Martin O’Malley:
“I think what’s going on right now, Steve, is you have a competition between two theories of how our economy actually works and how we generate economic growth that lifts us all. The Republican Party is doubling down on this trickle-down theory that says thou shalt concentrate wealth at the very top of our society. Thou shalt remove regulation from wherever you find it, even on Wall Street. And thou shalt keep wages low for American workers so that we can be more competitive. We have a different theory. Our theory as Democrats and as the longer arc of our story as Americans is that we believe that a stronger middle class is actually the cause of economic growth. And that in order to make our economy grow, what is good for business is that workers earn more so that they can be part of, not only the innovation that goes on in our country, but also part of the increase consumer demand that we have to generate. What ails our economy right now is 12 years of stagnant or declining wages, and we need to fix this… We’re either going to sensibly rebalance and do the things that allow our middle class to grow, that expands opportunities and allows workers to earn more when they’re working harder. Or, we’re going to go down a very, very bad path. I believe that there’s still the will, the common sense and the compassion and the caring for one another in our country for a sensible rebalancing. And that’s what I’m offering.”O’Malley on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) proposed trade deal:
“Yeah, I do oppose it. What’s wrong with it is first and foremost that we’re not allowed to read it before our representatives vote on it. What’s wrong with it is that right now what we should be doing are things that make our economy stronger here at home. And it’s my concern that the Trans-Pacific Partnership, this deal which is urged by big corporations, many of whom have off-shore jobs and many of whom have off shored their profits, is bad for America’s economy because it’s bad for our middle class and it is a race to the bottom, a chasing of lower wages abroad, and I believe that that does nothing to help us build a stronger economy here at home. And I am appalled by the notion that we’re not allowed, as Americans to read this agreement before our so-called representative institution of Congress votes on it.”Gov. O’Malley has laid out ideas and policies that, if enacted, would fundamentally change our economy. He’s also talking about ideas and policies that I’ve talked about in both my books and probably hundreds of blogs. We need fundamental change. The status quo will not stand.
Image source: Jon Hill / www.7dayspreceding.com