Michelle Bachmann was praising, not attacking Ireland

Posted on Tuesday, August 30, 2011 at 02:30 PM

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Bachman wants US to
copy Ireland

Michelle Bachmann was not "attacking" Ireland when she spoke in Florida over the weekend. Rather, she was arguing that the United States should emulate Ireland, in particular with regards to its low corporate tax rate.

The New York Times said Bachmann was looking at Ireland as an example when she said, "There are over 600 American companies that have gone to Ireland because of the tax rate. Over 100,000 jobs. I want those 100,000 jobs back in the United States."

If you believe that 'imitation is the sincerest form of flattery' then it's more accurate to describe Bachmann's comments as praise. Bachmann believes that if the United States were to copy Ireland fewer American companies would feel the need to set up operations here. She believes that those companies would keep the jobs in America rather than send them overseas.
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Read More:

Michele Bachmann attacks US jobs going overseas to Ireland

Bitter row over Irish corporate tax rate between Irish leader Enda Kenny and France's Sarkozy

Dan Rooney warns Irish government not to cut corporation tax rate
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Bachmann is not the first to make this point. John McCain said essentially the same thing in the dying days of the 2008 campaign. Again, McCain, like Bachmann, wasn't – as the French have many times recently – complaining about Ireland's corporate tax rate. He was citing Ireland as a positive example.

So Bachmann was praising, not "attacking," Ireland, but was she right? Would those 100,000 jobs return to America if the United States adopted a similarly low corporate tax rate?

Probably not. Most, if not all, of those American companies would be in Europe regardless of America's corporate tax rate. They want to do business inside the EU with its market of 450m people. Ireland's low corporate tax rate is mostly about giving Ireland a competitive edge inside the European Union, which explains the France's annoyance with it.

If Bachmann were to become President and get this law passed the biggest impact for Ireland would probably be that it would help those Irish companies - such as this one in Kingsport, TN - in America. Yup, there are Irish companies operating in the United States. 80,000 Americans are employed by Irish companies. If the United States lowered its corporate tax rate that might well encourage those Irish companies to expand their operations and employ even more Americans. That would be good for Ireland and America.

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TheYank | Sep 07, 2011, 05:36 AM EDT

PatriciaMarya,

I don't think so. Jobs go off-shore for all sorts of reasons. Those that come to Europe from America are not coming here because workers are cheaper to employ. They may be - slightly - but not enough to warrant the investment. No, the reason they locate some of their business in Europe is because they want to sell to Europeans. For similar reasons BMW's are coming out of a plant in Spartanburg, SC.

When it comes to real price competition it's the poor Chinese and SE Asians who are the real catch for cheap labor. Do they have a single-payer, government-supported health system? I have no idea, but I'm pretty sure Americans would want nothing to do with the health care systems in those countries.

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PatriciaMarya | Sep 06, 2011, 10:18 PM EDT

Irish butter and cheese is made in Illinois if you believe the labels, but they still carry the title of Irish butter and cheese. The thing to remember about jobs going off-shore is that they would come back if the citizens of the U.S. had the same benefits as the citizens of the countries that these American companies run to: one-payer Health Systems and better education systems as well. The Chinese workers also have their meals underwritten as well. So how can all of the American politicians talk about how to bring the jobs back when they are unwilling to treat the U.S. workers as well as their foreign competition are. Forget Mexican workers - they are also mistreated by their aristocratic government. But think of this: of the 15 countries of the world that still carry AAA S&P ratings all of them have single-payer, government-supported health systems and are not underwriting a bloated, civilian-contractor ridden Military which is also acting as the World's Policemen. Time to rethink our priorities, Michelle Bachmann be damned. As a member of Congress, what was Ms. Bachmann's opinion of our sending aid to North Korea which is having floods? Don't they hate us? Don't we also have floods right here that Eric Cantor is saying that we cannot help until we find the money to do so somewhere else? Why not take it away from North Korea, Eric and bring it home? Michelle Bachmann having a lucid thought? Please – not unless G-D told her what to think.

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MichaelS | Sep 03, 2011, 11:09 AM EDT

Personally, I believe Michelle to be a tad scatterbrained and akin to Sarah. Neither one would make a good leader. That can't get simple facts right, let alone serious ones. Lord help us.

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RedBranch | Aug 31, 2011, 04:26 PM EDT

Reduce Taxes and watch the economy grow, now there's a novel idea. The Yank for President!

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TheYank | Aug 31, 2011, 05:48 AM EDT

Ratslayer,

What do you mean she "hates Catholics?" And how will that affect her policies? Will she round up Catholics, try them for heresy? I'm guessing not.

So, will she pursue policies that are inimical to Catholics' beliefs? If yes, which ones? Will she be as anti-Catholic as those who preach "pluralism", but practice a doctrinaire secularism?

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Ratslayer | Aug 30, 2011, 09:05 PM EDT

This nutter hates Catholics. Case closed!

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