Open Thread: Big Talk Butters No Parsnips
3 days ago
Showing posts with label Deregulation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Deregulation. Show all posts
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Obama's Prescience on the Economy
The Daily Dish posted a prescient letter that Obama wrote to Hank Paulson back in March 2007. Won't it be great to have a President who actually sees stuff like this coming?
Read the Whole ThingWe cannot sit on the sidelines while increasing numbers of American families face the risk of losing their homes.
And while neither the government nor the private sector acting alone is capable of quickly balancing the important interests in widespread access to credit and responsible lending, both must act and act quickly...
[A] consortium of industry-related service providers and public interest advocates may be able to bring quick and efficient relief to millions of at-risk homeowners and neighborhoods, even before Congress has had an opportunity to act. There is an opportunity here to bring different interests together in the best interests of American homeowners and the American economy. Please don't let this opportunity pass us by.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Under Bush/Republican Leadership, National Debt Soars
This graph is pretty stunning. Under Bush and the Republican Congress' leadership, the national debt (as a percentage of GDP) is now at its highest level since World War II!
Update: Compare the above graph to this graph of the unemployment rate over the last 14 years. Heckuva job guys!
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
David Gergen: Republicans 'Shockingly Irresponsible'
You go, David Gergen:
Here's what he said:
“It’s really the House Republicans who bear special ignamy tonight because two-thirds of them voted against it. It was House Conservative Republican member who derailed it. They had strong reasons they voted against it but let their be no doubt, if we pay a huge price like we did today, it was the house Republicans who [bear responsibility]. This business about Nancy Pelosi making a speech, yes she shouldnt have said it, yes it was inappropriate, but the fact that it changed their minds? Oh poor babyies. Yes, a few words from the House Speaker made them run and go back into their boxing corners? Come on.”
Republicans Back Off 'Pelosi Made Us Do It!' Claim
Republicans yesterday claimed that Nancy Pelosi was being mean to them and, as a result, that is why they decided to vote against the bailout bill.
The claim was so stupid and tone-deaf that even Peter Wehner of the ultra-conservative National Review Online had this to say:
I have been defending House Republicans for a week against friends who thought they were acting in an irresponsible fashion. I argued they were people with admirable free-market principles who were simply trying to improve legislation and have their voices heard, something to which they were certainly entitled. And I thought they made the bill better than it was. But yesterday’s vote, and the excuses that followed the vote, have made me reassess my judgment. Watching Boehner, Blunt, and Cantor blame the outcome on the Pelosi speech was an embarrassment.
Well, cue the frantic backpedalling:
– Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN): “We are not babies who suck their thumbs.”
– Minority Whip Roy Blunt (R-MO): “I think you don’t want to give too much blame to that speech.”
– Rep. John Shadegg (R-AZ): “It was embarrassing for leadership on both parties to lose the bill, so they went out and made a stupid claim.”
– Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN): “That speech was not the reason I voted against the bill.” [MSNBC, 9/30/08]
Quote of the Day
"I’ve spoken with several House Republicans over the past few days and most admirably believe in free-market principles. What’s sad is that they still think it’s 1984. They still think the biggest threat comes from socialism and Walter Mondale liberalism. They seem not to have noticed how global capital flows have transformed our political economy." -- conservative columnist David Brooks
Monday, September 29, 2008
In Crisis, McCain Attacks, Obama Calls For Calm
Steve Benen nails what this crisis is telling us about the candidates:
This afternoon, responding to the economic crisis, the Obama campaign issued a statement calling for calm, encouraging lawmakers to keep working, and urging investors not to panic. The McCain campaign attacked Obama. It's a reminder that one can tell a lot about a person's character by how they respond to adversity.
MoveOn's New Ad on the Economy: 'McCain's Friends'
Hmm, I can't imagine why John McCain is doing so poorly in the polls right now. Could it have something to do with how mind-numbingly wrong he's been on deregulation during his three decades in Congress?
Klein: McCain's 'Puerile Histrionics' Helped Scuttle Bill
Joe Klein assigns part of the blame for today's mess on McCain's "puerile histrionics":
I do blame McCain for his puerile histrionics and for dragging this issue--which should have been above partisanship--into presidential politics. Let's make no mistake about it: his various gimmicks had absolutely nothing to do with the substance of the issue. He doesn't know all that much about the substance of the issue. The gimmicks were a failed attempt to make it seem as if he had powers, and knowledge, he didn't have. Clearly, he was in a more difficult position than Obama--the populist conservative wing of House Republicans was unwilling to take responsibility for the fruits of the deregulation that they promoted--and that might have required a more aggressive effort to move votes on his part, but the flailing about only confused Republicans (was he for, was he against?) and made matters worse.
The Failure of John McCain - Video Collection
Here's a collection of today's commentators speaking the truth and calling out McCain for his failure of leadership today:
CNN:
MSNBC:
Blame Democrats? House Leadership Blasts Back
McCain and the GOP leadership earlier today blamed anyone and everyone (but themselves) for the failure of the bailout bill, singling out Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi for their wicked, wicked ways:
Well, Banking Committee Chairman Rep. Barney Frank was having none of it:“Just before the vote, when the outcome was still in doubt, Speaker Pelosi gave a strongly worded partisan speech and poisoned the outcome.
This bill failed because Barack Obama and the Democrats put politics ahead of country.”
A good jab from the video above:
Here's the story. There's a terrible crisis affecting the American economy. We have come together on a bill to alleviate the crisis. And because somebody hurt their feelings, they decide to punish the country... I'll make you an offer. Give me those twelve peoples' names and I will go talk uncharacteristically nicely to them and tell them what wonderful people they are and maybe they'll now think about their country.
Premier Bush and Our Still-Slumbering Outrage
All of the sh*t dumped on us by Premier Bush and his cronies over the last seven+ years is kind of getting to me today. Here's an excerpt from a recent IM exchange with a friend of mine:
me: i mean, can you think of anything that would "shock" you at this point? how would we react if we found out, say, cheny organized a blackwater raid, disguised as Iranian military, to slaughter babies in a neonatal clinic? shocked? dismayed? defeated?
[friend]: nothinghonestlyi am sort of expecting to learn that the 2000 election machines were riggedsame w/ 2004 in ohionot all just enough in key placesthat he never should have been pres in the first place
me: the thing that kills me most of all is that there is SO little of meaningful RAGE out there to gel a movement around. i mean, getting obama elected is a good start but where are the mass protests? why aren't we calling for the literal head of bush and cheny, with torches and pitchforks on Pennsylvania Avenue?[friend]: because the people can handle getting fucked over and over again, as long as the govt does it sorta slowly
The Failure of Premier Bush's Bailout Plan
Honestly, I don't know what to think of the $700 billion bailout bill being scuttled in the House today. The subject matter is so arcane to me that I don't know where to begin. When it comes down to it, I suppose this is where I come out:
ONE: Nearly every major person President Bush has hired over the last seven+ years has turned out to be a major f*ck-up.
TWO: Hank Paulson was hired by President Bush, failed to see the financial crisis coming, repeatedly claimed that he had the situation under control and is NOW telling Congress, with a gun pointed toward the American economy's collective head, that the bailout plan he proposed is the wise panacea that will magically stave off financial ruin (oh, and by the way, it needs to be passed yesterday).
Thus, THREE: From One and Two, I am inclined to believe that whatever Premier Bush's Executive Branch of Idiocracy tells me is -- at least -- a corrupt, dissembling lie. As a result -- and I may live to regret it if the American financial system really does die today -- I ultimately think the House scuttling the bailout bill today was probably a good thing. The question of whether they can come up with something better if, of course, an open question.
Friday, September 26, 2008
McCain's Economic Histrionics
Matt Cooper sums up McCain's unhinged histrionics since the start of the financial crisis last week and his gumming up of the Congressional works:
McCain certainly hasn't helped and now we're at a point where a deal seems unlikely tomorrow in time for the debate which means McCain will have to make another decision--whether to swallow his pride and show up for the Meeting in Mississippi or be the biggest no-show in the history of American politics. Since he doesn't seem to have added anything to the negotiations in Washington, it's hard to see why on earth he should show up for the debate with Barack Obama.
Incredibly, McCain has said that he hasn't read the Treasury plan--all three pages of it. Since this crisis began ten days ago, nothing McCain has done, from declaring the economy strong to calling for the illegal firing of Chris Cox to flailing about the bailout to shrilly trying to blame the crisis on Obama and finally to the debate-canceling gambit has been reassuring about the prospect of a McCain presidency. This is the 3 AM phone call and McCain is blowing it.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
CNN's Campbell Brown Decries Bush, Paulson Incompetence
My, my, Campbell Brown is en fuego lately (check out her dressing down of the McCain campaign's sequestration of Sarah Palin here):
Sarah Palin Thinks Bailout is About HEALTHCARE
Look, I know some of you fair-minded people out there wanted to give My Fair Lady From Alaska a little leeway before you judged her qualifications to become President of the United States if something happened to John McCain. But, at this point, and after last night's train wreck of a Katie Couric interview, if you still have any reservations, I must insist that you give back your right to vote:
COURIC: "Why isn't it better, Governor Palin, to spend $700 billion helping middle-class families who are struggling with health care, housing, gas and groceries? Allow them to spend more, and put more money into the economy, instead of helping these big financial institutions that played a role in creating this mess?"
PALIN: "That's why I say I, like every American I'm speaking with, were ill about this position that we have been put in. Where it is the taxpayers looking to bail out. But ultimately, what the bailout does is help those who are concerned about the health care reform that is needed to help shore up our economy. Um, helping, oh, it's got to be about job creation, too. Shoring up our economy, and getting it back on the right track. So health care reform and reducing taxes and reining in spending has got to accompany tax reductions, and tax relief for Americans, and trade -- we have got to see trade as opportunity, not as, uh, competitive, um, scary thing, but one in five jobs created in the trade sector today. We've got to look at that as more opportunity. All of those things under the umbrella of job creation."
Watch It:
As Steve Benen puts it:
[T]he truth is, Palin is getting worse at answering questions, not better... With some time in government, Palin might become a less embarrassing candidate. But at this point, it's almost unfair for McCain to set her up for this kind of fiasco.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Bailout Figure Chosen Because It's 'A Really Large Number'
Well, this makes me more comfortable with giving Hank Paulson carte blanche to spend $700 billion without any oversight:
Forbes writes on part of the reason that the American public is so skeptical of the Bush administration’s bailout proposal.
In fact, some of the most basic details, including the $700 billion figure Treasury would use to buy up bad debt, are fuzzy.
“It’s not based on any particular data point,” a Treasury spokeswoman told Forbes.com Tuesday. “We just wanted to choose a really large number.”
McCain the Fundamental Deregulator - Video
Look, the election is over if anyone with half a brain looks at three fundamental points:
ONE: We are on the verge of a financial meltdown that is blamed by everyone, Republicans and Democrats alike, on insufficient government oversight of the financial markets and lax regulation.
TWO: McCain and his Republican colleagues have spent much of the last few decades demonizing government regulation and doing everything they could to successfully strip meaningful regulation and oversight from the financial markets.
Thus, THREE: As a result, McCain and his Republican "Deregulation!" cronies are largely responsible for the current financial meltdown and it would be the height of stupidity to now reward McCain with the keys to the Presidency and thereby the stewardship of our economy.
Here is a new video that highlights how, up until just last month, McCain and the Republican party have been screaming about the need for MORE deregulation!
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Repub Platform 'We Do Not Support Bailouts'
"We do not support government bailouts of private institutions. Government interference in the markets exacerbates problems in the marketplace and causes the free market to take longer to correct itself." - Republican Party Platform, 2008.
Obama Press Conference on the Financial Meltdown
This is exactly the kind of leadership we need right now: reasonable, authoritative, firm, calm and collected:
Yesterday, the President said that Congress should pass his proposal to ease the crisis on Wall Street without significant changes or improvements.
Now, there are many to blame for causing the current crisis, starting with the speculators who gamed the system and the regulators who looked the other way. But all of us now have a stake in solving it and saving our financial institutions from collapse. Because if we don’t, the jobs and life savings of millions will be put at risk.
Given that fact, the President’s stubborn inflexibility is both unacceptable and disturbingly familiar. This is not the time for my-way-or-the-highway intransigence from anyone involved. It’s not the time for fear or panic. It’s the time for resolve, responsibility, and reasonableness.
And it is wholly unreasonable to expect that American taxpayers would or should hand this Administration or any Administration a $700 billion blank check with absolutely no oversight or conditions when a lack of oversight in Washington and on Wall Street is exactly what got us into this mess.
Read More
John McCain's Complicity in the Savings & Loan Scandal
For those of us who weren't paying attention during the savings and loan scandal in the 1980's (described by most analysts as the worst financial scandal in U.S. history [well, before this week]), you owe it to yourself and your country to watch and circulate this video, which recounts John McCain's involvement in the so-called "Keating 5". McCain was admonished by the Senate for his involvement and, not surprisingly, his complicity in the current financial meltdown sounds a lot like what he was up to 20 years ago.
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