Obama's Presidential Address: What He Got Wrong

President Obama gave a great speech last night, it underscored many of the ideals that America's greatness has been built upon. However, here's what he got wrong from a purely financial (not political) standpoint:

Market-based cap on carbon pollution: If foreign countries don't adopt the same caps, they'll have a competitive advantage since they won't be burdened with the costs associated with meeting those caps. In addition, if the caps are so onerous that they force companies to reduce production output (or even worse, move production to foreign subsidiaries) to bypass these regulations, the result will be a loss of U.S. jobs.

End tax breaks to U.S. companies that ship jobs overseas: In theory, this is a wonderful idea; a good political sound bite. In reality, if U.S. companies are forced to make products in the U.S. but their foreign competitors are able to make them cheaper overseas, it's foreign companies who will benefit the most. Again, the net result will make U.S. companies less competitive and profitable, especially in industries that rely heavily on foreign production.

So while Obama talks a good game about saving the U.S. economy, here are two policies in his speech that will hurt it in the long run. However, I'll reserve final judgment on his administration's commitment to fiscal responsibility when specific plans are revealed in the months ahead.