GE - We have the corner on Obama jobs now, suckers!

This is sad, revolting and unsurprising all at once. All jobs will be government jobs. So sayeth the Immelt.

Obama will announce today on a visit to a G.E. plant in Schenectady, N.Y. that G.E. CEO Jeffrey Immelt will lead his new Council on Jobs and Competitiveness. The panel replaces the President’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board led by former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volker.

Volker, who helped President Ronald Reagan whip inflation and launch two decades of growth, will be replaced by Immelt, who has often spoken of his desire to put G.E. on the inside track for government subsidies and incentives in the Obama era.

Whether it is pushing the president’s plan for global warming fees in order to create demand for his “Ecomagination” line of windmills, solar panels, etc., boosting the president’s national health-care law as part of an effort to sell more medical equipment, or enthusing over the Obama strategy of making loans available for industrial exporters, Immelt has been an Obama stalwart all along. Immelt has also consistently argued to shareholders that there is big money to be made in advancing the Democratic agenda.

Big, easy money. The quick route to success for GE? Back a candidate with money and when he wins, get government contracts on unproven technologies that could take decades to work out. A small investment for a long revenue stream.

Reason has been replaced with expedience. It didn't start with Immelt but his approach is the logic conclusion of a long decline in effort and integrity. Just wait until we are relying on China for those green jobs. This appointment should be a red flag to anyone convinced that the future of jobs is private sector focused in this administration.