BETWEEN THE LINES: The dire state of the union

President Barack Obama’s recent State of the Union address was a campaign speech with more promises that, in the long run, will cost us more than we are being told and will prove to be inefficient.

There will be winners as our national wealth is redistributed, but those who work for a living will be asked to support those who do not. Blame will be placed on the shoulders of corporate America and wealthy taxpayers. Our tax system needs an overhaul, and it certainly is ridiculous that large corporations such as General Electric escape paying their fair share.

Yet we also look the other way at those who abuse the welfare system. The monstrous cost of these programs ultimately will be paid by those who, for the most part, live by the rules.

The focus this year will be on the presidential race in which the Republican challengers self-destruct. It will be easy for Obama, a Democrat, to side-step his failures and focus on his challenger’s flaws.

However, do not think the winner of the presidential race will be our salvation. In the view of Libertarians, the only candidate who understands our economic dilemma  is Congressman Ron Paul. Both the media and even the GOP view him as a radical and well outside the mainstream.

If truth be told, only someone outside the political mainstream can save us. Politicians have no incentive to change a system that provides the power to pedal influence to interest groups in return for votes.

Paul has studied the economic literature of the 20th century and years ago came to the conclusion the Austrian school presents a far more accurate view of economic phenomena than that of John Maynard Keynes. Unlike his political counterparts, Paul’s views for several decades have remained unchanged. Paul has a better understanding of the economy than the president and his GOP opponents.

Keynes mistakenly believed government intervention in the market, coupled with the power of a national central bank, could regulate the economy.

I hope I am wrong, but when the economy falters in the near future it will be debatable whether politicians, and the electorate they represent, will realize the error of their ways and restore the sanity of limited government.

Obama and the big-spending politicians in both parties can be stopped in their tracks by a conservative Congress, particularly in the House of Representatives, which is responsible for initiating spending bills. The last opportunity to reverse the spending madness will come in January 2013 if the Republicans maintain their majority.

If Obama is re-elected, he  might bypass Congress to accomplish his aims. If he pursues that course, it will create a constitutional crisis. So the real battle this year will be for all the House seats up for grabs in November.

Decades from now, historians will pinpoint this election and the reckless spending that preceded it in analyzing just how America met its Waterloo.

Laughlin is a Christian Libertarian. He is an economist, teacher, father, husband and most recently a grandfather. He has written a weekly column for The Tribune for 13 years. He and his wife Gina reside in Meadowlakes. To contact him, email ablaughlin@nctv.com. He is an independent columnist, not a staff member, and his views do not necessarily reflect those of The Tribune or its parent company.