McConnell Guarantee

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell promised today that a bipartisan financial rescue plan will get done this week. I hope he's right, cause "them some big words" these days!

McCain, Bailout, and Campaign Mess

Richard Beohner (R-Oh) described the latest bailout bill as a "mud sandwich." Looks like McCain just might have a little bit of that mud on his face after he decided to identify himself with the bailout measure that only 65 House Republicans voted for. Another one bites the dust and...

Banana Republic

The current financial crisis facing America has a lot of people wondering, just how dysfunctional is our government these days? Rarely do I see eye to eye, or even quote David Brooks, but akin to what Paul Krugman wrote last week, Brooks postulates in his NY Times editorial today, "they [Congress] have failed utterly and catastrophically to project any sense of authority, to give the world any reason to believe that this country is being governed." Krugman, sighting a friend, suggested last week that we have become nothing more than a "banana republic with nukes." He reiterated that again yesterday in his NY Times blog.

IS THIS AMERICA???

Really, I can't even believe I'm witnessing this?

Selling the Bailout

I was hugely offended recently when I heard John Beohner (R-Oh) say that this bailout needs to "be sold" to the American people. Just like the Iraq war, eh? Excuse me, but I don't need to buy anything this government has for sell. I think Craig Crawford from Congressional Quarterly said it best when he rhetorically asked, "How did anyone think the public would get behind something sold as a bailout of Wall Street multi-millionaires?" I'd like to know that too.

Wall Street's Responsibility?

We keep talking about something needing to be done to save our economy, but only in the context of American taxpayers footing the bill. I want to know where the billionaires on Wall Street are, and why they're not offering up any of their own money to fix this? Last week Warren Buffet took the lead and inserted $5 billion of his own money into Goldman Sachs. I know with that he gets a few incentives, but he never the less sees an inherent connection between his pocket book and fixing this mess. I wish more billionaires would follow in his footsteps and not leave this up to the taxpayer to bail these companies out. Oh, and furthermore, Nancy Pelosi and the like can go to hell with this condescending rhetoric: "What the American people need to realize is that this is not so much a bailout, as it is a buy in." Buy in? What benefits will Americans reap? How will I benefit? I didn't buy a home I couldn't afford. It's a bailout and nothing more!!! Until I see a check in the mail, that's all it'll ever be.