Pundit Says Republicans Committing Unforced Errors

Conservative economist Peter Morici writes today that Democrats are closing the gap with Republicans in polls nationwide, a trend he attributes solely to Republican missteps.

GOP leaders are failing to address the real problems ailing the nation’s economy, which he says were created by the policies of former President George W. Bush and continued by the Obama administration.

“The Pledge to America is a rehash of the platform of President George W. Bush-less taxes and government-and does not address the fundamental problems that have left the American growth machine broken,” Morici writes.

The ‘Pledge’ Morici refers to is a 21-page document released by a group of House Republicans two weeks ago intended to explain how the party would govern if it wins back Congress this November.

Morici, who teaches business at the University of Maryland, writes that instead of making vague promises to reel in the size of the federal government, Republicans should figure out how to crack down on Wall Street banks and help businesses compete in the global marketplace.

“Banks can’t lend because President Obama’s bank reforms boosted bonuses on Wall Street but left Main Street banks to the wolves,” he says. “Businesses can’t sell, because the trade policies of Clinton, Bush and Obama have permitted China’s manufacturers a huge unfair price advantage in U.S. and global markets through currency manipulation, mega subsidies and high barriers to U.S. exports.”

Failure to address these issues, Morici writes, will cost the GOP a sweep of both Houses this fall.

Republicans Unveil New Contract

A small group of Republicans on Thursday released their “Pledge To America,” a 21-page document that outlines what the party will do if it wins back Congress this fall.

The manifesto proposes a bevy of government reforms, from slashing spending to repealing President Obama’s healthcare law. The pledge is low on specifics, but features ideas submitted by members of the public through the GOP’s “America Speaking Out” website.

“Our pledge to America is that the Republicans stand ready to get it done and beginning today,” said House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio).

“The land of opportunity has become the land of shrinking prosperity,” said Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), a key architect of the document. “Americans across this country are outraged, and so are we.”

Boehner and McCarthy were among a dozen House GOP’ers who made the trek to Tart Lumber in Sterling, Va. to unveil the pledge. Republicans chose Sterling, a Washington, D.C. suburb located roughly 45 minutes outside the city, as a more modest alternative to the ceremony held in 1994 on the Capitol steps in which over 100 Republicans announced their “Contract With America.”