Keller @ Large: Obama, Romney And Attacks Over Outsourcing Jobs
BOSTON (CBS) - I know you want to be brought completely up to date on the Obama/Romney steel-cage outsourcing throw-down, so here's the short version:
Listen to Jon's commentary:
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Romney continues to demand an apology from the Obama campaign for hinting discrepancies in his corporate papers might amount to a felony, and while the Obama campaign won't apologize, they do say they aren't positive Romney is a felon, although they're keeping an open mind.
Read: More From Jon Keller
The Democrats continue to clamor for more of Romney's tax returns, which they suspect will prove there's an outsourced overseas call center where Romney's soul ought to be, while the Republicans are hammering the president for promoting outsourcing with our tax dollars.
And just now, Moe tricked Larry and Shemp into hitting each other in the head with a two-by-four.
Oh, sorry, I mixed up my TV shows for a moment there.
But while this latest campaign episode has been notable for its schoolyard flavor, it has also raised an important issue – is outsourcing bad news, something we should be doing more to stop, and where exactly do the two candidates stand on it?
The Atlantic Wire website helpfully provides an article entitled "Know your Obama and Romney outsourcing claims" that noted almost all of the companies being scornfully cited by both sides as outsourcers are, in fact, creating and sustaining American jobs too.
It seems some level of contracting out work to cheaper foreign labor has become an integral part of the business model, one companies feel they need to employ to survive.
On the 40th anniversary of Nixon's breakthrough visit to China, it should surprise no one that the global economic situation has changed in this way. Their baby-talk campaign rhetoric aside, both President Obama and Gov. Romney have pursued policies that acknowledge it.
In other words, the short version of this campaign spat over outsourcing is: each is accusing the other of a belief they share.
You can listen to Keller At Large on WBZ News Radio every weekday at 7:55 a.m. and 12:25 p.m. You can also watch Jon on WBZ-TV News.
