Time to review McCain's poor judgment on the economy

http://www.americablog.com/2008/09/time-to-review-mccains-poor-judgement.html

Time to review McCain's poor judgment on the economy
Chris in Paris · 9/08/2008


As McCain is forced into talking about the Republican economy that he helped create, it's time to look back at what he said in the past including what he failed to say even last week. By August of 2007 - just over one year ago - the Dow had already lost 1,000 points in one month as British lender Northern Rock sent the first big shock to the market. Northern Rock was nationalized after a run on the bank and everyone who was paying attention was introduced to the downside of subprime lending. They were a casualty of the subprime lending crisis when banks stopped lending to other banks. Even putting aside the McCain-Phil Gramm connections to the subprime lending crisis, it's hard to imagine that someone running for President of the United States would not notice the impending crisis coming to Wall Street. You would think that any serious candidate would quickly bring themselves up to speed on this issue, unless they didn't see it as a problem.

A few months later in November while on the campaign trail, McCain was asked about the economy and he responded "The issue of economics is not something I've understood as well as I should," McCain said. "I've got Greenspan's book." Again, it was obvious at this point where the economy was going as the housing crisis had already been dragging down the real estate market in many of the previously high flying areas around the US. US banks were starting to fall apart so anyone who was paying attention could not have missed the clouds building over Wall Street. For McCain, owner of 12 houses and friend of Phil Gramm, he was clueless. The crisis was so irrelevant, that he could jokingly dismiss it all and just say he would read Greenspan's book, as if a chief architect of the credit bubble would have the answers.

In April of 2008, roughly one month after the bailout of Bear Stearns, McCain told Bloomberg in an interview that the US had experienced "great progress economically" during the Bush years. He added a few words slightly more comforting than the Phil Gramm "whiners" comment but clearly he was promoting the same general idea. McCain somehow saw good news in an economy that has yet to generate positive jobs growth in 2008 and only hit the minimum 150,000 per month (to break even with incoming jobs) twice in 2007. For McCain, that's progress.

McCain can talk about his personal history as much as he likes and yes, we all appreciate his sacrifices for the US but he still does not understand the most important issue facing Americans today. If he had any understanding about the problem, he would have discussed it at the Republican convention instead of ignoring it all week.

I am a true believer that Sarah Palin is all smoke and mirrors. The bottom line is, even if John McCain lives to be 115 years old he is not fit to be president of this nation. He has nothing policy-wise to offer this country. Recitations of his personal story will not be keep terrorists from attacking us and will not make foreign nations invest in our economy. Because of the failed policies of the past eight years (that Senator McCain enthusiastically supported) we have lost the respect and trust of nations that we need to put ourselves back on track. I know that many Americans do not want to hear this, but we NEED other nations. They are the ones with strong economies and MONEY. If we cannot reassure them that we are a sound investment, believe me, they will find another nation wherein to entrust their money, namely China.



While we have been focused on Palin this past week, the American public has been feed and gladly eaten a pack of lies:

Obama/Biden will raise taxes. When in actually, they will cut taxes for the middle class and eliminate the capital gains tax for small business.
Community organizations and community service in general are a joke. All of you with children my age or younger know that in order to graduate from high school in Maryland, a student must complete a community service requirement. Community service is no more a joke than English, Math, Science, or History.
Our economy is strong and people who have lost their homes and jobs are idiotic whiners.
Senator Obama is not an “American”.
Only people who have been to war have “honor and integrity”.
Anyone who has worn a military uniform has “honor and integrity”.
There are too many more for me to state.


The following news was ignored:

Jack Abramoff a powerful Bush/McCain lobbyist was sentenced to federal prison on Friday. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-abramoff5-2008sep05,0,2600935.story By the way, Abramoff former associates and employees still hold fundraisers for McCain. If Mr. McCain wants to clear up Washington, he should start with his own campaign.
A Nevada bank partially run by John McCain’s son became the 11th failed bank this year. John and Cindy McCain’s role in the Keating Five Scandal has been ignored completely. http://www.reuters.com/article/vcCandidateFeed2/idUSN0530678420080906
The Federal Reserve took over BOTH Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the biggest bailout in history. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122083060663308415.html?mod=hpp_us_whats_news http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/blog/2008/sep/08/mortgages.useconomy?gusrc=rss&feed=worldnews


John McCain’s answer to all these problems is that he was a POW in the 1960s and 1970s. Elections are won at the top of the ticket (Dan Quayle did become VP, after all).



I must be honest with you on another note, this weekend I went back and watched parts of the RNC convention again. I heard Senator Obama called everything in the book but the N-word as a crowd enthusiastically cheered and the media applauded. The only basis for those attacks was that he did not look like the crowd at the RNC. For the record, neither do I. Yet, the administration that the RNC crowd cheered so vigorously last week gladly takes my tax dollars just the same. Every minority friend I have (no matter the party affiliation) had the same reaction—Klan Convention. No doubt, the rest of the world saw the same. The world is watching. Beginning tomorrow, we have two months to prove to the globe what we really are. I must be honest, I am hopeful but not overly optimistic.







I, Too, Sing America


by Langston Hughes



I, too, sing America.

I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.

Tomorrow,
I'll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody'll dare
Say to me,
"Eat in the kitchen,"
Then.

Besides,
They'll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed--

I, too, am America.

With the current m$m, lots of news gets ignored. I'm almost used to it by now, but never happy about it. And like you, I am hopeful but not overly optimistic, precisely because of the role the m$m is playing.
Hang in there and encourage every person you know to vote; it's so very important, especially this year. WE know who the best qualified candidate is, and most thinking people would no doubt agree.