The easiest and quickest answer is–NO! They are not!
This crisis has opened the door for McCain and right-wing House Republicans to posture as opponents of Wall Street and identify themselves with massive popular opposition to the bailout. The faction of House Republicans who have denounced the measure represents right-wing libertarian elements within the party who identify social spending and government intervention in the capitalist “free market” with what they consider the ultimate evil—socialism. They base themselves on appeals primarily to middle class layers, utilizing anti-tax and nationalist demagogy as their stock in trade.
In opposing the bailout, they are, moreover, responding to bitter opposition to the windfall for Wall Street among their constituents. The media and politicians of both parties have acknowledged that there is massive popular opposition to the bailout scheme.
The Los Angeles Times on Thursday called the proposal “wildly unpopular.” The New York Times reported that the “delicate” negotiations between Paulson and congressional leaders were “complicated” by pressure on rank-and-file legislators “who were fielding torrents of complaints from constituents furious that their own money was going to be spent to clear up a mess created by high-paid financial executives.”
The newspaper gave several examples of lawmakers who have been inundated with hostile emails and phone calls over the past week. “Senator Barbara Boxer, Democrat of California,” it noted, “has received nearly 17,000 email messages, nearly all opposed to the bailout, her office said. More than 2,000 constituents called Ms. Boxer’s California office on Tuesday alone; just 40 favored the bailout. Her Washington office received 918 calls. Just one supported the rescue plan.
“Senator Sherrod Brown, Democrat of Ohio, said he had been getting 2,000 email messages and telephone calls a day, roughly 85 percent opposed.”
What neither the media nor the politicians have pointed out is the brazen violation of any conception of democracy, even by the eviscerated and restricted standards of the American two-party system, represented by the enactment of such a momentous measure, which will impose massive burdens on the American people for decades to come, on the eve of a national election by a lame duck president and a Congress nearing the end of its tenure.
The Democrats’ rush to pass the bailout is driven by the most cynical calculations. They want the decision to be taken before the November elections, so that in the event they win, an Obama administration, with an increased Democratic majority in both houses of Congress, can claim that its hands are tied and it has no alternative but to pursue a right-wing policy of austerity, including savage cuts in social spending.
Then will the American voter take this disregard of their wishes to heart and vote these people out of office?
Not just “no”, but “HELL NO”, would be the proper answer regarding whether or not we should support this Wall Street bailout and blank check (with near-dictatorial power) for Paulson.
As for voting, I will be writing in Ron Paul, since I cannot support any of the brain dead nits running at present.
Will the American people wake up and do their own thinking? On that, I’m going to have to suspect the answer is also “no”, though that’s a far more unfortunate answer. I reserve the right to be pleasantly surprised.
Indeed. 🙁
Inertia is a hard thing to fight, and compounded with ignorance, it’s nigh-impossible.
I keep asking my wife “when will people actually start to do their own thinking?”. So far, we don’t have an answer. I just hope that it doesn’t take another Great Depression or World War to wake people up.
I don’t even mind if people disagree with me, so long as they can demonstrate a logical train of thought. Sadly, that’s all too often not the case. The American people are generally good, hard working folk when trouble hits the fan. Too bad we’re not more proactive and educated.
Good luck to you and yours, Lobo.
I think the whole bailout is the biggest ripoff ever, orchestrated by Bush and Paulson (which Bush appointed). I don’t think there is any need for a bailout.
To prove its a scam read section 8 of the bailout -“Decisions by the Secretary pursuant to the authority of this Act are non-reviewable and committed to agency discretion, and may not be reviewed by any court of law or any administrative agency.”
Bush says – if we don’t give 700 billion of taxpayer money to the super rich, then there won’t be as much credit available to taxpayers. So let me get this straight, Bush is proposing we give money the taxpayer has earned, so that the taxpayer can borrow it back and pay interest on it? Who would give cash to another person so that they could borrow it back? You can see there is no truth in this process and the fake “urgency” is a common Bush tactic to get devastating legislation through without anyone questioning it.
Yep, sounds like a blank check to me….Bush has become a master at playing the congress.
Please read my post of Who Is Henry Paulson?….Tells all about his involvemment in Wall St.