Tax credit for new jobs

Ok, one of the president's points the other night was to create a tax credit for companies that create new jobs. They can't lay people off and then rehire them, they can't eliminate one high paying job and hire two lower paying people, they have to be real jobs that are created (based on what I've heard - still haven't read all the details).

This sounds good. Someone said that this was tried in the 1970's and it didn't work. I remember a lot of things were tried in the 1970's that didn't work. Not sure why. Someone also said that companies need more business before they hire people. That's true. This tax credit would encourage businesses to speculate and invest ahead of new business.

Here's my problem with this idea. What has the current administration done to companies that were offered a bail-out, then were successful? Well, for GM, it was nationalized and handed to the unions. For banks that were given TARP money (which should never have happened), they paid back the loans WITH INTEREST and now they are being threatened with new taxes. Executives who put their jobs on the line are being threatened with large fees (when most of their "income" is in the form of long term stock options - not cash).

So let's play this out. Say Mom & Pops, LLC hires 4 new people and gets a $20,000 tax credit. Their business does well and they keep expanding. In 2011, the administration sees that they are successful and hits them with a "windfall profits" tax. After all, they got a bail-out credit, didn't they? Isn't it time they paid back?

I'm sorry, this administration has shown that they are willing to back-date decisions, I'm not sure this tax credit is safe.