As 2008 drew to a close just six years ago, it would have been difficult for Americans to believe the precipitous drop in the nation’s condition that would occur within the following six years. Within that short span of time, the U.S. economy, its national security, and relations between citizens would deteriorate at a worrisome and unexpected rate.
The Economy
In 2008, the national debt was $11, 039,737,790,000, compared to the approximately $18,028, 000,000,000 that will greet the new year. All that extra spending, including the stimulus spending program, produced no noticeable results.
Despite the presence of an extremely severe recession (much of it due to the bad economics of misguided subprime mortgage legislation that began under the Carter Administration and was expanded during the Clinton presidency) there was little doubt that the nation would soon recover.
The labor force participation rate was 65.8%, compared to the current 62.8%. While some statistics indicate that the unemployment rate has improved, the reality is far different. As noted in Forbes, “Despite the significant decrease in the official U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) unemployment rate, the real unemployment rate is over double that at 12.6%. This number reflects the government’s “U-6” report, which accounts for the full unemployment picture including those ‘marginally attached to the labor force,’ plus those ‘employed part time for economic reasons.”
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) stands at 2.8 million accounting for an extremely troublesome 30.7 percent of the unemployed. The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers), stands at 6.9 million. These individuals, who would have preferred full-time employment, were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job.
Furthering the distress of many Americans, the Center for Immigration Studies, reports that all of the net gain in the number of working-age (16 to 65) people holding a job has gone to immigrants (legal and illegal).
National Defense
In 2008, America was unquestionably the world’s supreme military power. Today, following substantial cuts to the defense budget, the unilateral withdrawal of American tanks from Europe, the financial inability of the Navy to sustain an adequate carrier fleet, the dismissal of large numbers of vitally needed military personnel, the alienation of key allies such as the United Kingdom, Poland, Israel and others, the lack of modernization for nuclear weapons, and the decision to not proceed with an adequate missile defense program, the U.S. is seen as a declining force in the world.
Washington’s increasingly obsolete nuclear deterrent is a major concern. Alone among the world’s nuclear powers, the U.S. has not updated its aged atomic weapons. Along with the “New START” nuclear arms treaty, the rise of China as a major nuclear power, and the growing threat from North Korea, this has essentially ended American nuclear superiority.
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In addition to harmful strategic implications, New START allowed Moscow to maintain a vast advantage in tactical nuclear weapons, which it has deployed along its European border on board its new Iskander short range nuclear weapons. NATO has no equivalent weapons in place.
New START was part of the failed “reset” with Russia. As the U.S. cut defense spending and reduced its leadership role in international affairs, Moscow dramatically strengthened its armed forces, returned to cold war bases, sold nuclear technology to Iran, moved nuclear weapons to its European border, enhanced military ties with Latin America, invaded the Ukraine, and engaged in joint war games with China aimed at the U.S.
North Korea’s army will be larger than its American counterpart by the end of 2015 if scheduled cuts occur. China’s navy, combined with its potent land-based anti-naval missile force, will soon displace the U.S. as the predominate sea power in East Asia. Russia has spent vast sums modernizing both its nuclear and conventional forces. Moscow has resumed cold war era nuclear patrols around both the continental U.S. as well as our bases overseas.
In 2008, Iraq was slowly, unsteadily, but certainly returning to democracy. Today, ISIS, due to the premature withdrawal of American forces, now ravages that land, committing atrocities on a terrible scale.
Six years ago, terrorism, while continuing to fester, was not ascendant. Today, terrorist forces control more geography than ever in the Middle East, the Taliban is poised to gain substantial power in Afghanistan, and al Qaeda is growing exponentially in Africa. Further, Iran’s Hezbollah, along with Russia and China, has made significant inroads with several South American governments. Iran itself is poised to become a nuclear power.
The Final Frontier, Lost?
America’s space shuttle program was the envy of the world, and the U.S. had bold, concrete plans to explore and exploit the final frontier. Obama allowed the Shuttle program to die and scrubbed its immediate replacement, the Constellation program. Today, NASA can’t even put a man in space, is dependent on Russia to access the space station that was constructed by the space shuttle, and its plans for the future, are, bluntly, unfunded rhetoric, despite the ongoing development of the Orion space capsule, which itself is essentially only a modernized version of the 1960-era Apollo craft.
Racial Tensions
The most unforeseen, and indeed, unforeseeable decline in America’s condition was in the area of race relations. The election of the first black president was envisioned as an epic turning of the page, a major step that precipitated a new era of harmonious relations between the races in America. Unfortunately, that was not to be.
Rather than engage his historic role to finally bring closure to the history of racial animosity, President Obama, along with his Attorney General Eric Holder employed racial tensions to motivate their base core of supporters for political goals. The result has been a dramatic resurgence of tensions.