Friday, March 07, 2008
Recession is the new black
Today's punk
jobs number (-68k) should convince most of the deniers that we are indeed in a recession. However, the partisan hacks, the President, the Treasury Secretary and the Fed Chairman will not publicly admit that we are in a recession until the recession has nearly ended.
Over 100k private sector jobs were lost last month, there were downward revisions to the Jan and Dec numbers, the dollar shot down to an all-time low against the euro, the housing/credit crisis is worsening, the Dow is sliding, oil is over $100, gold is near $1000, inflation is frothy... this could be bad-- wider and deeper than anyone expects-- partially due to the laggardly response from the deniers-in-chief.
Johnny Mac is quite weak on this issue, since he has a team of economic advisers who think cutting pork and continuing (unsustainable) tax cuts is the best fiscal response to a recessionary swoon. That's not gonna fly.
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Facing South has more.
Labels: Dismal Science, Markets, McCain
5 Comments:
Meanwhile, Obama's Finance Chair is a Pritzker who once chaired a bank that pioneered the securitization of sub-prime mortgages. link
Now Obama has said that he plans to "crack down on fraudulent lenders" but we're not sure exactly what that might mean.
He's probably more likely to act on this than McCain but only if he gets overwhelming pressure from the progressive voters who have no choice but to support him.
But if we're going to judge these candidates by the kinds of advisers they surround themselves with... well we're once again just choosing between rival cadres of elitists. But what else is new?
I don't approve of the choice, but a candidate's Finance Chair is not an economic adviser.
I'll compare Austan Goolsbee's economic ideology to McCain's "Dow 36,000" stooge any day of the week. Not saying I agree with everything, or that it's mightily progressive, but it's decent economics that is at leaset "in the ballpark", and fairly creative on some issues.
There's a lot of chopped quote slams at Goolsbee out on the internets, but I've taken the time to read some of his papers (mostly on taxation) and Slate columns. There's little there to be alarmist about.
I really do need to do more research on Goolsbee since I tend to read a little to much internetily chopped quotation material. You're also right about Pritzker's position... but her background is still worth talking about.
I'm also not saying the McCainiacs aren't intolerable... I'm just less than impressed with the other side... as usual.
Right. I feel ya.
I think if Obama knew he'd be clearing $50 million per month via internet donations, he wouldn't have selected some questionable banking fat cat back in early 2007 or whenever.
And as far as the recession and sub-prime goes (assuming it's not a double or triple dipperoo)... there's really not anything the next President will be able to do about the situation. All the excesses and imbalances are already baked in the cake.
This isn't an original observation but you hit upon another example of how small internet donations have the potential to really "change the game" as far as who pols are ultimately beholden to.
Notice I say "potential" since I don't really see the game changing much.
