New Yorker Profiles Peter Orszag: How Obama's Budget Genius Was Tripped Up By Jon Stewart

newyorker.com:

A few weeks ago, Peter Orszag, President Obama's trim, apple-cheeked budget director, stretched out in the green room of what has become, in recent years, the locus of reliably liberal sensibility in this country--the midtown studios where Jon Stewart tapes "The Daily Show."

Read the whole story: newyorker.com

Comments

[jeanrenoir]

This society's so damned childish! We treat serious people in the same snarky, gotcha fashion as the twerps in US magazine do celebs with "Who wore it bette" etc. Obama's too good for this incredibly immature country. I just hope he leads us to a better place before some other child gets in power to do all he can to weaken us like Bush. What a triumph for Stewart to "trip up" Orzag!

[Joseph Upton]

If Peter Orszag is a "budget genius" as the headline says, would I be a "genius" if I borrowed and spent so much money that it put my family into bankruptcy ??

[Politisizer]

This question shows you know very little about economics and even less about the budget / curbing deficit spending.

[Irmanator]

Yeah, running a household budget is sooo similar to running the budget for a country. Just like knowing how to row a dinghy qualifies you to be admiral of a fleet of aircraft carriers.

[rain33]

orzag is cool. i like when he told gov.sanford off about the stimilus by sending him a letter.

[PhilipTaylor]

Geithner: Government Help Corrupt Wall Street Bankers or Help Victims on Main Street?


Geithner=Wall Street Mentality and Cares ZERO about MAIN STREET!

Obama=Promised to clean up the Wall Street-Washington Corruption

From conversation it is clear Geithner/Obama/Orszag have Wall Street Blinders on!
______________________________________________________

Stewart asked Orszag, "why the government didn’t just bail out borrowers who have defaulted.

Orszag responds, “The problem is, if you just focused on the people who defaulted you create this huge incentive to default,”

Stewart looked at Orszag with an astonished grin and before Stewart could finish pointing out that the government is creating an equally huge incentive by bailing out the financial firms

Orszag realized that he had been backed into a corner saying, “Yeah, none of this is perfect!”

Orszag added, “I have to be more constrained, because it really is Geithner’s—so the more we talk budget the more free I can be.”

[Theo67]

This bank bailout thing is very complicated. The problem here is that it's a tightly integrated web, and as you pull at one thread, you unravel a bunch of other stuff. Don't let yourselves forget that there is a lot of underhanded stuff that was going on with these banks, and that it stretched around the world. If the administration just acts spontaneously, or without evaluating the larger issues, then this thing could really spiral out of control. I don't know if we can actually get to the heart of this issue, and root out the corruption that has allowed these shadow banking systems to thrive, but it's encouraging to see that Ben Bernanke is now starting to get a bit of the spotlight on him to explain his role (with Paulson) in some of this mess. There's a lot that's been going on in the dark with the Fed. That's where we need to focus the attention - many secrets.

It's a shame that the middle class is still getting screwed right now, but I honestly believe that the measures put in place for individuals will eventually help those that can be helped. The financial institutions need this attention, because the level of corruption that exists there is overwhelming. And because of the exponential effect that these institutions exercise over our greater economy, they are more pressing than the plight of individuals right now - sadly. I know that this is a controversial post, so I'm prepared for any

[Deadbeat1000]

The bailout is not complicated. It is a continuation of massive transfer of wealth to the financial industry from the working class. Since the mid-1970's, wages have remained flat and the huge wealth from income and wealth tax cuts to the flattening of wages and favouring 401K over pension provided a huge transfer of wealth that ended up in the banks resulting in asset price inflation. In order for working people to maintain their living standard they borrowed the wealth that were expropriated from them bank at high interest rates.

The crisis is NOT a financial crisis. The industry catalyzed the crisis. The crisis is the killing of the middle class "golden goose". Jon Stewart is essentially correct that it would be much better to resolve the crisis by "bailing out" working class debt burdens as well as regressive tax burdens and lack of wage growth burdens.

The measures put in place are FAR SHORT because 72% of GDP was consumer spending. Most of the spending was MAJOR purchases and not what mainstream commentators imply that the spending was frivolous. Much of the consumer spending was on HOUSING, HEALTH CARE, TRANSPORTATION, and REARING CHILDREN. It is clear that U.S. policy has been deliberately design to shift wealth upward and to exacerbate inequality and disparity.

Obama is doing an injustice bailing out the banks. As usual he is putting the interest of the rich bankers before the interest of the people. It is plain and simple – CLASS WAR.

[aflyinyoursoup]

Deadbeat, I agree..
This Is "Class War".....unfortunately we have pea shooters and they have Howitzers!
I voted for Obama with a hope that I haven't had for 4 decades. I'm beginning to fall back into the hopelessness that haunted me for all those years. It is becoming painfully clear that we are permanently relegated to serfdom regardles of who is "elected" to any position in our bought-and-paid-for political circus!
The only recourse we have is to take care of ourselves and our families. Also, we must avoid being seduced into buying the foist that we actually have a say about our economic welfare. We are serfs, plain and simple!

[larry278]

If I had to choose between no government or no smart assed, snarky, cable TV comics--I'd keep Jon.

[TiffanyHusseinBanned]

Peter Orszag is such a hottie to me.

[TJCole]

Peter Orszag is President Obama best and most important pick, along with Tammy Duckworth and a few others....

Thank God Orszag is there, he's much more progressive than Geithner or that luddite Larry Summers...

[flossophy]

hehe... TJCole thinks pr0gressive is a good thing.

Anyone care to let him/her know that pr0gressivism didn't work out too well in the 20th century? And since there hasn't been any new ideas on the left in many decades... why would he/she expect it to work now in this era. They don't have the ability to use New Deal proper-gander anymore to justify an enlargement of the government.

[cinesimon]

That would be why progressives are now in the White House, and running congress and the senate - and all indications are our numbers will continue to climb.

On the other hand, the conspiracy-theory laden right are relying on Reagan as their Pied Piper - REALLY new ideas there!

You must live in a very sad, simple little world to actually believe what you just wrote flossophy.

[zer0ne]

Dude, what rock have you been living under? Did you come from Bizzarro World? I think you should open up a news paper, a book, anything! You seem to have based all of you rassertions on things that never happened.

[impatient]

"there hasn't been any new ideas on the left in many decades..."

A few problems with your posting:

First: noun verb agreement. there "HAVEN'T been any new..."
Second: proper-gander? Is this some obscure pun the rest of us are missing? What do you mean by using "proper-gander?"

Third: It is the CONSERVATIVES who are out of ideas my friend, not the liberals, not the progressives. Accepting you have a problem is the first step to recovery......

[lynettema]

The Bailout, the part passed by BushCo, the Bailout to come from the Obama administration, the Stimulous and the Budget. Oh, my! Hard to keep them all straight.

[Prism]

Obama may wind up being a VERY good president. And I truly support him. But it may also be, that embedded in our popular culture on a still somewhat rarified cable channel is the REAL DEAL? In all seriousness. Is there a good reason why Jon Stewart is not worthy of becoming our next president?

[MonaLisa65]

No, please! It would give him ulcers. Please don't ask this of him!
Pleeeease.....! (Think of the little children...what about the children?!?)

:-(

[Tom95134]

While the "hook" here is Jon Stewart the New Yorker article is really great because of the insight it gives into the inner-workings of the administration. It's a long article but don't stop once you pass the bit about Stewart.

[iblog]

Why would Stewart as the question in the Green Room and not in the interview? Some type of personal dig?

Maybe it had something to do with his inferiority complex, so noted in the full article, he was alluding to in comparison.

Stewart can be wrong. There was his error in highlighting Nancy Pelosi's statements that he hasn't offered his correction to yet.

The article itself was a good research piece. More one personality than policy. I don't know why Jon Stewart's off camera back and forth intimidation became the main focus of the relay.

[Tom95134]

"I don't know why Jon Stewart's off camera back and forth intimidation became the main focus of the relay."

It was the "hook" to get people to read an article that many would have bypassed as uninteresting. Hopefully, by the time you get past the Stewart part you are interested enough in seeing what goes on under the covers you will keep reading. I did.

[lynettema]

I didn't. Way too long for a Sunday afternoon when you have 2 newspapers to read as well.

[MicrowavableJohnnyCakes]

Stewart didn't ask that because like Orszag said he handled the budget, not the bailout. Raking him over the coals on television for something that wasn't his baby would be unfair. With something like the Cramer interview, Stewart made it clear what he was and wasn't holding Cramer responsible for instead just ripping into him and throwing raw meant to a rabid crowd. However, the bailout remained a concern of Stewart, so when given the chance to pick the brain of a very intelligent man that's part of the administration, he took it.

Also, Stewart doesn't have an "inferiority complex." He uses self-deprecating humor to amuse his audience and ease his guests. When someone he interviews appears to be getting nervous or guarded, he cracks a joke about himself so they will relax and be more open.

And the Pelosi thing is Madame Speaker waiting over two weeks and one interview with Stewart to quibble over specifics rather than the point his was making... both parties complain about the tricks the majority uses until they become the majority. Just because a clip wasn't specifically about budget reconciliation doesn't make the point invalid, it still showed Pelosi being for going around the filibuster when the GOP does it after have been previously against it when it was a tool for the then minority Democrats. The fact Pelosi ducked out of the chance to confront Stewart directly and waited weeks for a spokesperson to make a statement is telling.

[jsinclair]

Stewart does a good job, but he's not really "reliably liberal", nor is TDS..

What he seems to be, instead, is someone who thinks for himself and hates lies and hypocrisy.

Of course, that combination is refreshing--and rare.

[canadagirl76]

Which is exactly why I watch him. I trust his insight, he calls it how he sees it regardless of whose fault it is.

[twintwine]

But Stewart is not necessarily against the use of stupidity.

[AnnfromCA]

Well, it's just too obvious, actually. The mortgage bill isn't effective. Nobody can figure out how to qualify, frankly.

It was just a show-piece to throw to people. Maybe it wasn't even a good idea, I'm not sure. I do know that people are ready and able to buy foreclosed properties right now, which would naturally slow the recession.

BUT......even Freddie and Fannie aren't moving loans.

[talkitreal]

You are wrong! The Home Foreclosure Bill is helping millions of people across the country, and the bankrupcy bill that is currently making its way through congress will also help with the Foreclosure problems..

[iblog]

don't let Ann get to you. She frequently makes comments from thin air. She doesn't read or research anything. She's just here tr0//ing.

[AnnfromCA]

Not from what I'm reading. I hope I'm wrong, btw.

[lynettema]

It's best to ignore Ann. AOL used to have an ignore button. We need it for Ann. She thinks she's an intellectual.

[PLUTim]

You are full of it. There is a reason why many lenders cannot even keep up with refi requests.

It's not that difficult to go to the Freddie and Fannie websites to see if your mortgage is backed by one of them.

[AnnfromCA]

LOL*.....I think you guys are full of beans.

Go find a link that shows the mortgage bill is working.

Hint. You're not going to find one.

[Theo67]

There are so many people being helped by the mortgage rescue plan, so I'm not sure where you're getting your information. In fact, mortgage companies are hiring furiously because of the high demand. You might want to check again with your bank - sounds like you weren't talking to a knowledgeable person.

[dispassionateobserver01]

This is more than a mere profile of Peter Orszag. This is a serious piece of journalism, the result of hours and hours of work. It reports on the story of the making of Obama's budget, as seen through the eyes of its principal author.

This is serious journalism. It is so sad that the New Yorker is dismissed by a lot of people as a liberal magazine.

[swift goat pet for truth]

One has to concentrate and read clearly to see what is going on.

That is why it is a liberal magazine.

A conservative magazine is also known as a bumper sticker.

[Theo67]

Good one!