“On Jan. 21, after the inauguration, Jim Cramer, the mad-cap analyst of financial markets, created the "Obama Accountability Index," a group of six stocks designed to gauge how well the new president was handling the tough economic problems. That index, which started at 100, has now fallen 35% to just 65.”
That’s the report we all saw the other day. My question is this: How can Cramer rationally hold Obama accountable for the fall of stocks since January 21, barely ONE month ago?????????
Come back in six months and let's talk.
Why won't the OS (Other Side) give his stimulus plan a chance to have some impact before they throw Obama overboard? There is a lot in the bill that most of them do not know about and/or do not understand. They prefer to sit on the sidelines, firing potshots at will, hoping they can damage Obama in the process.
Look, this government has committed $7.8 to $8.8 trillion (by my rough count) in loans, investments and guarantees since the beginning of 2008 (when Bush was still in power, by the way).
Your government has been shoring up money market funds, lending to the mortgage markets, lending to the credit markets, and making loans to financial firms. And we have more to do. The FDIC is working hard to prevent bank failures from all but the most insolvent banks. The Treasury is working to prevent the auto industry from a total free fall, putting cash in AIG, lending to credit markets and overseeing the rest of the TARP funds. There are also programs to guarantee the assets of Bank of America and Citigroup. And there is another $1.57 trillion in tax breaks, HOPE for homeowners, state jobs programs, infrastructure programs. I'm sure I've left something out.
I guess there is no way to prevent the OS from complaining (it seems to be what they do best). If they don’t want to help this President – and the rest of their fellow Americans – they should get out of the way and let responsible people bring the economy back.
So far, I believe the WH is handling its critics well. White House Press Secretary Bob Gibbs jumped all over reporter Rick Santelli of CNBC last week when he criticized the WH for setting up a program to bail out homebuyers who applied for home loans when they knew they could not afford them. Gibbs said "Santelli doesn't know what he is talking about." Santelli said the program was designed to reward "bad behavior" and "to bail out losers' mortgages." And that is not true. The plan, Gibbs explained, is to put about $275 billion to work helping about 9 million taxpayers who are NOT behind on their mortgages.
But this is the fight the Obama Administration is in every day. So far, they are countering the misinformation out there pretty well, and I hope they can keep it up. The conservative talk shows on radio and the loud mouths on the financial news TV networks are trying to blow holes in Obama’s program when they ought to be helping to build confidence and explaining the provisions of the program in terms the people can understand and more importantly, put to good use. Misinformation has no place in the national conversation.
2 comments:
I am attending a conference today in ATL related to healthcare. The presenter today talked about many similarities between Obama and Bush when it comes to healthcare policy. If the public would just look they would see that many of the healthcare initiatives that are being pursued now were started at least in part by bush. They should not cast stones.
In short, true bipartisanship wouldn't hurt. Repubs are making a mistake by not reaching out and clasping Obama's hand real tight. If Obama doesn't succeed, we all fail, including the pure right wing idealogues.
Post a Comment