While many Americans watched the presidential debate tonight no one is addressing one minor detail. Where do we plan to find $700 billion, or whatever the final sum will be, to bail out our immediate financial crisis?
As you ponder that question let me offer the following easy to follow, 10 minute video with graphs and text that asks the question.
“What caused the Crisis on Wall Street?”
http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives2/2008/09/021622.php
PS: I’m sorry but it is worth recognizing that while Senator Obama speaks of all the necessary federal programs he wants to institute if elected, Senator McCain responded that they will cost hundreds of billions of dollars. “In fact the change Barack proposes amounts to approximately $1 Trillion in additional spending over the next 4 years.” The Senator failed to address the simple question by moderator Jim Lehrer of providing specifics of what program(s) he will cut to generate the money required for the pending bailout. In fact, while we are dealing with tough economic times Senator Obama repeated his “wish list” of entitlements later in the debate.
And yes, Senator McCain also dodged the same question by saying that with a few exceptions we need to reduce government programs. As they say, show me the money.
Larry, these are politicians seeking the big brass ring. Every program they offer to cut will result in lost votes from those impacted.
Juice readers. I still think the question was a valid reality check.
That PS was distortion and lies, I hoped for more. I’ll look at the link now but I’m not hopeful that it’s not just partisan spin.
*Deal….NO DEAL!!!!
It is time for a change….and not just of underwear! Whatever McCain is selling…we are NOT buying thank you very much!
Las Vegas, we are sure have odds on which candidate will wind up spending
the most taxpayer money. Love to see those odds.
anonymous. If you wish to debate my PS remarks simply provide specifics to your comment “That PS was distortion and lies,”
According to my calendar Christmas is always celebrated in December, not September. It’s wonderful to promise “something for everyone” as you address the nation. He doesn’t wear the badge of being more to the left than Hillary without a track record to prove it. But to continue making promises of new programs, at a time when we are in a deep hole, is irresponsible pandering.
As Jim raised the question what would you cut to offset the bailout, instead of providing specifics, Obama continued to tell us all of the new entitlement programs he has been mentioning in all of his stump speeches.
Hello. There is no free lunch.
When you address the cost of his proposed programs than I will provide a breakdown of the cost which can be found on the Internet.
Larry, it is about time for Republicans to STOP acting like a bunch of SPOILED BRATS and face facts. Republicans wanted WAR and HUGE defense budgets, they wanted to cut taxes and regulations for greedy, irresponsible corporations and they got it. Now the chickens have come home to roost and Republicans are looking for someone else to blame for their mess. Yeah, Obama wants to spend ( it can also be called, investing) some money on THIS country, what a concept, GETTING SOMETHING FOR YOUR TAX DOLLARS! Americans have been chumps for too long, paying taxes and having all the benefits flowing to the top 1%. As to the question; Where will we get 700 billion dollars? The same place we’ve gone to, to pay for your great and glorious mess in Iraq and those HUGE and unnecessary tax cuts, we will borrow from the Chinese or start printing money or just tack it on to those ENORMOUS deficits we’ve been running, BUT unlike those foolish endeavors we MIGHT see some return on the money. It’s unfortunate and down right criminal that we have to clean up this REPUBLICAN MADE MESS but sometimes you have to act like a grown-up.
whattt….
Republican made mess? Have you looked in the mirror lately.
There are those who say that McCain is living in the past while Obama represents the future. However, you cannot ignore history as it relates to the tragic deaths of American servicemen and servicewomen under Bill Clinton’s watch.
Shall I give you a brief recap. Let’s look at the bombing of two American Embassies in Africa or Kobar Towers in Saudi Arabia in 1998. What about the Cole attack on Oct 12, 2000. Somehow me seems to think these happened BEFORE W was sworn in and AFTER his dad left the White House.
Knowing who was responsible for these attacks Bill Clinton should have responded swiftly and with a strong hand so that we could have avoided Osama Bin Laden and his followers long before 9-11.
Following those terrorist attacks we gave the impression to the world that the USA had become a “toothless tiger. ”
Perhaps I can tell you that your president Clinton didn’t want to be interrupted during a golf match when called about giving the green light to air resources about to defend Kurd’s in northern Iraq forcing the mission to be scrubbed while our Air Force was in flight. It’s called priorities. To read about that episode let me suggest you read “Dereliction of Duty, “the book written by Lt. Col. “Buzz” Patterson one of the military aides assigned to carrying the nuclear football for president Clinton.
On Sept 13, 1996. Buzz approached President Clinton and said: “Mr. President, Mr Burger has called again and needs a decision soon.”..Adding “we have our pilots in cockpits, ready to launch, and we’re running out of the protective cover of nighttime over there.” After three attempts to get Bill to reply the president said “tell Burger that I’ll give him a call on my way back to the White House.”
Gilbert comment. Respectfully president Clinton, the military support mission should have had a bigger priority than you sitting with Vernon Jordan watching a Presidents Cup golf tournament in Manassas, VA.
Larry,
You’ve totally derailed your own thread. You’ve hijacked it into old terror stories..
In case you have not been paying attention, DEREGULATION has caused this mess. Just google it. Our old friend and SEC chairman Chris Cox has said it now and he was a HUGE proponent of deregulation, and lately has seen the error of letting it all “self-police”. No wonder McCain wants to fire Chris Cox – the audacity of that man to not only say his previous position was WRONG but then he goes ahead and tells the TRUTH to the world. Bad, Bad….
http://www.shortnews.com/start.cfm?id=73631
A history of banking deregulation measures, beginning with the 1999 Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and culminating in a 2004 “voluntary oversight” provision, were at the heart of the current U.S. economic crisis, admitted S.E.C. chairman Christopher Cox.
Cox has long championed deregulation, but said, “The last six months have made it abundantly clear that voluntary regulation does not work,” saying the program “was fundamentally flawed from the beginning” because oversight was optional.
As a result, the voluntary oversight provision, created four years ago after insistent lobbying from the five largest investment banks, has been shut down, and oversight has been transferred to the Federal Reserve.
Larry,
The video you linked contains a great deal of truth about this collapse of the financial markets. It’s really too bad that it runs so fast to really be able to absorb it all in one pass. I also wish that it contained less of the R’s message line, so it could be more tolerable to more folks that do not share the same views, never less, it does show a great deal about how we arrived at the market collapse and that part of it is absolutely spot on. Thanks for linking it.
LOL…. Larry,you have got to be kidding,perhaps you’ve FORGOTTEN who was president on 9-11, yeah that’s right, that LAZY MORON, BUSH JR.! You’ve probably also FORGOTTEN that the summer PRECEDING 9-11 the CIA warned Bush that the terrorist “chatter” lines were “blinking red” and WHAT did Jr. DO? That’s right, HE WENT ON VACATION!!!!!!!!!!!!! Spare us the Clinton bashing, yes, he wasn’t perfect but he is NOT the one who is RESPONSIBLE for this economic CALAMITY, that distinction belongs to your man, George W. Bush. Get a hold of yourself, or next thing you’ll know, you’ll be BABBLING about Vince Foster.