Another Great Depression?
After reading, watching, and thinking about what is going on with the economy in this country right now I fear that under a McCain administration, we'd see something close to a second Great Depression.
McCain has admitted he is not strong on the economy, repeatedly. He has proclaimed, unflinchingly, that the "fundamentals of our economy are strong" _ even today, as we saw Lehman Bros. file for Chapter 11 and Bank of American absorb Merrill Lynch. (After having voiced this opinion many many times, he just now decided to clarify "fundamentals" as the "American worker" to serve as a "defense" against Obama's criticisms today and sell himself as a champion of those very workers. I'm not buying it, Senator.)
His economic advisor, former Senator Phil Gramm wasn't shy about his feeling that American is "a nation of whiners" and that we're all having a "mental recession." Many would bet (if they had any disposable income to gamble with) that Gramm will be nominated to the position of Treasury Secretary should McCain win the election.
McCain, like a lot of Republicans, follows in the Reagan and Bush ideas and policies of deregulation and tax cuts. In fact, he wants to work towards changing the laws on raising taxes from a majority vote (51%) to a supermajority (60%) just to make it even harder to undo what has been done.
McCain once opposed the Bush tax cuts as Bush ('41) once called Reagan economics "voodoo economics," before both saw that ignoring that fact would better serve them politically. McCain can't tell us enough how badly he wants to privatize Social Security and health care while, in almost the same breath, blaming Wall Street for their errs. He just says "reform" as often as possible. Before the Republican convention, his story of having been a POW was his shield, but after that week in St. Paul, it was replaced with his "reform" claim, which remains little more than vague and unsubstantiated rhetoric. However, I will say he does seem to be warming to regulation (GOP taboo!) and oversight to help stabilize Wall Street, thank god.
McCain's budget proposal has been widely shown to be mathematically impossible. I'm guessing math was a subject he isn't strong on. While he whines about pork barrel spending, he doesn't mention eliminating many true wasteful spending items like no-bid contracts for the war in Iraq, something the government has spent the most on.
McCain won't raise your taxes, yes. But over the years, he has voted against bills raising the federal minimum wage, he probably won't spend less in Iraq, he will privatize Social Security and health care, programs that are vital to the survival of Americans, and still thinks the economy is strong _ all the while making sure to remind voters that the Democrats have had control of the Senate and House for 2 years (which is true, and they haven't been useful), but championing the policies that began six years prior, which he plans to continue.
It's depressing, greatly.
After reading, watching, and thinking about what is going on with the economy in this country right now I fear that under a McCain administration, we'd see something close to a second Great Depression.
McCain has admitted he is not strong on the economy, repeatedly. He has proclaimed, unflinchingly, that the "fundamentals of our economy are strong" _ even today, as we saw Lehman Bros. file for Chapter 11 and Bank of American absorb Merrill Lynch. (After having voiced this opinion many many times, he just now decided to clarify "fundamentals" as the "American worker" to serve as a "defense" against Obama's criticisms today and sell himself as a champion of those very workers. I'm not buying it, Senator.)
His economic advisor, former Senator Phil Gramm wasn't shy about his feeling that American is "a nation of whiners" and that we're all having a "mental recession." Many would bet (if they had any disposable income to gamble with) that Gramm will be nominated to the position of Treasury Secretary should McCain win the election.
McCain, like a lot of Republicans, follows in the Reagan and Bush ideas and policies of deregulation and tax cuts. In fact, he wants to work towards changing the laws on raising taxes from a majority vote (51%) to a supermajority (60%) just to make it even harder to undo what has been done.
McCain once opposed the Bush tax cuts as Bush ('41) once called Reagan economics "voodoo economics," before both saw that ignoring that fact would better serve them politically. McCain can't tell us enough how badly he wants to privatize Social Security and health care while, in almost the same breath, blaming Wall Street for their errs. He just says "reform" as often as possible. Before the Republican convention, his story of having been a POW was his shield, but after that week in St. Paul, it was replaced with his "reform" claim, which remains little more than vague and unsubstantiated rhetoric. However, I will say he does seem to be warming to regulation (GOP taboo!) and oversight to help stabilize Wall Street, thank god.
McCain's budget proposal has been widely shown to be mathematically impossible. I'm guessing math was a subject he isn't strong on. While he whines about pork barrel spending, he doesn't mention eliminating many true wasteful spending items like no-bid contracts for the war in Iraq, something the government has spent the most on.
McCain won't raise your taxes, yes. But over the years, he has voted against bills raising the federal minimum wage, he probably won't spend less in Iraq, he will privatize Social Security and health care, programs that are vital to the survival of Americans, and still thinks the economy is strong _ all the while making sure to remind voters that the Democrats have had control of the Senate and House for 2 years (which is true, and they haven't been useful), but championing the policies that began six years prior, which he plans to continue.
It's depressing, greatly.