Jobs & Obama

[Conan71]

I was previously unaware of this exchange until I heard it referenced last week.  If anyone knew about creating jobs, it would have been the CEO of one of the most successful American companies ever.

Steve Jobs found himself frustrated by President Barack Obama's lack of resolve, but the two eventually found common ground over education reform, his new biography has revealed.

"I'm disappointed in Obama, he's having trouble leading because he's reluctant to offend people or piss them off," Jobs said of the President. "Yes, that's not a problem I ever had."

Political deadlocks annoyed him, such as when the Republicans blocking the "Dream Act" — which Jobs said should be amended to give foreign engineering students visas to work in the United States.

"The president is very smart, but he kept explaining to us reasons why things can't get done," Jobs said. "It infuriates me."

Jobs said the Obama administration was not business-friendly and said it was impossible to build a factory in the United States due to regulations and unnecessary costs. Apple had 700,000 factory workers employed in China, where it was much easier to build and run a factory, Jobs said. He said Obama was "headed for a one-term presidency" if the administration didn't improve.

Jobs also said the American education system was "hopelessly antiquated" and crippled by teachers' unions. Apple's factories, for example, needed 30,000 skilled engineers — something the U.S. education system was not producing. He suggested the President completely overhaul the system and proposed an 11-month school year with days that lasted until 6 p.m.

"You can't find that many in America to hire," he said. "If you could educate these engineers, we could move more manufacturing plants here."

Obama apparently took the advice to heart. He would tell his aides "we've got to find ways to train those 30,000 manufacturing engineers that Jobs told us about." The two spoke over the phone a few times after their first meeting in October, and Jobs even offered to help create Obama's political ads for his 2012 campaign. Jobs said at the time he wanted to do for Obama what the "It's morning in America" campaign did for Reagan's re-election in 1984.

Obama had not personally been in contact with Jobs or Apple until that meeting. Jobs' first tango with the administration came in the form of a congratulatory call from Obama's chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, on the eve after Jobs unveiled the iPad.

Jobs initially refused to meet Obama, saying he did not want to be a token interview that Obama could "check off" of his list. Jobs insisted that Obama personally invite him to a meeting, but finally relented after his son Reed persuaded him.

When asked about the Obama administration's involvement in the uprisings that took place during the Arab Spring earlier this year, Jobs said, "You're f*cked if you do and you're f*cked if you don't."


Read more: http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-10-24/tech/30315512_1_obama-administration-president-barack-obama-manufacturing-engineers#ixzz227mQFufV

[Hoss]

I was previously unaware of this exchange until I heard it referenced last week.  If anyone knew about creating jobs, it would have been the CEO of one of the most successful American companies ever.

And Romney's record on off-shoring is any better?  Srsly?

[nathanm]

Yes, pesky regulations like wage and hour laws, storm and waste water handling, and other limits on pollution. Foxconn would be illegal here, and that's quite alright by me.

[Conan71]

And Romney's record on off-shoring is any better?  Srsly?

You miss the point entirely. 

Re-read the emboldened points of why Steve Jobs said Apple off-shored 700K jobs to China: it's the high cost of regulation and unnecessary costs.  According to other accounts of the meeting, Jobs warned Obama he would be a one term president.

[jacobi]

Wait, those apple jobs where in China long before Obama took office.  Jobs can hope that the president could do better, but to think that there is some causelity is false.

Ps.  Our universty system is turning out those engineers, BTW, even if they are transfer student from China.

[Conan71]

Wait, those apple jobs where in China long before Obama took office.  Jobs can hope that the president could do better, but to think that there is some causelity is false.

Ps.  Our universty system is turning out those engineers, BTW, even if they are transfer student from China.

He was making the point that the US government is choking the creation of jobs which is why those plants were built in China.  No one is making a point that Obama was responsible for those regulations.

The take-away is political leaders should be listening to leaders of industry if they really care to understand how the government can remove barriers to job growth.  We can ignore what business leaders are saying at our own peril.

[RecycleMichael]

I think Steve Jobs makes valid points about how American regulations and cost of doing business can't compete with China. I do think that he overly blames Obama for the problem. China has been stealing jobs from America for a long time. The union wages are part of the problem, but more importantly, Chinese workers are always going to be cheaper.

I believe in President Obama and hope to give him four more years to work on this issue. The first term he conceentrated on ending a war, capturing or killing bad guys around the world, and fixing a broken health insurance industry.

[Gaspar]

I have read that before.  My biggest take-away was his comments on education.  We see that every day.  

[nathanm]

"The president is very smart, but he kept explaining to us reasons why things can't get done," Jobs said. "It infuriates me."

Rereading this, I find this bit interesting. I find it important to know what is possible so that I can focus my efforts on that, rather than beating my head against a wall. Apple did, also. They did not set out to make an iPhone 4 in 2007 because that wasn't possible for them, so they built the original iPhone, even though it was behind the times in basically every way that a cell phone can be behind, aside from the large-at-the-time screen. As more became possible, both for them and in general, they did things like create their app store, build a 3G phone, and so on. Focusing on that which was impossible at the time would have made them miss their window of opportunity to make a big splash.

The original iPhone was half baked on release day, but it catapulted them into the market in a big way anyway because they focused on what they could do and did it well.

[Conan71]

Rereading this, I find this bit interesting. I find it important to know what is possible so that I can focus my efforts on that, rather than beating my head against a wall. Apple did, also. They did not set out to make an iPhone 4 in 2007 because that wasn't possible for them, so they built the original iPhone, even though it was behind the times in basically every way that a cell phone can be behind, aside from the large-at-the-time screen. As more became possible, both for them and in general, they did things like create their app store, build a 3G phone, and so on. Focusing on that which was impossible at the time would have made them miss their window of opportunity to make a big splash.

The original iPhone was half baked on release day, but it catapulted them into the market in a big way anyway because they focused on what they could do and did it well.

That's what Apple has been good at: Quit talking about why you can't do something and instead figure out how to do it even if it's not perfect in it's first incarnation. 

[Hoss]

That's what Apple has been good at: Quit talking about why you can't do something and instead figure out how to do it even if it's not perfect in it's first incarnation. 

What they've been bad at is dumbing down the hardware/software so much that technical people hate it (me, and many other geekheads who prefer Android over IOS for..well, just about anything...except for the iPod).

[nathanm]

That's what Apple has been good at: Quit talking about why you can't do something and instead figure out how to do it even if it's not perfect in it's first incarnation.  

Wow, what delicious irony. You do realize you also just described PPACA? And that you reinforced my point precisely? Apple looked at what they wanted to do, decided it was impossible and went for the next best thing.

Up is down, I guess.

[Red Arrow]

Wow, what delicious irony. You do realize you also just described PPACA? And that you reinforced my point precisely? Apple looked at what they wanted to do, decided it was impossible and went for the next best thing.
Up is down, I guess.

Please note that Apple did not invent a new corded land line device in this case.  Next best thing or wrong direction is still evidently in the eye of the sponsor or opposition.

[nathanm]

Please note that Apple did not invent a new corded land line device in this case.

No, they initially invented a feature phone with a big screen and a good browser. It didn't sell very well. Later, they turned it into a smartphone with a big screen and a good browser and it began selling like hotcakes.

[Red Arrow]

No, they initially invented a feature phone with a big screen and a good browser. It didn't sell very well. Later, they turned it into a smartphone with a big screen and a good browser and it began selling like hotcakes.

At least they started with the correct path, unlike another example.

(Please note that I do not think that everything about Obamacare is wrong or bad.)