Is Corporate America Undermining Obama?

[Pryderi]

Poll question: Is Corporate America Undermining Obama?

I watched Obama's press conference and signing statements this morning, and the next thing I know major corporations announce huge layoffs.

[Dreamer Tatum]

1. I don't think so at all

I think the layoffs were going to happen no matter what. Firing people is generally the last thing companies do, which is why unemployment tends to be a lagged indicator of economic performance. Also, it takes a WEE bit of time to figure out who's going
to get the axe, and why.

We're nearing the end of the month, we're a month removed from Christmas, and today is Monday. That's pretty much a perfect storm for announcing layoffs.

[Pryderi]

2. Ok. I was just suspicious of the timing.

[Dreamer Tatum]

9. Having seen a lot of corporations, big and small

I can tell you that while some execs have an opinion on politics, none of them
really give a shit who's in the White House. Maybe the CEO of WalMart or Exxon does (I don't know),
but most senior execs I've dealt with actually fear layoffs. It generally means that those execs failed.

[Romulox]

3. As long as the TARP/"stimulus" money is flowing, they're on the same page. nt

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

4. Well yes, obviously.

I mean, just look at it - there hadn't been a single layoff until Obama took office. Everybody had jobs until last week.

[ogneopasno]

7. Hee. Yup.

[onehandle]

10. Yeah. And my 401k was sound until last Tuesday.

The corporations obviously tanked it to sink Obama.

[MADem]

5. The corporations are undermining themselves. Their business models aren't

adjusted to this new, lean, miserable economy. They kept digging a hole for themselves.

They didn't prepare, and seek economies for what was obviously coming, in the past year incrementally, so they're doing a fast hack job on the most obvious, high-cost item: personnel. Infrastructure will be next, it always is. When horizontal cuts are insufficient, vertical cuts follow.

Of course, if they fired a few worthless VPs, they could probably retain no small number of workers.

[Deja Q]

19. *ding* *ding* *ding*

You've hit the nail on the head.

It's their greed.

It's not about "top talent". (nice catchphrase)

It's about "cheapest labor". (just wait until quality issues take the forefront; I've already stopped buying from certain brands due to how poorly the product was manufactured. Off by, what, 2mm for one item too... where was QC? Oh, that's too expensive.)

Repercussions. QC and support are not inherently evil or anything else.

They've been undermining things since Bush's time, Reagan's time, and depending on the chart one reads (and there are a few), Clinton's time too. At least Clinton balanced the budget; that much is irrefutable.

[onehandle]

6. No. If Obama fails, corporate America is dead.

Rush is a big, stupid un-American ass.

[stillcool]

8. Global/American Corporations

are undermining the United States.

[Auggie]

11. Not yet. At least, not intentionally by these layoffs.

[liberal N proud]

12. So they all decided after Obama spoke to make these huge cuts

No planing, no accountants calculating cost or savings associated with layoffs.

:tinfoilhat:

[Pryderi]

All I was doing was questioning the timing of all the announcements, smarmy pants.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

15. What planet have you been living on for the past year and a half?

You're acting like layoffs are some new invention. That isn't the case. Something like 700,000 - 2,000,000 people were thrown out of work before Obama was even elected. Are you living under a rock?

[Pryderi]

22. Attacking me only exposes your lack of reading comprehension

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

25. "Is Corporate America Undermining Obama?"

Answer: No, you tinfoil hatted idjit.

[Pryderi]

27. I only asked the question, and there's a majority of 'yes' responses.

[hologram]

13. Been wondering about it.

Is the corporatocracy pissed off that the country did not gratefully approve of their (fascist) governance behind the faces of Bush and Cheney? Are they assuming that if we are brought to our knees we'll start to see things differently?

Is it possible to induce a recession? Perhaps by secretly agreeing to begin a massive coordinated wave of layoffs?

It seems like quite a coincidence that a "recession" and an enormous corporate bailout without much accountability just happen to take place in the last six months or so of the solidly corporatist Bush administration.

So many conspiracy theories, so little time...

[whistle]

16. The bailout as Bush and Paulson structured it was a swindle and Obama

...has nipped the last $350 billion of that so the big banks are pissed and are keeping a lid on credit and lending

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

17. What the hell are you talking about?

Is the corporatocracy pissed off that the country did not gratefully approve of their (fascist) governance behind the faces of Bush and Cheney?

What corporatocracy? Who, what and where? Define your term.

Are they assuming that if we are brought to our knees we'll start to see things differently?

Yes. Because that's what corporations like to do. Put themselves out of business to prove a political point. It's in every MBA course.

Is it possible to induce a recession?

I don't know. Why don't you try actually defining some of the terms you're using. Do you suspect that an individual induced a recession? Are you suggesting some group induced it? Stop asking questions and try making some assertions if you believe this.

t seems like quite a coincidence that a "recession" and an enormous corporate bailout without much accountability just happen to take place in the last six months or so of the solidly corporatist Bush administration.

Yes, I can just see the Lehman Bros. board meeting back in June - "Gee, why don't we go bankrupt. That's an excellent strategery. Yes! Why bother making money when we can ALL BE BANKRUPT?!?"

[hologram]

21. Ahh, what a rare find.

A True Believer. :party:

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

24. You can't answer any of it, can you?

Try getting beyond hyperbole and answer the damn questions, if it do please ya.

[hologram]

26. And not just a True Believer.

But a True Believer who responds with pure emotional outrage when his religion is questioned.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

28. Provide some evidence for your assertion, then we can talk.

Until then, adios.

[Still Sensible]

14. Almost all of these corporations are too busy

trying to figure out how to keep their company from going the way of Circuit City to be trying to undermine Obama. The fact is, his success--or lack thereof--will determine the viability of much of corporate America.

Can we find individual, anecdotal evidence where someone isn't on the same page and, in fact, wants this effort to fail? Probably. But by and large these companies are "all-in" if they want to survive.

[anonymous171]

18. No. They are supporting him for now, just like they did with FDR. nt

[JackRiddler]

20. This is a joke, right?

[slackmaster]

23. It's funny that anyone still thinks of a mainstream politician as separate from corporate America

:shrug: