Punditry StaffOn February 9, as the trial of former President Donald Trump was proceeding on schedule, President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris met at 1:45pm with business leaders to discuss the economy. What President Biden should tell business leaders can be summarized in one sentence: Release Congress from your grip to work for the people.
Prior to the meeting, the President briefed reporters about the purpose of the meeting. He said:
What the President should have emphasized instead is the need to abandon the harmful lobbying these leaders engage in to add value to their shares at the expense of the rest of the country.
STOCK MARKET OR STOCK OF THE POOR?
While this is noble of the President to remind business leaders about the poor, the real fact is that they do not measure the state of the economy in terms of people suffering. They measure it in terms of stock appreciation and company capitalization. Do you really think Jeff Bezos wakes up every day asking himself how many poor people are suffering? No, he does not. All the business leaders care about is the health of the stock market; as well, of course, the value of the company they preside over.
It’s not their job to care about poverty. That’s the job of politicians.
What the President should have emphasized instead is the need to abandon the harmful practice of their lobbyists writing our laws to add value to their shares at the expense of the rest of the country. Even if that means harming the middle class, the CEO’s simply don’t care. They have not stopped writing our laws since the Reagan years, and will not stop unless Congress changes the laws to make it a crime.
Most CEO’s reason that their own shelf life does not permit them the luxury but to maximize their own profits through higher bonuses and options to cash. This means none of them has this long view of our economy. They all analyze profitability quarterly, and determine their interests on par with the same very short-term view they regard their companies’ performances.
Anything else is fodder, and a distraction. CEO’s simply don’t care about the peoples’ interests. It’s capitalism on steroids slowly destroying the middle class.
If the President fails to tame big business and impose limitations on their capacity to harm consumers as they drive their stock prices up, he will lose the House and possibly the Senate in 2022.
MONEY IN THE HANDS OF CONSUMERS BENEFIT BETTER THE ECONOMY
On top of the agenda of President Biden was the COVID Relief Bill, which would directly benefit companies like Walmart and many others as the less economically fortunate receiving $1,400, or more, will most likely spend the money to boost the economy. Something the CEO’s are infinitely in favor of achieving. Giving the people money to spend is far more beneficial to the economy than the free money big business receive most of which they use to buy back company shares to spike stock prices and greedily improve the value of their compensation package.
Buying back shares does not benefit the economy, only the company value.
My hope is that President Biden told these leaders that the political situation is dire as anger in America over financial and job insecurity are growing every year. What the companies can do to help our government to regain the confidence it needs is to halt all lobbying efforts to re-write our laws. Further, I hope Biden also indicated that we need new regulations in place without which business has demonstrated a keen inability to police itself when it comes to trampling on the rights of consumers and labor.
If the President fails to tame big business and impose limitations on their capacity to harm taxpayers at the expense of higher stock prices, he will lose the House and possibly the Senate in 2022.
The peoples’ patience is on a short leash. They will not hesitate to punish those who refuse to uproot the machinations of evil doers roaming the halls of Congress.
What President Biden Should Tell Business Leaders
Punditry Staff
