A Noun, a Verb and a Gimmick

In an act of utter political desperation, driven by naked personal ambition, John McCain has suddenly 'suspended' his campaign, called on Barack Obama to do the same and announced he wants to delay the presidential debate scheduled for this Friday.  The public excuse he offers for these dramatic actions is to allow the two presidential candidates to go to Washington so they can focus on crafting a bailout plan for the financial industry.  

Oh really, Mr. McCain? It has nothing to do with a raft of new polls in recent days showing that your campaign is coming apart at the seams? Nothing to do with how tired, confused and erratic you've looked and sounded on the campaign trail lately? Nothing to do with the burgeoning scandals plaguing your campaign? Nothing to do with the fact that you can't allow your running-mate out of the house without adult supervision? Really?

Or is it, Mr. McCain, that you just can't do more than one thing at a time,? I've got a news flash for you: Presidents often have to juggle multiple problems simultaneously...  and sometimes several very serious problems at that. Lincoln ran a presidential campaign (1864) in the middle of the Civil War. FDR ran for President twice (1932 and 1936) in the midst of the Great Depression and once (1944) in the middle of World War II. What's your problem, Mr. McCain? Are you just not up to the job? 

No, Mr. McCain, this won't do. Your suggestion just won't wash. Be a man and admit the truth. This ploy is just one more gimmick - like the 'drill here, drill now' scheme, the faux concern about Hurricane Ike during the RNC, the selection of a totally unqualified and unexpected VP candidate and the reckless call to fire the head of the SEC as a fix for the Wall Street meltdown. All of them were gimmicks and all were designed with only one goal in mind: to get you elected President. Just raw, cynical political ambition - nothing more.

Barack Obama just held a press conference. He told us the truth while looking and sounding very presidential in the process. He knows this campaign must continue. He's willing to do what it takes to fix the mess on Wall Street while protecting taxpayers' interests, but he is unwilling to suspend the most important election campaign in a generation. Above all, he knows that we deserve presidential candidates who can manage a crisis and present their views to the American people at the same time. It's called leadership.

Enough with the gimmicks, John McCain!

Drill, Baby, Drill!

This is from R.J. Matson, political cartoonist for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the New York Observer and Roll Call.

"We Are All Socialists Now"

The title of this blog is a quote from Jonathan Alter, Senior Editor at Newsweek, during his appearance last night on MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show. He was referring, of course, to the reality of the so-called bailout plan for the US financial industry being crafted by the Bush government.

As I sat watching the television, Alter's words almost took my breath away. Socialists? How can that be? How could the actions of a very conservative, hard-right Republican administration make us all socialists? Has the planet turned upside down?

The answer, in a word, is yes. In many ways, the political landscape of America has been turned on its head by the unparalleled failures and stupefying incompetence of the current Republican regime in Washington. The list of this administration's calamities is all too long and far too familiar to require repeating them here. Now, on top of everything else, comes the failure of our financial industry and the imperative to bail it out lest there be even more dire consequences.

When the fine points are finally put on the federal bailout of the financial industry, it will be the largest peaceful nationalization of any private sector industry in the history of mankind. The socialization of various industries (coal, steel, rail, etc.) in 20th century Europe by numerous left-leaning, democratically elected governments pales into insignificance when compared to this trillion dollar event. Only the forcible government seizure of the entire private sector as the result of revolution (or foreign occupation), as happened in Russia, China and eastern Europe in the last century, is on a par with this nationalization scheme.

As a committed Liberal, I believe in rationally-regulated, well-managed, free-market capitalism kept on track by competent government oversight. The Republican Bush-Cheney administration, aided and abetted by mostly Republican Congresses, has - in the space of only eight years - nearly destroyed that concept. They have turned the American government into little more than an unregulated, out-of-control instrument of Wall Street greed and Washington corruption. 

Now, faced with certain ruin, these self-proclaimed proponents of free markets and small government have had to betray everything they said they believed. Incredibly, it is a Republican administration leading the charge for the largest intrusion of government power into the private sector in our history. Note, however, that their plan is very careful to assign all the risk of the free market to US taxpayers while whatever reward there was has already been given to their corporate buddies. So much for Country First.

In fact, Bush-Cheney and recent Republican Congresses have served no one but themselves and their corrupt friends. Their only hope now is that Republican John McCain can somehow save them, their rotting Party, their perverse and bankrupt ideology and their billionaire friends. They have some reason to be optimistic. In the past few months, John McCain has proven that he will say anything and do anything to get elected. And why not? After all, it is a formula that has worked for Republicans for many years.

These are indeed worrisome and dangerous times economically. These are also sad days for those of us who still believe in the political ideals of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson.  I cannot imagine what those remaining real conservatives and traditional Republicans must be thinking.  I have almost always disagreed with them on every major issue, but they have consistently argued from a position of intellectual honesty and deep personal conviction.  George W. Bush and John Sidney McCain III have now denied them even that.

McBailout

President Bush reminds all of us once again why Republicans should not be trusted with the economy.  As if we needed more reasons. 

"Americans should be confident that the actions taken today will strengthen our ability to weather the housing correction and are critical to returning the economy to stronger sustained growth."

Return to stronger sustained growth? Correcting? Forgive me for being pessimistic of Bush's ability to return us to a stronger anything.  

He's right about one thing though. Americans should be confident. But we're not. Given the Bush-McCain track record of the last eight years, it's a little hard to trust so easily.  The consequences of deregulating the lending industry are developing before our eyes. 

Pardon the expression, but the chickens are coming home to roost.  More may be on the way. Many are afraid this is just the beginning. For now, we'll begin with a few handouts, fully funded by the American taxpayer. $100 billion for Fannie Mae and $100 billion for Freddie Mac.  That's only $200,000,000,000.  If you're jaw hasn't dropped yet, consider staring at the eleven zeros in that number.  Then, ponder the possibility of a few more banks going belly-up. What then?

Palin echos why we should trust Republicans all the sudden.

"The McCain-Palin administration will make them smaller and smarter and more effective for homeowners who need help."

And exactly how do they plan on accomplishing any of that?  Promises, promises.  Sound familiar?

Now, McCain wants to govern with the same economic philosophies. Bushonomics. Adding on to the billions in bailouts...84,000 jobs lost last month alone.  An exploding national debt. Stagnant wages. Declining value of the dollar. Rising food costs.  Unaffordable healthcare, and a fading hope of going to college.

I'll pass on another four years of Bushonomics.  

The days of driving a few hundred miles "home" to see dad and mom are gone.  Gas prices are too high.  Waitresses, bartenders, and bellman struggle to make ends meet, many of them still making $2.13 an hour plus $40-$50 a day in tips ($17,430 gross income). A family healthcare plan is out of the question considering the tax burden on the tips. Forget savings. And seniors living on a fixed income will struggle again this winter to cope with rising heating costs.

I'll pass.

While today's billions in big bailouts for banks is the headline, the single-mothers who struggle to work full time and raise thier children at the same time are the real stories.  How on earth can John McCain possibly perceive the economy as fundamentally strong.  That alone is enough to make me question his ability to make decisions for the working middle class.  He really doesn't get it.  He hasn't walked a day in my shoes.