All hell is breaking loose on Wall Street, and one of the more subtle things the crisis has exposed is a growing ideological rift in the Republican Party that's starting to border on intellectual incoherence.
Wanting It Both Ways
The traditional small government, "hands off" wing has always argued for minimal regulation and healthy dollops of personal responsibility. This line of thinking suggests that the appropriate response to the Lehman collapse is for investors and executives to exercise more caution in the future. That's how markets work.
Yet there's now a competing populist strand of the party that seeks to protect the "little guy" against greed and incompetence. John McCain was quoted in the New York Times earlier this week as saying that our economy has been put at risk "because of the greed by some based in Wall Street and we have got to fix it."
The problem is that you can't simultaneously embrace markets and personal responsibility and then, when those markets have a car wreck, argue that it's the government's job to protect us against rapacious Wall Street traders.
Fault Lines Exposed
This is just a tiny example of a phenomenon that's been developing through the Bush presidency and into this campaign. Do you remember Sarah Palin's rousing convention speech? Forget the "First Dude," the hockey mom thing, the eyeglasses, and even whether she did or did not support the "Bridge to Nowhere."
Instead, just pay attention to what she said and what it means for the growing contradictions within the GOP. For those who were paying attention, Palin raised two issues that should have exposed the fault lines that will eventually consume her party.
First, do Republicans favor small government, or do they think that government should provide more assistance for families with children who have special needs? Because you can't have it both ways.
A Dual-Sided Speech
In her critique of Barack Obama, Palin told the adoring crowd, "Government is too big ...
wants to grow it." That's a legitimate point. And it's consistent with Ronald Reagan's famous assertion that the nine most dangerous words in the English language are "I'm from the government and I'm here to help."
The Republicans are supposed to stand for less government -- lower taxes, less regulation, and, as a result, more personal responsibility and self-reliance. That's one of the most important and defensible tenets of the party.
But wait! Was that the same ostensible conservative telling the audience, "To the families of special-needs children all across this country, I have a message: For years, you sought to make America a more welcoming place for your sons and daughters. I pledge to you that if we are elected, you will have a friend and advocate in the White House."
Whose Special Needs?
rest of the article @ the link: http://finance.yahoo.com/expert/article/economist/108425