HOPE for a Moderate Obama

There is hope for moderates and conservatives in yesterday’s election. The landslide victory for the Democrats is not the vote of sweeping change that leaders like Pelosi wanted (or will claim). The popular vote only leaned by a few votes for the Democratic choice for President and the overriding theme at the Senate and local levels is change. Not necessarily change to a Democrat, just change from who we had.

A great many people that I’ve spoken to didn’t cast a vote for Obama’s policies or goals. They voted against Palin. They voted for Obama’s inspiring vision for America. They voted against the Republican party, but not its ideals. Many that I’ve spoken to agreed with the McCain platform, but weren’t inspired by him.

Hopefully the Obama team knows this and will take the Whitehouse with a moderate platform. These voters may have been inspired to vote for Obama, but a left heavy agenda will lead to a quick change in House and Senate makeup in 2 years as voters find it easier to vote on and reject the platform.

The Last Democrat to Promise Lower Taxes

A nice opinion article from the WSJ abou the last time a charismatic Democrat promised to lower taxes on the middle class by taxing the rich.

“Now, I’ll tell you this,” he said. “I will not raise taxes on the middle class to pay for these programs. If the money does not come in there to pay for these programs, we will cut other government spending, or we will slow down the phase-in of the programs.”

Mr. Clinton, of course, won that election. And as the inauguration approached, he began backtracking from his promise. At a Jan. 14, 1993, press conference in New Hampshire, he claimed that it was the media that had played up a middle-class tax cut, not him. A month later, he announced his actual plan before a joint session of Congress.

via Main Street – WSJ.com.

Rick Bookstaber: Full-Information Journalism

A wonderful Article from rick Bookstaber, author of A Demon of Our Own Design which I mentioned the other day in Understanding Liquidity Risk.  It explores the idea of journalistic bias and the professionalism of journalists, editors, and publishers.

But when I see one story about a candidate covered on page 1 and another story put below the fold on page D-22, or when I see follow-up coverage on one story and another story dropped after its first mention, full-information journalism requires that I know if the person making that decision wants that candidate to win or to lose.

Rick Bookstaber: Full-Information Journalism or “Good evening Mr. McCain, I’m from the New York Times and I want you to lose”.

Thursday & Friday Recap

I am on vacation this weekend so no big updates.

It currently looks like House Republicans are going to come back to the party line and back some kind of bailout plan.

On the bailout: There has been discussion of an insurance style plan for MBSs where the banks pay in FDIC style this will stem losses but not create the kind of liquidity that is needed. A loan plan has also been proposed which would limit tax payer exposure, but could lead to higher borrowing costs for years. Congress still doesn’t understand that the focus on home ownership is what got us in to this mess.

I am looking forward to tonight’s debate. I expect McCain to show off why he was such a force in the senate.

WSJ: McCain, Obama at Odds Over Debate Delay

From the WSJ: McCain, Obama at Odds Over Debate Delay

Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama on Wednesday rejected a suggestion from Republican nominee John McCain that they postpone their first debate on Friday to focus on getting the financial bailout bill passed by Congress.

Obama made the right decision, this debate should happen as scheduled. McCain and Obama should get this bailout thing figured out before Friday night.

WSJ: Blame Fannie Mae and Congress For the Credit Mess

Great Opinion article at the WSJ

Blame Fannie Mae and Congress For the Credit Mess – WSJ.com.

If the Democrats had let the 2005 legislation come to a vote, the huge growth in the subprime and Alt-A loan portfolios of Fannie and Freddie could not have occurred, and the scale of the financial meltdown would have been substantially less. The same politicians who today decry the lack of intervention to stop excess risk taking in 2005-2006 were the ones who blocked the only legislative effort that could have stopped it.