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Opinion: Most Commented: Who’s to blame for the bad economy? A left, right and center debate

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President Obama wanted to take credit for the economy, and Op-Ed columnist Jonah Goldberg is all too happy to oblige in his Tuesday column. Here’s an excerpt from his column, which also talks about the unemployment rate, job creation, hamburger flippers, spending and the media’s obsession with Sarah Palin.

The more salient point is that Obama acts like he knows everything. From Day One, this White House has been cocksure about how to get us out of the economic ditch. In every major relevant speech, he has stuck with a consistent message: We know what to do and the Republicans don’t. ‘I will not sacrifice the core investments we need to grow and create jobs,’ Obama insisted yet again in his April budget speech.So what does this guy have to do to get the blame for the bad economy? Mark Halperin, an analyst for MSNBC and Time magazine, was asked on the ‘Today’ show over the weekend about the political impact of the bad economy. He assured viewers that the president was totally engaged in the need for job creation. ‘The Republicans, though, have the onus on them to come forward with some ideas. The president’s ideas are still a little bit up in the air.’A little bit up in the air?

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Readers are straying a bit from Goldberg’s column as they debate the country’s economy in the discussion board, though there are a few pointed comments directed to the columnist. Here’s a sampling of their comments, ranging on the political spectrum from left to right.

The problem is that President Obama no longer has the ability to do anything about the economy. Republicans control the House and the Dems have a 1 vote majority in the Senate which is to say no majority at all. And the Republican Plan? Cut more taxes and deregulate everything. And continue to pour money into the military. Meanwhile all they can talk about is the deficit. --yukioman Really: what do you know. Why are we in this mess? Because of two unpaid for wars and Bush Tax Cut for the rich. Invest 3 trillion dollars in our infrastructure instead of bombing an assorted mix of civilians and ‘terrorists’ in Afghanistan and IRAQ and see what happens to our job market. Rise taxes to the rich 1% and replenish federal and State budget and see what happens when instead of having to fire teachers, firefighters, policemen, nurses (30,000 fired nationwide just in May). you hire thousands And who has put us in this mess and tries to keep us there: Republicans, Tea parties of different varieties, corporations and ... commentators like you. -- duzziv I was mildly interested in your article, Mr. Goldberg, until I ran into this line: ‘Since his speech in Warren, we’ve spent another $2.8 trillion in borrowed money.’ You are unhappy with this gross spending, yet where were you when W. Bush was fighting equally expensive wars with no real gains coming from it? You are angry at Obama for tackling what is the biggest issue in the U.S. right now but fail to congratulate the people who actually created this mess. You attempt to blame Obama for the economy but couldn’t it be that the system is broken or that capitalism has gotten way out of control? Get a real argument, Jonah and don’t overlook the things you don’t like. --Mind Tricks After 2-1/2 years in office of course it’s Obama’s economy just as it would be McCain’s if he had won the election. Bush (along w/the Democrats AND Republicans) spent like drunken sailors and Obama has taken the spending to even higher limits. We spent billions on stimulus and created 38,000 jobs (not the 900k the government claims). If a Republican president was in office with this ongoing mess you better believe it that the mainstream press would be reporting on it non-stop. Washington is like California-clueless about cutting back and living within our means. --boochie President Obama has been in office long enough that he can no longer blame others for the current economic morass. Likewise, he doesn’t deserve much blame, but bears the responsibility nonetheless. His empty rhetoric on successes is just that. Nonetheless, any Republican challenger in 2012 must have a better plan than ‘I’m not Obama.’ --TimBowman It’s clear that to be a leftist in the US, you must believe the following: - Government can spend money better than citizens - Rich people are bad people who stole or took advantage of poor people to get rich. And by rich, I mean anyone making more than $150k/yr. - Poor people should be helped no matter the cost. They are poor because people took advantage of them. - It’s not fair that rich people should be rich and poor people are poor. - Business owners know less about economic issues than college professors who have not owned businesses. - Healthcare is a right, and everyone is entitled to it. Just like high speed internet. - Entitlement programs help people and help make them independent. -- trust no one One question for all of you bleeding heart Liberals. Based on the economic policies put forth so far from the Obama administration, would you allow him to run a business you own? -- abo42000

*Spelling errors in the above comments were corrected.

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