The economy is still in the gravitational pull of the Great Recession and all the booster rockets for getting us beyond it are failing. The odds of a double-dip are increasing.

By doubling exports, the Obama administration figures foreign consumers will fill the spending gap. Problem is, most other economies also relied on American consumers. High production and low demand could spell a trade war.

When virtually all the gains from economic growth go to a small minority at the top -- and the broad middle class can no longer pretend it's richer than it is through debt -- the result is deep-seated anxiety and frustration.

Regardless of how much we export, if imports continue to exceed that amount, we're heading in the opposite direction. Trade can't possibly be a source of new American jobs.

As long as there's no fundamental change in the structure of Wall Street, the big banks will remain too big to fail, and too politically powerful to control.

The 1.5-dip recession should cause deficit hawks to stop squawking about long-term future debt, blue-dog Democrats to stop acting like Republicans, and mainstream Democrats to get some backbone.

Big American companies won't begin to think about hiring until they know American consumers will buy their products. The problem is, American consumers won't start buying again until they know they have reliable paychecks.

The will of the American people is being subordinated to the demands of giant money-making machines called global corporations that can now spend or threaten to spend unlimited amounts of money in support of any politician.