Top Republican to address income disparity as "Occupy" protests continue

Mark Wilson/Getty Images

The nation's widening income disparity is one of the issues driving the ongoing "Occupy Wall Street" protests -- and one of the issues Democrats have seized on to make the case that their party is better suited to help angry citizens. Now House Majority Eric Cantor plans to deliver a speech to emphasize that Republicans care about the issue as well.

Cantor -- who is often cast by Democrats as the face of Republican obstruction -- will talk about income disparity in a speech at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania this week. Cantor's office tells Hotsheet the GOP leader is likely to hit on points he made on "Fox News Sunday" over the weekend.

"We know in this country right now that there is a complaint about folks at the top end of the income scale, if they make too much and too many, don't make enough," Cantor said on Fox. "Well, we need to both go encourage those at the top of the income scale to actually put their money to work to create more jobs so that we can see a closing of the gap. You know, we are about income mobility and that's what we should be focused on to take care of the income disparity in this country."

As the "Occupy" protests against economic injustice and corporate corruption gain momentum and support across the country and internationally, Democrats have used the protests to highlight their economic agenda -- particularly their desire to raise taxes on millionaires and billionaires. They've also sought to portray Republicans as out of touch with the middle class -- and they jumped on Cantor after he referred to the protesters as "growing mobs."

"Mobs? That must be what Republicans refer to as the middle class, or maybe the millions of unemployed Americans across the country," the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee wrote in an email to its supporters.

On Fox, Cantor deflected a question about whether he stood by those remarks. He then suggested Democrats are turning the issue of income disparity into an unproductive partisan debate.

"I think more important than my use of the word is the fact that there is a growing frustration out there across this country and it's warranted," he said. "People -- too many people are out of work. But where I'm most concerned is we have elected leaders in this town who, frankly, are joining in the effort to blame others rather than focus on the policies that have brought about the current situation."

Cantor said the House GOP's agenda of rolling back regulations, reducing the corporate tax rate and cutting spending gives private enterprise a chance to grow and thus gives people a chance for economic mobility. "We have seen that the other way doesn't work," he said on Fox of the president's agenda.

While Republicans and Cantor in particular have shown slightly more support for the "Occupy" protesters in recent weeks, they are not exactly embracing the cause at this point. Cantor's office said the majority leader's speech has been planned for months and is not in response to the protests.

Still, it's clear the GOP is intent on derailing Democrats' attempts to pin part of the blame for the economy on them.

In addition to exploiting the "Occupy" protests to blast Republicans, Democrats have castigated the GOP for blocking President Obama's $447 billion jobs package, portraying them as pure obstructionists. Republicans are vigorously denying that characterization, emphasizing their recent displays of bipartisanship, such as the passage of a trio of free trade agreements.

[xengineer4hire]

Both parties are out of touch, our representatives are all rich, they had no way of feeling the pain the rest of us are in. The economist are idots they also do not have a clue and neither does the news media
Put all of this together and you have a three decades of lower standard of living and only those of us who are in this feel it

[hsinco-2009]

OK voters:

Is this the kind of man you want deciding laws for you?

IMO, this guy is an embarrassment to Virginia and human kind!

[shurch4truth]

Eric is playing the typical game of Republicans like him which is to appear to embrace the problem without admitting that he contributes to the existing in the first place.

[addict42]

This dreadful creature is one of the problems causing income disparity and everyone with half a brain knows "he's for it!"
Just a week ago the 99 percenters were accused of class warffare and being disconcerting angry mobs. Obviously the citizens of Cantor's district are either illiterate hilljacks or wealthier Virginians who are capitalizing on him being in office. Either way with him in Washington, we're all screwed!

[Progress4USA]

This poor fool doesn't even know how a Bill becomes Law...

[Birdman1975]

The Wall Street protests have seriously harmed the far right's message of welfare for the rich and eliminating regulation that prevents under handed capitalism. For the last two years, along with the Tea Party, they have crowed this message consistently. Now they are forced to alter their message as they realize that the "little crowd" in New York that did not go away over a weekend has hit the public mainstream.

[FL_Son]

exactly, birdman.

[dzaffina]

Cantor said the House GOP's agenda of rolling back regulations, reducing the corporate tax rate and cutting spending gives private enterprise a chance to grow and thus gives people a chance for economic mobility................ does anyone with a brain still believe this BS? this has been the republican "STIMULAS" for 30 years. can anyone argue after 30 years, that the republican agenda is a total failure?

[Birdman1975]

Cantor forgot to say that the American people will have to hope that the "job creators" don't off shore their tax cuts and start hiring people. I don't think the American people are willing to wait.

[RangerDan107]

I agree, it's like the only answer the republicans have for everything is to give more money to the already wealthy. We need jobs - then let's give more tax breaks to the wealthy and they'll use that money to create jobs. I thought demand created jobs? Wouldn't that money be better off in the hands of the middle class just because of their sheer numbers and pent up needs? What if we encouraged Americans to buy American made products? Do you think entrepreneurs might spend their own money to build mfg. plants if Americans bought American? Oil is too expensive. Let's give away a lot of taxpayer money to oil companies already rolling in profits. We have a huge debit spending problem. Let's give the wealthy and corporations more tax breaks and raise taxes on the poor. What will that do? They'll take that money and create jobs and build manufacturing plants. Why would they do that, they don't need more plants or employees if demand has not increased!

[anonymous010]

"Well, we need to both go encourage those at the top of the income scale to actually put their money to work to create more jobs so that we can see a closing of the gap. You know, we are about income mobility and that's what we should be focused on to take care of the income disparity in this country."

Yeah, been there, tried that, didn't work. The problem is that the purpose of a corporation is not to create jobs, but to create wealth for its shareholders. They can't do that if they're spending money to hire more employees. So, you tell me what CEO is going to go to his shareholder's meeting and say, "Sales are great, so we're going to give up some profit in our pockets this quarter so we can create some more jobs."

The only way corporations will create more jobs is if they don't have enough supply to meet demand and believe that by hiring more employees, they can increase their profit even more. It's not rocket science, people.

[brian_norwood]

Cantor's solution to the income disparity problem? Cut taxes for the rich.

[Progress4USA]

If we give them just a little more money there's a good 50/50 chance they might just do something!??!?!?!?!?

[hsinco-2009]

What are you smoking?

They want to do nothing but amass more money, ill gained or not.

[johndevinejr]

".....But where I'm most concerned is we have elected leaders in this town who, frankly, are joining in the effort to blame others rather than focus on the policies that have brought about the current situation."

The entire republican agenda has been to blame the Democrats and Obama for the disaster created by George W. Bush and the republican party.
And as far as job creation goes, republicans are advocating the exact policies the Bush enacted, and there was a steady decline in employment during the Bush Administration.

republicans caused this mess, they are intentionally blocking any legislation that would fix the mess and they are doing this deliberately to help their political goals. These policies have never created jobs in the past and will not create jobs now.
If you would like to have a depression, vote for a republican