A Distinction
The McCain campaign is trying to take credit for the emergence of a bailout deal, saying that it was all thanks to their decision to suspend campaigning. When called on this obvious BS, I saw Tucker Bounds on TV citing the fact that a couple of days ago Harry Reid said it was important for McCain to participate in the deal.
The reality is that earlier in the week, Democrats were afraid of a scenario in which they struck a deal and then McCain opportunistically denounced the unpalatable elements of it without coming up with a constructive alternative or needing to actually accept responsibility for the consequences of a deal being scuttled. Thus, they wanted him to vote for any bipartisan compromise. That’s not at all the same as saying that McCain’s substantive input was so vitally necessary that he had to cancel his campaign.
28 Responses to “A Distinction”
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September 25th, 2008 at 2:32 pm
Sorry to hijack Matt, but check out Palin’s elaboration on Alaska’s proximity to Russia in her interview with Couric. Sully has the video, and Ambinder has the video and transcript.
It is simply mind-numbing in its stupidity.
September 25th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
Still, Harry Reid is an idiot for even saying anything like he did.
A Republican Senate majority leader would never say that it was important for Barack Obama to participate in a deal.
September 25th, 2008 at 2:35 pm
Look, McCain, Bush, Obama, and the DC Democrats are all mostly “owned” (i.e. funded) by the same group of rich Wall Streeters.
Is it really so surprising that they mysteriously come to a quick agreement on the need to give $700B of taxpayers’ money to those same Wall Streeters. This, despite the overwhelming opposition of both the public and many/most of the outside academic economists.
Edgar Bergan meet Charlie McCarthy…
September 25th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
“Look, McCain, Bush, Obama, and the DC Democrats are all mostly “owned” (i.e. funded) by the same group of rich Wall Streeters.”
Another one who gets it! That makes 3.
Seriously, do the rest not see this, or can’t they admit this to themselves ’cause it might phuck up their favorite dogmas?
Answers, please!
September 25th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
How can the McCain campaign be so ham-handed? McCain hadn’t even read the Paulson plan before Tuesday, campaigned against a bail out, and just as a deal was coming together that included many democratic demands, he decided to jump on board and claim credit in a show boating style fit only for a mavericky plane crashing fighter pilot. But it’s so nakedly transparent anyone but the core base can see right through it.
September 25th, 2008 at 3:05 pm
Another one who gets it! That makes 3…Seriously, do the rest not see this, or can’t they admit this to themselves…?
I think it pretty much goes without saying that the political parties are owned by Wall Street. Thus, the discussion is about what can be accomplished despite that condition.
September 25th, 2008 at 3:16 pm
The Obama campaign is acting as if this is at least well in hand if not already won. I hope they’re right.
If not, then not using this bailout for maximum political advantage is an “I don’t want to be president” moment.
The Democrats absolutely should have forced McCain either to go back on his word and attend the debates before a deal was announced or have Obama debate an empty chair.
McCain even suggesting canceling the debates was “I don’t want to be president”. Obama letting him get away with it is just mind boggling, unless he knows it doesn’t matter.
Nobody has explained this specific plausible situation leads to this plausible step which leads to this plausible step that leads to severe economic consequences – because no such set of plausible steps exists. Not in the current environment where the US government has already accepted the principle that it will relieve banks of toxic assets.
There was no crisis. There was no rush. This could have easily waited until Monday, if not until November, but Obama decided not to press his political advantage. I only hope it was a good call. If not, hopefully the democrats never again nominate a candidate like Obama.
September 25th, 2008 at 3:20 pm
Yeah, what James Gary says. Like many other things, in politics there’s a certain amount of bullshit that must be recognized and clambered over before work can begin. The bullshit is just especially deep in politics.
September 25th, 2008 at 3:36 pm
There was no crisis. There was no rush. This could have easily waited until Monday, if not until November, but Obama decided not to press his political advantage. I only hope it was a good call. If not, hopefully the democrats never again nominate a candidate like Obama.
Completely disagree. Easy for you to say there was no crisis now that there’s a bailout compromise.
Conservatives are going to spin this by saying the government can’t afford to do anything now.
Liberals shoulds say this crisis proves again – after Enron, etc. – that the free market is massively F***ED and we need uncorrupt, democratically-accountable government to keep watch over things. As Pres. Bush said, Wall Street got drunk.
Delong has a good summary:
Well, because the investors and creditors did not do their due diligence and check that the banks that were the ultimate holders of derivative securities had done their due diligence and checked that the financiers who had created the derivatives had done their due diligence and checked that the purchasers of the securities had done their due diligence and checked that securitizers had done their due diligence and checked that the lenders had done their due diligence and checked that the home buyers had done their due diligence and checked that they could afford their mortgages if house prices stopped going up.
Catastrophic failures of risk management at seven different points along the chain–any one of which would have kept us out of this current mess.
It’s frankly unbelievable that there is going to be a check on CEO pay on the lawbooks. In the United States of America. Almost as unprecedented as a black President.
It’s mind boggling there are so many anti-Obama grumps. No wonder liberals always lose.
September 25th, 2008 at 3:58 pm
Well, I think I see the way the McCain camp will spin this:
The MCCAIN SURGE saved IRAQ!
The MCCAIN SUSPENSION saved WALL STREET!
MCCAIN BOLD LEADERSHIP will save the USA!
September 25th, 2008 at 4:06 pm
It wasn’t even Obama’s call. Do you think the Democrats on the banking committee would go for it if he called them up and said, “Stall for a few days Chris,that’s a good boy, thanks.”
September 25th, 2008 at 4:19 pm
Completely right. The public doesn’t pay attention to your obvious “distinctions” Matt.
September 25th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
“It’s frankly unbelievable that there is going to be a check on CEO pay on the lawbooks. In the United States of America. Almost as unprecedented as a black President.”
IMHO it happened because CEOs high enough up the food chain to fall under the limits are rich and powerful enough to sleaze their way out of, or around, the limits.
September 25th, 2008 at 6:50 pm
If you really think you have an argument that the financial system was going to stop working on Monday or before election day, I’d like to hear it. Which specific bank do you argue was going to freeze lending, or would have frozen lending if Washington had said, “we commit to taking this debt off the balance sheets, but the implementation has to wait until November”
Do you think the Republicans on the banking committee wouldn’t go for it if McCain said “stall for a few days?” McCain obviously asked Bush to call Obama, and Bush called Obama. There is a contest for President of the United States going on.
It isn’t even a matter of stalling, with the negotiations at the same place as they are now, instead of announcing that an agreement has been reached with details to be worked out, they could have announced that all the details have not been worked out.
September 25th, 2008 at 10:45 pm
Now that the House Republicans are attempting to hold up the bailout deal, can I ask why the hell anyone cares what the House Republicans think? Is there a less powerful group in the country? At least the Senate Republicans can filibuster. Why doesn’t Pelosi just steamroll them? If Bush, the Dems, and the Senate GOP really want to get it done, then they can. Am I wrong?
September 25th, 2008 at 11:58 pm
I’m getting a deja vu of the big immigration deal a couple of years ago that was scuttled at the last minute by the conservative Republicans but then blamed on the Democrats.
September 25th, 2008 at 11:58 pm
I’m getting a deja vu of the big immigration deal a couple of years ago that was scuttled at the last minute by the conservative Republicans but then blamed on the Democrats.
September 25th, 2008 at 11:58 pm
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