by Catherine Mortensen
Under a Joe Biden presidency, millions of American workers would lose their jobs, families would struggle to pay higher taxes, and many would be forced into unions against their will. At a time when millions of Americans are already struggling due to Covid-19 economic shutdowns, Biden’s job-killing policies would be a disaster.
1. A $15-an-hour minimum wage
Biden’s pledge to impose a national minimum wage of $15 could cost the U.S. as many as two million jobs, according to a new report from the Employment Policies Institute, a pro-free market think tank. The current federal rate for the minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. By increasing that number by more than 100%, the think tank found that millions of jobs would be eliminated in just the first six years of the policy change. Hardest hit will be young people and low-skilled workers. It would severely damage poorer states with lower costs of living, such as Mississippi, Arkansas and South Carolina. The report suggests that the majority of jobs lost will be those held by women, 10% of jobs affected will be held by Hispanics, and 9% by black workers. The report anticipates that under a Biden presidency, women would make up 61 percent of total jobs lost due to an increase in the minimum wage.
2. Green New Deal
Biden’s energy policies would put an end to U.S. energy independence, something made possible for the first time in 60 years by President Donald Trump’s America-first policies.
Biden’s campaign website calls the Green New Deal “a crucial framework for meeting the climate challenges we face.” While Biden insists he won’t ban fracking, he wants to eliminate all fossil fuels by 2035, which will eliminate hundreds of high-paying jobs lost in states such as Pennsylvania, Ohio and Texas.
In addition, Biden want to “recommit” the U.S. to the Paris climate agreement. According to the Heritage Foundation, the energy regulations in that agreement would destroy hundreds of thousands of jobs, harm American manufacturing, and destroy $2.5 trillion in gross domestic product by the year 2035.
3. Right-to-work laws
The centerpiece of Biden’s labor agenda is the so-called Protecting the Right to Organize Act. The plan would force millions of workers to join a union and pay union dues. Today, 27 states, including Arizona, Georgia, Michigan and Texas, have right-to-work laws that give workers the right to choose to join the union. The National Right to Work Committee warns that these state laws are effectively repealed under the Biden plan.
“Not only is eliminating Right to Work protections wrong because individual workers deserve the freedom to decide whether or not to join and financially support a union, but also because states with Right to Work laws have a proven track record of economic benefits, especially when it comes to job creation,” explained Patrick Semmens, spokesman for the National Right to Work Committee.
4. Higher taxes
During the Democratic primaries last year, Biden told an audience in South Carolina,“First thing I’d do is repeal those Trump tax cuts.”
A repeal of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act would impose a large tax increase on the American people. According to Americans for Tax Reform, thanks to the Trump tax cuts, a typical family of four earning the median family income of $73,000 saw a tax cut of over $2,000– a 58% reduction in federal taxes. A single parent with one child with annual income of $41,000 saw a tax cut of $1,304 — a 73% reduction in federal taxes.
Under Biden’s plan, the effective tax rate for the top 1% would increase from 26.8% to 39.8%, according to the Tax Policy Center. That means top earners in California and New York City would pay effective state and federal tax rates of around 53% — compared with the roughly 40% they pay in effective rates today.
Biden’s death tax would force families to pay the government 45 percent of a family farm, ranch, or family-owned businesses upon the death of a loved one. In some cases, the families would be forced to break up the business in order to pay the taxes.
5. Another Covid lockdown
In August, Biden told ABC News that he would “lock down” the economy again to combat the spread of Covid-19. Twenty-five million jobs were lost during the spring lockdowns and just over half have been recovered. To threaten another shut down is irresponsible.
Biden’s only experience with job creation, has been creating jobs for his son, Hunter, through graft and corruption.
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Catherine Mortensen is the Vice President of Communications at Americans for Limited Government.
