Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live At Daybreak
Sound Off: Can Any Package Really Turn Economy Around?
Aired November 02, 2001 - 08:43 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush is calling on Congress to get off the dime and get on to moving billions of dollars into an economic stimulus package, but that measure is still languishing. Democrats and Republicans debate whether the package should offer tax cuts, or directing to workers hurt by the terror attacks. And no matter what they came up with, can any package really turn the economy around?
Well, that's today "Sound-Off." Our guest Robert George, an editorial writer with "The New York Post," and from Los Angeles this morning -- I know it's very early there, Arianna -- Arianna Huffington, a syndicated columnist.
Welcome to you both.
ARIANNA HUFFINGTON, SYNDICATED COLUMNIST: Hello.
ROBERT GEORGE, "THE NEW YORK POST": Hi, Paula.
Hi, Arianna.
HUFFINGTON: Hi.
ZAHN: So, Robert, I'm going to start with you this morning, because I am going to read something that Arianna wrote in a column, and I want you to react to it. She wrote, "The so-called economic stimulus package that passed the House last week would have been scurrilous in the best times of prosperity, but in this time of national crisis, it is, quite simply, grotesque.
Tell us this morning why this isn't a massive corporate giveaway, as Arianna alleges.
GEORGE: Once again, Arianna has a subtle take on things. The fact is, the attacks last month, obviously it's affected consumer spending; it's also deeply, deeply cut into business cycle. We need to get -- send a message to the businesses, corporations and so forth, a message of some kind of stability, investment and so forth and that's why -- the House bill, believe me, is not the best alternative out there, but it is at least something.
ZAHN: All right, let's talk about tax breaks, Arianna, why don't they help business long-term. I mean, do you deny that giving a corporation a tax break long term will help them. HUFFINGTON: What is being done is it gives $115 billion in tax breaks and corporate giveaways, and it includes, for example, allowing a tax loophole that makes it possible for multinational corporations not to pay any taxes provided they keep their profits overseas. Please tell me, how is it providing incentives to corporations to keep their money out of the economy, trying to stimulate our economy. This is nothing more than payback to big business.
It is absolutely shameless, and at a time when we have the kind of unemployment numbers that we just heard from your reporters, that instead of focusing on unemployment insurance, instead of focusing on the fact that we have 7,800,000 unemployed people in this country, and that we need to stimulate the economy by focusing on them, by giving them higher unemployment insurance benefits and by giving them health insurance benefits. You 11 million uninsured children alone, and a public health system that is crumbling.
GEORGE: I actually sort of agree with Arianna to a certain extent in the sense of...
ZAHN: On what part of what she said?
GEORGE: I agree with her that there needs to be stronger investment. I would say that there needs to be stronger supply-side stuff. What we need in there is to send a signal to business, to go out, to invest, to increase production, to hire more workers and so forth. I don't think it's going to be helpful just adding more money on the unemployment side, health benefits and so forth.
ZAHN: Why not, Robert?
GEORGE: What the economy needs here is a stimulus to get companies to start hiring workers. That's the key thing, because that's going to help consumers spending, because people right now are tight.
ZAHN: All right, Robert, hang on one second. Let Arianna react to that.
HUFFINGTON: Let me just correct you here, because we just gave $15 billion to the airline industry at the very people when they laid off 140,000 workers. The idea that this money will be spent hiring workers is preposterous. Even Dick Armey, one of the champions of this bill, said that it's going to increase jobs by 170,000 in the next year. That is nothing, that is a drop in the bucket, compared to the amazing suffering of those who've been laid off work through no fault of their own. This is the time -- Robert, this should be a time of...
GEORGE: Arianna, you are not offering any solutions on how to address the unemployment figures either.
HUFFINGTON: Yes, I absolutely am.
GEORGE: You are not. HUFFINGTON: I'm saying that if we give money to the people who need it most, they are going to spend it. They are going to spend it on...
GEORGE: That's not helping unemployment. We've just had the biggest unemployment hit, drop in 21 years. What you are doing is...
HUFFINGTON: You didn't listen to the latest news.
ZAHN: OK, wait, Arianna, let me try to figure out exactly what you're posing. You talk about direct aid to these unemployed workers, and you talk about unemployment insurance. What else are you talking about that would actually add stimulus to the economy through these workers. They're unemployed.
HUFFINGTON: Well, I am talking about two things. First of all, the larger point I'm making is that we all know that our prosperity has been consumer-led. Who is going to spend their money immediately? People who need to spend their money, the unemployed. What we're doing instead, we're giving a 10 percent capital gains tax cut, and we are allowing corporations to basically write off investments that they're they not going to make.
Let's be frank, right now, the interest rate is below the rate of inflation. The problem is fought lack of capital. The problem is a lack of confidence, and if we are talking about a time of unity and shared sacrifice, it is preposterous to ask the people at the bottom to share the brunt of this tragedy that has befallen our country, and really, we should do everything we do to stop this bill from passing, because it is nothing more and nothing less than...
ZAHN: Hang on, both of you, before you go any further, because I've got to give you both like 20 seconds a piece for the final thought on where you think this debates ends up.
Robert, will this packages?
GEORGE: The debate's going to end up in Senate. It's going to be a lot different, I think. Some senators, and Chuck Grassley, for example, has some good ideas to make it better, to make it more pro- investment heavy and so forth. It'll change.
ZAHN: Arianna .
HUFFINGTON: It has to change, and I think it's not going to change enough unless people speak out, unless people protests, write to the members of Congress, write to their senators, and make it very clear that this is completely un-American, and unpatriotic.
ZAHN: Well, you two have certainly let us know where the battlelines are drawn this morning.
Arianna Huffington, as always, good to see you. It's hard to look as good as you do at that hour of the morning in Los Angeles. Thank you again for getting up so early for us this morning.
HUFFINGTON: Thank you.
ZAHN: Robert, you look good too.
GEORGE: Thank you, Paula. You look great, as do you, Arianna. Take care.
HUFFINGTON: Thanks, Robert.
ZAHN: Just a mutual admiration society this morning. Thank you both.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
