The incompetence, policies and legislation of the current Democrat administration and Congressional majorities in Washington are both now driving the bad economy. It couldn't be any more simple than that.
The private sector isn't lacking in capital, what it isn't doing is flowing, just as it stopped flowing during the Great Depression. Big Business also had big cash on hand back then.
Corporate America is hoarding a massive pile of cash. It just doesn't want to spend it hiring anyone.
Nonfinancial companies are sitting on $1.8 trillion in cash, roughly one-quarter more than at the beginning of the recession. And as several major firms report impressive earnings this week, the money continues to flow into firms' coffers.
Today, we hear Obama and the Democrats talking climate change legislation, possibly even via a lame duck session - and that's just one piece of potential legislation still to come our way. The costs of ObamaCare remain uncertain, but sure to climb. The tremendous Obama deficits will likely drive new taxes. And only God knows what will be the various new onerous regulations driven by the many federal arms of this hyper-progressive administration.
Consumer confidence be damned, not that even it's that good, the business sector lacks confidence in its climate of operations, as determined by the government. And just like smart consumers, when they fear a financial storm is coming, they hold onto their cash. In their case, they don't want to be caught short in the face of some new and costly government move that's anti-business.
Can you blame them?