on unemployment insurance for 99 weeks, you're causing them to become part of this perpetual unemployed group in our economy. And it really -- while it seems good, it actually does a disservice to the people you're trying to help. You know, I don't doubt the president's motives. But black unemployment in America is double white unemployment. And it hasn't budged under this president. WALLACE: But, Senator -- PAUL: I think a lot of African-Americans voted for him, but I don't think it's worked. I don't think his policies have worked. WALLACE: But, Senator, how do you persuade the African-American voter in the inner city, you're not going to spend more government money, you're going to vote to let the -- the unemployment benefits lapse, how do you persuade that black voter, this is good for them? This is the right policy? PAUL: My economic stimulus plan for Detroit would leave over a billion dollars in Detroit's economy and would stimulate Detroit. There is no other plan on the table. And there's not going to be some grand bail out that's going to go through Congress. Other than my plan, if my plan would pass, I think it's the only one that politically could pass. Over a billion dollars would be left in Detroit. I'm also talking about restoring voting rights. I'm talking about school choice. I think there's a lot to offer in the Republican message that hasn't been offered in the past. And I think there's only upside potential for voters in Detroit or all the big cities for Republicans.
Rand Paul descibes Freedom Zone plan; Says 99 wks of unemployment benefits does diservice to workers
SEN. RAND PAUL, R-KY.: Good morning. WALLACE: Before we get to ObamaCare, I want to talk to you about your trip to Detroit this week where you helped open the first of what are going to be several Republican outreach centers in inner cities. You also unveiled your plan for economic freedom zones in depressed areas. Let's take a look at that plan. You would set a flat individual and corporate tax rate in those depressed areas of 5 percent. Give parents more school choice and education tax credits. And loosen visa rules to encourage foreign entrepreneurs to open businesses. Senator, critics say, well, those are all good ideas. You've got to pour more government money into those inner cities if you're going to make a difference. PAUL: Well, Chris, it hasn't worked. I mean, the president poured $1 trillion into the nation's economy. And when you divided it out, it was about $400,000 per job. The problem with a government stimulus is you pick the winners and losers. With this stimulus that I'm talking about, a free market stimulus, you simply leave the money in the hands of those who earned it. So the customers have actually picked out the successful people, the ones they choose to buy products from. Those people get more money. Like I met a young man, young African-American man, who has his own restaurant. His first question is, do you have any tax breaks for me for my business? That's what this would do. It would help people who are already in business and trying. WALLACE: But I don't have to tell you, Senator, that Republicans have a steep hill to climb in inner city neighborhoods. In the city of Detroit in November, 97 percent of Detroit voters supported President Obama, 2 percent voted for Romney. The black unemployment rate nationally is still 12.5 percent. And right now, President Obama is calling out the GOP for what he says is your party's refusal to extend long-term unemployment benefits. Take a look at what he said this week. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: For decades, Congress has voted to offer relief to job seekers, including when the unemployment rate was lower than it is today. But now, that economic lifeline is in jeopardy, all because Republicans in this Congress, which is on track to be the most unproductive in history, have so far refused to extend it. (END VIDEO CLIP) WALLACE: Senator, let me ask you a direct question. Do you personally, do you support extending unemployment benefits, or would you let 1.3 million Americans lose those benefits before the end of the year? PAUL: I do support unemployment benefits for the 26 weeks that they're paid for. If you extend it beyond that, you do a disservice to these workers. There was a study that came out a few months ago, and it said, if you have a worker that's been unemployed for four weeks and on unemployment insurance and one that's on 99 weeks, which would you hire? Every employer, nearly 100 percent, said they will always hire the person who's been out of work four weeks. When you allow people to be on unemployment insurance for 99 weeks, you're causing them to become part of this perpetual unemployed group in our economy. And it really -- while it seems good, it actually does a disservice to the people you're trying to help. You know, I don't doubt the president's motives. But black unemployment in America is double white unemployment. And it hasn't budged under this president. WALLACE: But, Senator -- PAUL: I think a lot of African-Americans voted for him, but I don't think it's worked. I don't think his policies have worked. WALLACE: But, Senator, how do you persuade the African-American voter in the inner city, you're not going to spend more government money, you're going to vote to let the -- the unemployment benefits lapse, how do you persuade that black voter, this is good for them? This is the right policy? PAUL: My economic stimulus plan for Detroit would leave over a billion dollars in Detroit's economy and would stimulate Detroit. There is no other plan on the table. And there's not going to be some grand bail out that's going to go through Congress. Other than my plan, if my plan would pass, I think it's the only one that politically could pass. Over a billion dollars would be left in Detroit. I'm also talking about restoring voting rights. I'm talking about school choice. I think there's a lot to offer in the Republican message that hasn't been offered in the past. And I think there's only upside potential for voters in Detroit or all the big cities for Republicans.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment