Andrew Yang’s ‘Freedom Dividend’ is More Complicated Than You Might Think
Photo Credits: WIkimedia COmmons
When Yang was CEO for Manhattan Prep, a New York based test preparation company, he was eccentric, doing things like banging a gong at the end of the day, or–in true Michael Scott fashion–giving orders in a sing-song tone of voice–“Send me emails!”
December 5, 2019
On its face, 2020 Democratic candidate Andrew Yang’s ‘Freedom Dividend’ is very simple. A form of universal basic income (UBI), every citizen 18 years of age or older would be given $1,000 a month, adding up to $12,000 a year. On the Yang2020 website, the page for the Freedom Dividend easing voters into the idea of the Freedom Dividend states that “Andrew proposes funding the Freedom Dividend by consolidating some welfare programs and implementing a Value Added Tax of 10 percent. Current welfare and social program beneficiaries would be given a choice between their current benefits or $1,000 cash unconditionally – most would prefer cash.” Yet, the choice is not that simple. “If you’re giving people $1,000 a month, make sure that it can help people survive, if they are on disability or they just lost their job, at least they can still pay rent and food,” Says Cody Johnston, host of the IHeartRadio political podcast, “The Worst Year Ever.” With the cost of rent, food, utilities, healthcare, etc., as well as growing inflation, $1,000 per month would not be that much of an ease, especially for those already financially struggling.
Rent and healthcare are more concerns for many struggling Americans. The average rent for a one bed apartment in New York City is almost $3,000. This is a problem in places like the midwest, where the cost of rent, for example, is lower, but the unemployment rate is higher. Cutting or “consolidating” welfare would be devastating to anybody struggling on the American Healthcare Act, an already watered down version of Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act. Returning to Johnston’s quote, a UBI should help people survive, not make them decide between getting their medicine or eating.
Yang loves to build himself up as a real mathematician, someone who will stick to the data when creating new policy. When asked about the origin of his ‘MATH’ hat and pin, the ladder he was seen wearing during the October Democratic debate, he explained to CNBC, “One of my supporters said something to me — that the opposite of Donald Trump is an Asian man who likes math.” While a funny statement, it’s dubious as to whether or not he really understands the numbers, especially when it comes to how costly it is to be poor in America.
Aside from his Freedom Dividend, Yang has a suspicious number of policies that would hurt the average worker, rather than help. When asked on Twitter about raising the minimum wage, Yang responded “Leave minimum wage to states but universal basic income makes it much less necessary.” Having looser minimum wage policies could seriously hurt workers, especially in states that are notorious for having lobbyists for big corporations who are chomping at the bit to pay their workers less, such as McDonald’s lobbying against bills for a higher minimum wage. Yang could be harkening back to his earlier days of being a CEO, and thus having the urge to side more with business rather than labor.
Despite criticisms, there are many reasons why Yang seems so appealing. His calls for ‘Human-Centered Capitalism’ are alluring to voters critical of the system, but not willing to side with Sanders’ or Warren’s blatant Socialism. Not to mention, as a child of Taiwanese immigrants who was extensively bullied for his race, the prospect of the first Asian American president would be inspiring and uplifting for the whole community. He’s a social media expert, able to charm voters with floods of marketing stunts, such as giving away $120,000 during the September debates. He is a critic of standardized testing, saying that it contributes to the “Myth of Meritocracy,” which sounds like music to students’ and teachers’ ears alike.
Yang, calling back to his history as one himself, loves entrepreneurs. He wants to bring back the great American Thinker, the next big Bill Gates. Yang states on his website that, “For years, I believed new business formation was the answer—if we could train a new generation of entrepreneurs and create the right jobs in the right places, we could stop the downward spiral of growing income inequality, poverty, unemployment, and hopelessness.” He believes that to solve poverty, entrepreneurs need to be created, when in fact, poverty needs to be solved, by improving the job market and strengthening social services to create entrepreneurs. It’s following the very basic outline of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. One has to have their physiological needs (food, shelter, etc.,) met before they can self actualize and be the best version of themself that they can be. The person who could find the cure to cancer could be a 20-something living paycheck to paycheck, too busy to think and experiment, and Andrew Yang’s Freedom Dividend wouldn’t make it easier for them, the sacrifices made of their welfare would only make it worse.
