Bill Clinton was fondly referred to as our first Black President. Our truly first Black President, Barack Obama, has been called our first Hispanic President by some. By his words and deeds, President Obama has become our first European President.
Having studied our nascent period, our founding fathers were extremely desirous of not only creating a new country on a new continent, but also creating a society distinctly different than that of their European ancestors. They felt the class systems that existed in Europe inhibited the opportunities for individuals to reach their full potential.
Americans became proud of boasting leaders who came from humble beginnings in the fields of government and commerce. Every elementary school teaches of the log cabin roots of our most famous President, Abe Lincoln. The fact that early business titans such as Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller came from meager beginnings radiates through the business world.
President Obama has used this economic crisis to up-end our historic respect for the people who succeed in this society. During his campaign he made clear that he wanted to increase taxes on the most successful members of our country. He successfully pitted the masses against the top 5% of income earners by promising tax cuts for the remainder of the population. He never outlined that he wanted to limit the income of the top earners, but he has taken the AIG bonuses as his opening to attack high compensation for any corporate employees.
Don’t be fooled by the misdirection of his administration focusing on AIG employees. Obama and his party cohorts in Congress have it out for any highly-compensated corporate employees. The Congress has been attempting to do this for many years. These financials times have allowed Obama and some Democrats in Congress a window to severely restrict income for most corporate employees.
Listen to what the President emphasizes these days. If you discount the fact that he mainly focuses on our economy, there is no need for him to constantly bring up limiting compensation unless it is a passion of his. He mentioned it in his 60 Minutes interview. The real shocker was his out-of-nowhere comment in his public letter regarding the pending G-20 meeting. In a list of goals to achieve, the President states “the days of out-of-control compensation must end.” Rest assured no other American President has established a goal of this nature.
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