It's the Economy & We're Not Stupid
Take the Ronald Reagan test of "Are you better off today than you were 4 years ago?" After 8 years, the results, across the board, are devastating and should be embarrassing. A surplus has been turned into a major deficit. The national debt has doubled. The economy is broken. The "fundamentals" are not what McCain is trying to define as the work ethic and creativity of the American people. The fundamentals are the structures and institutions that make things and create services. Our banks are failing. Our insurance is unlikely to pay off. Our 401Ks are losing value. The equity in our homes is shrinking. Our pension benefits are in danger.
The essential philosophy of deregulation shared by Bush, McCain and the conservatives, along with an irrational faith in the free market, have brought rust to our automobile industry and 50% rise nationally in unemployment (so far). Our automobile industry is in need of bail out; our banks, brokerages and insurance companies have already bailed with only the CEOs having parachutes. Appropriately, our airlines also demand a bail out. How can anyone not bail out of these failed policies and philosophies?
These so-called conservatives have spent us into a hole and lowered taxes on the rich, while the stagnation of wages for the middle and lower classes are, in effect, a tax on them--reducing their spending power by some $2,000 per year.
The Republicans cannot win on the issues. They can only win on fear. They are trying mightily but the middle class cannot buy this quadrennial masquerade when the plutocrats dress in middleclass drag pretending to be simple folk, while claiming that the black son of a single mother represents the elite. Even the wealthy are losing heart as their assets also diminish. They have no record on which to run and no plan to bring us peace or prosperity. Their entire platform and strategy is: Be afraid of Obama.
Could it be that lack of Banking Regulation under a GOP Congress and the ensueing top to bottom Greed of the Home Loan Industry might very well be Bin Ladin's second attack on America?
Sounds like you prefer socialism,the liberal democrats
are not the anwser, it is "Yes we McCain".
The problem is not the Bush administration,it is greedy people,and crooks. Obama is not qualified to be
president, democrats will lie and do anything to get him elected with the help of the one the sided liberal media. I thought I subscribed to the daily news,now you are a times twin.
Oh Howard, let me just respond to my "preferring socialism"--which incidentally, I don't. But the irony is that this government, this Republican government has introduced an accumulation of power to the national government never dreamed of by FDR and the New Dealers.
This government has basically nationalized our banks, brokerage and insurance companies. Starting with Freddy and Fannie they nationalized the two largest corporations that ever existed in the world. They went on to nationalize the once truly private financial industry.
I am not saying they were wrong to do so. But it is ironic that almost every policy and value that W campaigned on has come out the other way. From: No nation building to a humble foreign policy, from caring about debt to creating massive debt,from containing Iran to putting an Iran friendly government in Iraq.
The irony, oh the irony.