Writing in the latest issue of Barron’s, Robert M. Sussman of the New York City-based hedge fund Bentley Capital Management suggests that President Obama’s re-election has disappointed many in the business world.
With President Barack Obama winning a second term, businesses are showing signs of sitting on their hands. Capital spending was pulled forward this year by the ability accelerate depreciation, but that benefit expires at the end of 2012. Regardless of whether there’s a fiscal cliff, major industries such as defense, coal, energy service, and medical devices will be hurt by the administration’s policies. Defense contractors already are sending out thousands of layoff notices.
Obamacare is a huge negative, which will accelerate the trend of shifting from full-time to part-time workers. Millions of people will be forced to work fewer hours, thereby losing their employer-sponsored health-care insurance. This will vastly increase the cost to workers of health-care coverage.
Great. There’s yet another reason to worry about the long-term impacts of Obamacare.
