Hank Paulson: 2008 To Be A Difficult Year

US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson today warned that the US economy is not yet out of trouble, and said the combination of the housing correction, financial market stress and rising prices are all acting as headwinds to stronger growth.

'While I am confident in the long-term economic prospects of the United States, clearly for the moment, the risks facing the US economy are to the downside,' Paulson said today in prepared remarks to the International Monetary and Financial Committee, the policy arm of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

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Comments

[filo]

You're doin' a heckava job Henry.

Did you work all through the weekend to come up with that?

[themodernleader]

If Secretary of the Treasury Paulson continues to permit the Federal reserve to open up the National printing press for exclusive enrichment of swindling bankers, 2008 may be a difficult but 2009, 2010 and subsequent years will be years of massive suffering for ordinary Americans as the dollar becomes a third world classed currency. He might consider dealing with the root causes such as unemployment and disappearing factories and technologies.

[BlackbirdHighway]

We would be a lot safer if Paulson was managing Al Qaeda's money instead of ours.

[biwee]

Well, it will not be difficult for the ole buddies that Paulson has on Wall St. You know, the money
crowd that Wesley Clark mentioned (the ones bailed out by the FED). Now, to these people, a Million Dollars is just chump pocket change,
isn't that correct, Hitlery????

[getoffmedz]

Tough year indeed Secretary Paulson?

The befouled Bush/Cheney administration will still be infesting our White House for 2008 with their hare-brained appointments like this one who recently resigned - "In late 2006, as economists warned of an imminent housing market collapse, HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson repeatedly insisted that the mounting wave of mortgage failures was a short-term 'correction.'" Just exactly which President appointed and subsequent rubber-stamp Congress (read old Republican majority) approved Alphonso Jackson who is currently "getting out of dodge?"

There appears with annoying tendency for virtually every center of authority under administration control for failure, incompetence, scandal and sloth. From leading our military into a morass in Iraq (imagine taking more than FIVE YEARS attempting to gain any control in a little, tiny 24M/person country like Iraq?) to having an 18 month warning on the foreclosure mess or allowing the 9/11 attacks to occur through being "asleep at the switch" or worse.

[sparkey]

Get ready for the Amero to be released. The American dollar annd the Canadian dollar are worth just about the same. As soon as the peso is worth the same amount, all three will be considered worthless and the Amero will make it's debut as a way too save all three countries from financial collapse.

[truthyguy]

"Paulson today warned that the US economy is not yet out of trouble"

Out of trouble. Is this guy nuts. We haven't even seen the end of the downturn.

[realitytrumpsbull]

It's not gonna be THAT bad...when the freeways get closed for lack of maintenance and declared a safety hazard, it'll be Hobo Heaven! Bridge abutment will keep the rain out, you're covered for tornado season right there, no reason to try and live in any kind of trailer, there, then all ya gotta do is find some place where there's lots of cats, and firewood, and you've got it made! Upside of being unemployed is, NO MORE PAYROLL TAXES! WOOHOO! No pesky cell-phone calls either, from friends OR telemarketers! Power outage? Who cares!!! Sun rises daily, there's your 'green'-friendly lighting,
walking is definitely eco-groovy, albeit slow, but hey, what's the rush, right? All depends on how you look at it, one person's waste fruit is another person's good eatin' for the next 2 weeks...sure, I'll clear out those berry brambles for you, just as soon as I fill these 3 buckets...plenty of time to make jam and homebrew when you're 'off the clock', and hey, there's your alternative energy, right there! All about the perspective...

[dadw5boys]

HE FORGOT THE BLIND EYE OF THE S. E. C. ON INSIDER TRADING!!!!!!!!!

[MetalCanuck]

Hank looks like he should be named General Zod or something...just look at the mug on him.

[kellygrrrl]

"No Sh!t Sherlock"

[kellygrrrl]

Gee, Paulson, what was your first clue?

[WIpatriot]

He still doesn't have a clue, kellygrrrl, Bernanke told him to say that after the PPT meeting.

[drkazmd65]

Yep,... another Bush appojntee with a great flair for the obvious,...

[NelsonR]

Lets elaborate on his comments,
2009 will be worse.
2010 will be worser.
2011 will the worst.
The following years will be as with Japan, a stagnant economy with deteriorating prices in existing homes, inflation for the world but the good aspect, our rich will grow richer. For those who think the values of your homes will not continue to depreciate I have a Golden Bridge in San Francisco I would like to sell you. Only in America where so called experts never seem to get it. Is it ignorance or an opportunity to become richer?

[GerryS]

a true master of understatement. I guess if 2008 is going to be tough for him that means that his private table at his private club will be next to the mens room, whaaaa- I feel for him-

[funkalicious]

Yeah Genius sell IMF gold to create an endowment of depreciating fiat currency,. Trade an appreciating endowment of hard currency for a depreciating endowment of printed paper.!

yeah we are so lucky to have such idiots running our country, Gordon Brown gets to run england after selling 400 tons of gold for 250 dollars an ounce now its worth what 900- 1000.
Geniuses!!!

Run us into the ditch faster Paulson.

[WIpatriot]

Clever criminals, and they're getting away with it, too.

[wm1066]

Well, not for your friends right?
Not for Bush's base, right?
Not for all the war profiteers, right?
Only for the rest of America... ya know, the people your group has been swindling!
Tell us who has that 3 trillion dollars.