Economic freedom under Obama has plummeted: America falls from 6th to 11th place

(Freedom.news) The principle of free markets adopted by our founding fathers enabled the United States to become the economic powerhouse that it [traditionally] has been, but that principle has been severely eroded under the highly bureaucratic, economically illiterate and big government policies of President Obama. If George W. Bush is forced to own the Great Recession (which essentially accounted for his last year in office), Obama will definitely have to own seven, going on eight, years of economic stagnation, deprivation and loss of opportunity for tens of millions of Americans.

As noted by the conservative Heritage Foundation, the 2016 Index of Economic Freedom, one of the group’s annual publications, “America’s economic freedom has tumbled. With losses of economic freedom in eight of the past nine years, the U.S. has tied its worst score ever, wiping out a decade of progress.”

Other places and countries with greater economic freedom include: Hong Kong, Singapore, New Zealand, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Chile, Ireland, Estonia and the United Kingdom.

The overall trend for the top 10 is negative, however – that is, governments imposing more restrictions on economic progress; six of the 10 lost ground while only four – Switzerland, Ireland, Estonia and the UK – gained.

But it is telling that the “freest country on earth” is not only isn’t in the world’s top spot for economic freedom but America isn’t even in the top 10.

What isn’t surprising – or what shouldn’t be surprising to anyone who is being honest – is that that Obama’s and the Democrats’ Left-wing economic policies are failing…because Marxism, communism, socialism, all of those top-down, government-controlled economic systems, always fail.

The Soviet Union is one of the biggest examples of the past century but there are others: Cuba, Venezuela, Greece, Bolivia. Centralized management of the economy, coupled with heavy regulation and expensive compliance rules make for poor growth, and the U.S. has proven that each and every year under Obama.

More proof: In December 2014, the Washington Examiner pointed out that under Obama, more than 21,000 regulations had been issued up to that point, with nearly 2,400 more scheduled to take effect last year – and all without any congressional input.

Further, Americans for Tax Reform reported in January that excessive regulations cost the U.S. economy $2 trillion – or more than the world’s eighth largest economy, Brazil ($1.9 trillion).

Heritage points out some other stats that help explain the Obama Effect, since he took office in 2009:

— Government spending has exploded, amounting to $29,867 per household in 2015

— The national debt has risen to $125,000 for every tax-filing household in America—a total over $18 trillion [this figure is actually expected to rise to $20 trillion by the time Obama leaves office next year]

— The government takeover of health care is raising prices and disrupting markets

— Bailouts and new government regulations have increased uncertainty, stifling investment and job creation

“This is not something to take lightly,” writes Heritage’s Anthony B. Kim, who researches international economic issues. “Economic freedom is the foundation of U.S. economic strength, and economic strength is the foundation of America’s high living standards, military power, and status as a world leader. The perils of losing economic freedom are not fictional.”

Other factors limiting economic growth and freedom: The U.S. has the highest corporate tax rate in the world [by comparison, Ireland has recently adopted one of the lowest, and is now in the top 10 countries with the most economic freedom]; and we are ranked 49^th in terms of how easy it is to start a new business.

“No wonder the labor force participation rate has remained at near record lows after more than five years of steady decline,” writes Kim.

Apparently these are “perils” that are not considered important by Obama.

See also:

The Daily Signal

Washington Examiner

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