Cancel Friday's Foreign Policy Debate and Hold an Economic Debate at the New York Stock Exchange Instead
A former United States Senator Everett Dirksen was quoted as saying: "A billion dollars here and a billion dollars there and pretty soon it all adds up to real money."
That was many decades ago and today we are talking in the trillions of dollars that the American taxpayer is going to have to pay to try to save our so-called free enterprise market system.
Are we not in such dire straights on the economy that Congress cannot even hold lengthy hearings on the crisis? Does Congress really have to adjourn this week without actually debating this massive problem?
Are we really going to give Henry Paulson a blank check to decide where our trillion dollars and more goes and what firms it goes to? Are firms really "too big to fail?" What happened to the outrage of conservative Republican congressmen and women over government intervention in the U.S. economy?
This is arguably one of the most conservative administrations in American history and the degree of intervention in the financial marketplace is staggering. It is unprecedented. In the 1930s FDR was called every name in the book for his part in changing the economy to help people out in the Depression days. Will today's bailout eventually even dwarf FDR's efforts during the Depression?
Now the presidential candidates, the conservatives in Congress, Barney Frank, Chris Dodd, and Nancy Pelosi all seem to be saying that times are so terrible that we need to act now without any substantial hearings on the subject, which is not the way this should be going.
To show the urgency of our economic crisis, cancel this Friday's presidential debate on foreign policy in Mississippi and instead hold a debate on the economy. Now is the time for everyone to concentrate on our credit, financial and economic difficulties while Congress is debating the topic this week and hopefully even next week and beyond.
The stock market closes at 4 p.m. So the candidates need to rent the New York Stock Exchange and invite the country's leading financial leaders, previous government officials like Alan Greenspan and Bob Rubin, and investment gurus like Warren Buffett as well as people struggling with their mortgages to attend a two hour or longer debate on how to fix this situation.
The American voter is afraid of what lies ahead on our economic landscape. We all want to know what is happening and why we are bailing out billion dollar corporations with our tax dollars without much discussion whatsoever on why this is happening.
These are extraordinary times and the presidential candidates are running ordinary campaigns. Stop these ridiculous negative ads blaming one another for our economic ills. There is enough blame to go around. First, let's find out in reasoned and reasonable debate what the problems are and how we can fix them to benefit all Americans and not just the Wall Street firms involved.
Having a prime time presidential debate on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange this Friday with an audience of financial and economic leaders and average citizens discussing the topic is vital for all of us.
The debates should be moved from Mississippi to New York this Friday. Enough already with negative ads and blaming each other -- the time for that is over and the time for solutions are now. Both candidates would gain--as would the American public -- by a debate on what, when and why this happened and how it can be fixed.
We are all tired of these crisis weekend meetings where one after another firms go out of business on the suggestion of the Treasury and Federal Reserve. Do we really want Paulson and Bernanke to have these expanded powers? Where is the outcry for letting the market decide? Where are the believers in Adam Smith?
Everyone thought that the Bush administration would be judged by history for the Iraq War. Now it will also be judged for this gigantic economic meltdown.
Think about it. If a Democratic administration were in power and did this massive government intervention in the marketplace, there would be such an outcry about socialism coming to America from talk show hosts and conservative members of Congress. Today we hear very little from either side on whether or not this trillion dollar plus bailout is really what is needed.
Stop and debate this crisis. It might even be so important that Congress might have to stay in town and do its work rather than going home to campaign. Congress has been too silent on the entire economic meltdown.
So, for this week move the presidential debate to the New York Stock Exchange and have Obama and McCain question Paulson, Cox and Bernanke and others who should be required to be in the audience. Let's have a true, real and spirited debate on why our economy is going down the drain.
Maybe something can actually be accomplished at a re-styled presidential debate. Instead of voting on which candidate won or lost by his comments, maybe we could step back for a few hours this Friday and have the American voter be the winner by being given the knowledge of what is really happening in our economy today and how it can be fixed.
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It would be amazing to see after McCain has been doing his studies on foreign policies being given a change up and having to actually speak to the total break down of our economy. That the debates are stuck in some kind of warp when the economy is way more important today says that the debate mess is broken too. BUT we have to be realistic also. That a terorist attack would take us all the way down without a doubt our economy would not be able to handle it now as we saw on 9/11 Wall Street was fairly healthy when the planes hit and now?
Why has no one discussed a vested interest of Congress in securing the safety of Wall Street. Congress banks its retirement funds in a program called Thrift Savings Plan. This savings plan invests federal employees contributions into the market. If the market falls so do their savings. Do we really expect them to administer any plan (no matter how well founded) that would put their savings at risk! This plan is one of the best perks of working for the government. Another case of the Democratic and Republican foxes watching the hen house. Think of how many federal employees would be affected. Independent investors know the risks (at least they should) and accept it, federal employees expect the full support of the government in protecting their nest egg!
He did it, Obama did it today ... said the magic word the taxpayers are "investors
that's a lame stunt. just hold the debate as planned. Barack will make the connection between economic and national security (as they are very much connected).
There is no national security without economic security. The debate will be about economics.
It should most certainly be changed to the economy. We are in a crisis.
This first debate WAS supposed to be about the economy ... then someone decided to make it about foreign policy. Does anyone know who or what organization made this decision to switch topics?
The McCain campaign wanted to start the debates on his strong suit--national defense.
This first debate was supposed to be about the economy ... then someone decided to make it about foreign policy. Does anyone know who or what organization made this decision to switch topics?
The great thing about this economic meltdown is, no matter what anybody says, the bankers will get the money. All the fighting is about the details. Nearly nobody in either party is mounting much of an effort to stop this throwing of borrowed money after bad. So debate all you want. Anywhere you want, including the floor of the Stuck Exchange. Responsible caution, Obama's hallmark method, will mean that with furrowed thoughtful brow he will go along with the bail-out. Hotheaded reaction, McCain's hallmark method, means that with red face and some amount of finger-pointing, he will go along too, although he' ll say he isn't while he does. Can't see the grounds for debate, what with so much agreement already in place. Vote early and often for the candiddate of your choice. But by all and any means, alert me if Obama actually opposes this bail-out and refuses to endorse ofrsupport it. That would be wonderful news!
I agree. The financial mess is the message of the moment, and it should be the topic for Friday. I doubt that McCain's side would agree to a change, frankly.
I love Jeremy Seigel and his research on stocks and the long term returns of stocks and real estate etc... there does really seem to be a premium for investing in stocks...
However all of us who have invested in 401Ks are not doing that well and we are chasing our tails.. The deal is that the top 1% who own 50% of the stock have all the insider information and are getting most of the gains, so that what the rest of us are getting is the leavings which is really no better than Treasuries (where our SS is invested).
so that means that whatever Paulson is talking about, you can bet that number should be doubled... We have no jobs, no health care, no pension security..
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