Congratulations, Mr. President

[BDBoop]

To some degree of course they were being bullshitted, but you forget that Barney Frank and Chris Dodd were making the exact same kinds of statements if not worse. Need I remind you of Dodd's comments that Fannie Mae was "fundamentally strong" and Frank stating that Fannie and Freddie were "...not facing any kind of financial crisis...." and he wanted to "...roll the dice a little bit more in this situation toward subsidized housing."

You forget that politics creates reality in some cases. About a year ago Obama made some statement about how the economy was going so great while the market was tanking and unemployment had just jumped again. Well I am not going to bust his balls for that even though it was total bullshit because what is he supposed to say? "Oh we're fucked"? He can't say that. That goes on the news and everyone hears it and they say "well if we're fucked we had better save every dime we have" and then you just enhance the problem. So he has to paint a rosy picture to spur consumer confidence because that will help get the money moving around.

So yeah....politicians can make some statements at times that are clearly bullshit, everyone knows it's bullshit, and they know it's bullshit; but what else can they say?

To some degree? You lying sack of shit. We were on the fucking abyss.

Are you claiming that's an excuse for Bush and McCain lying out their ass?

Jesus...what is it with people who raise such hell about things they obviously can't comprehend. Let me spell it out for you slowly for the logically impaired. There's what you say to the press, and then there's what you do in the background.

The President of the United States cannot go before the nation and the world and say "oh man we are so totally hosed". Pffft....are you out of your mind? No one would spend a penny for a year and if we weren't hosed we sure as hell would be at that point. So the POTUS has to say to the media "hey everything's fine...go buy something" because saying anything else will cause a catastrophe. All presidents do this. Bush did it, Obama does it weekly, Clinton did it...all of them.

Now behind the scenes they are doing different things. Bush was begging the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs and the House Financial Services Committee for years to take action warning of a total meltdown and he was blocked by Chris Dodd and Barney Frank the former of which was receiving bribes, and the latter of which was at the very least showing incredible recklessness and denial. This is a matter of record, pal. It's all right there in the records for those committees and in the numerous media articles that have been written on the topic.

Instead of whining about Bush lying to the media (I notice you aren't whining about Obama doing the same thing) which he had to do in order to avoid being the one who set off the firestorm, why don't you focus your anger at those who a) had the power to do something about it, b) were warned continuously that all hell was going to break loose, and c) refused to take action.

Now what any of this has to do with Boop's question is beyond me. I see other people (myself included) offering their plans of what they would have done. I see you whining, kicking your feet, and pounding your fists about Bush like a six year old child who can't get a snow cone. And you wonder why you got neg-repped. Good Lord.

Thank you!! EXACTLY!

Exactly.

 

[BDBoop]

In my question, you were either Obama or McCain. I'm not looking for anybody to blame Bush, not even if that's what the incumbent did. I'm not looking for you to excuse Bush. I'm just asking what you would have done after winning the nomination.

And if you wouldn't have run, then you are excused from the thread.

 

[Soggy in NOLA]

IN all fairness when he first started going for the job the current leadership was saying that it would be over soon and was just a little adjustment.

He and most of america were gullible enough to believe that too.

So, Obama the genius was duped by Bush the idiot... gotta love it.

So maybe Bush wasn't as stupid as the left said he was?

A little adjustment? Does that mean that Obama despite his rhetoric of calling Bush 'Un-American' stayed with Bush Doctrine because Obama is too?

And it is readily apparent that Obama isn't nearly as sharp as some believed. He's incredibly mediocre so it seems.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

It's January 20th, 2009. You have just been sworn in as President of the USA.

You have inherited a disaster. Keep in mind that you are whatever candidate you voted for, and you have the House and Senate he had on that date.

Hopefully you know enough about what was going on at that time that I don't need to refresh your memory. Unemployment was 7.8%, the big banks had just come undone, and the auto industry was one step from the tank.

What would you do.

This should help refresh your memory.

Banking Collapse of 2008: Three weeks that changed the world | Business | The Observer

Me personally?

The first thing I would do is get on TV and tell everyone I didn't inherit this mess, I ran for office because I knew that the mess was there and I wanted to fix it. I would then charge Congress to pass a law giving a bipartisan Simpson-Bowles commission the power to outline, and enforce, necessary reforms to fix the problems that caused the economic crisis that everyone in America is responsible for.

That is the difference between a leader and a community agitator. Leaders look at a problem and find a solution, agitators look at a problem and demand the government fix it.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

Ah, but you must remember, he has been President all of two minutes now, so it is all his fault, and has absolutely nothing to do with the policies put in place by the previous administration.

You have to remember that he actually volunteered for the job.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

He didn't inherit a disaster; he asked for it. Then made it a worse disaster.

IN all fairness when he first started going for the job the current leadership was saying that it would be over soon and was just a little adjustment.

He and most of america were gullible enough to believe that too.

In all fairness, he was one of the current leaders that was saying that.

 

[Buford]

What would I have done? The auto bailout for sure.

Nope! He should have let GM bankrupt. It would have allowed GM to restructure and renegotiate their union and lease contracts that are killing them. Bailing them out simply allowed them to perpetuate their problems.

GM folding would have been the end of the American auto industry.

Oh my God. That has to be the dumbest post of the month.

 

[MuadDib]

What would I have done? The auto bailout for sure.

Nope! He should have let GM bankrupt. It would have allowed GM to restructure and renegotiate their union and lease contracts that are killing them. Bailing them out simply allowed them to perpetuate their problems.

GM folding would have been the end of the American auto industry.

No it wouldn't. Ford didn't get a bailout and they're doing OK. Toyota and Nissan have plants here in America and they didn't allow themselves to get screwed up like GM.

 

[BDBoop]

Nope! He should have let GM bankrupt. It would have allowed GM to restructure and renegotiate their union and lease contracts that are killing them. Bailing them out simply allowed them to perpetuate their problems.

GM folding would have been the end of the American auto industry.

No it wouldn't. Ford didn't get a bailout and they're doing OK. Toyota and Nissan have plants here in America and they didn't allow themselves to get screwed up like GM.

How many more Americans would have joined the ranks of the unemployed if GM had folded.

 

[Papageorgio]

GM folding would have been the end of the American auto industry.

No it wouldn't. Ford didn't get a bailout and they're doing OK. Toyota and Nissan have plants here in America and they didn't allow themselves to get screwed up like GM.

How many more Americans would have joined the ranks of the unemployed if GM had folded.

Not anymore than they had after closure and layoffs after the bailout.

GM would have filed bankruptcy, they would have came out of bankruptcy and the UAW would have had to renegotiate, the creditors would have gotten more money and it would have been business as usual. I believe someone would have bought them out.

There are still people that aren't back to work with all the GM cuts.

 

[BluePhantom]

GM folding would have been the end of the American auto industry.

No it wouldn't. Ford didn't get a bailout and they're doing OK. Toyota and Nissan have plants here in America and they didn't allow themselves to get screwed up like GM.

How many more Americans would have joined the ranks of the unemployed if GM had folded.

How many lost their jobs anyhow? GM dealerships closed all over the nation. As part of the deal their assets were liquidated, they laid off 20,000 workers in a year, and all this was part of the deal with the government. I might point out that I find it interesting that the media attacks Romney's actions with Bain, but say nothing when GM under agreement with the Obama administration did the exact same thing.

So had GM folded...as I said earlier. Fiat, Toyota, Renault....someone would have bought them and the same thing would have happened. The only difference is that it would have been a foreign company buying them instead of the taxpayer bailing them out. I would have preferred the former because now GM can go on producing the same crappy vehicles that contributed to their downfall and they have little to no financial consequences because they are "too big to fail".

 

[garyganu]

GM folding would have been the end of the American auto industry.

No it wouldn't. Ford didn't get a bailout and they're doing OK. Toyota and Nissan have plants here in America and they didn't allow themselves to get screwed up like GM.

How many more Americans would have joined the ranks of the unemployed if GM had folded.

Bankruptcies are necessary to weed out uncompeititive, overpriced, inferior products and make room for new lean, robust, thriving competition. When a company goes out of business, it creates a vacuum that will be filled by competitors, new start-up companies or new innovation that will change or modernize the entire industry. Similarly a forest must endure forest fires to remove the dead wood, disease and overcrowding in the woods in order to give new healthy saplings space, opportunity and nutrients to thrive and prosper.

Although people will lose jobs due to the bankruptcy, new opportunities will be created that will fill the economic vacuum that the bankruptcy created. Bankruptcies are good and necessary for a thriving economy.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

GM folding would have been the end of the American auto industry.

No it wouldn't. Ford didn't get a bailout and they're doing OK. Toyota and Nissan have plants here in America and they didn't allow themselves to get screwed up like GM.

How many more Americans would have joined the ranks of the unemployed if GM had folded.

GM did fold. The company that you call GM did not exist before 2009. That explains why the pensioners throughout the country that invested in GM stock got screwed, why GM is no longer legally responsible for lemons that were built by the old GM, why Romney wants to take credit for the GM bailout, and why the new GM can claim it is profitable when it isn't.

 

[Too Tall]

Well that depends. Do I still have a Congress that is made up of Democratic super-majorities (or very near it) in both houses or do I have a Congress that will do what I say to do? That's important because if I have the same Congress he had then there's nothing I will be able to do because they will refuse to pass any of my plans.

Yes. You have the Congress that he inherited.

But what would you do in the face of that? You can't just sit there for two years. You have to have a plan for how to circumvent them, or even use words and the public to make your case heard. What would you be trying to pass.

And thank you, you were on my short list of people I knew who would be up to the task.

What he should have done is call the leadership of both parties into his office and explained what his goals were. The only real power the President has is the power of persuasion, and he didn't know or didn't care how the system works.

One of the first things Bush did was convince Ted Kennedy that he should write an education bill that he could sign. Like the legislation or not, the 'no child left behind bill was enacted into law. That is called reaching across the aisle, and Obama didn't do that for at least a year and a half.

 

[Too Tall]

What would I have done? The auto bailout for sure. I would have reached across the aisle twice, the second time my hand was slapped away, I would have gone into the fighting mode. Instead of trying to reach out to the Republicans, the President should have concentrated on keeping the Democrats in line, using the Johnson arm twisting method, and got us a real Health Care System. He should have ended the Bush tax cuts. All of them.

He did use the Johnson method. Did you miss the cornhusker kickback, the Louisiana purchase, and numerous other back room deals Obama and Reid, at Obama's direction made. And it cost him the majority in the House and will cost him a few Senate seats this November.

Find an economist that says raising taxes during a severe recession is a good idea and I will show you an idiot.

And he should have then, and should now, hit hard on how the wealth of this nation is increasingly being taken at the top, with the people creating it getting a smaller share every day.

It is called capitalism.

He needs to come out strong on the scientific evidence for the changing climate, and what it means to the citizens of this nation. And the preperations we need to make for the consequences that are already in the pipeline.

What does 'come out strong' mean?

While he has emphasized the importance of education, he needs to hammer on the GOP on their lack of support for the education of our populace, at the very few times that other industrial naitons are investing far more of their wealth into the education of their citizenry.

BS! Name a nation that spends more supporting education than the US.

We need to drastically reduce the amount we spend on defense. There is no reason that we should be spending more than the next 14 nations combined on defense. Half that would be adaquete.

Obama has a chance to veto the Defense bill Congress just passed.

Social Security can easily be fixed in several ways. One, made the 6.2% that we pay apply to all income. Then the system is adaquetly funded forever.

Soc Sec pays is an insurance policy,(the I in FICA stands for insurance) and like all insurance policies, the benefits paid out are determined by the amount of the premium. Can you tell me what the benefit would be for someone that paid in 6.2% on a million dollar income? I can buy a life insurance policy for $50,000 for $10 a month. If I want a policy for $500,000 the premium is closer to $100 a month. Do you see how that works?

A Universal Health Care system paid for through an income tax, would eliminate both Medicare and Mediaid. And save the nation a good deal of money. We have the example from all the other industrial nations. Less costly per individual with better results.

I don't believe the saving a good deal of money or the better results part.

Increase the federal gas tax, and repair our Interstates. That wonderful system of highways should not be allowed to fall into the disrepair that is it's condition today.

Why not repair our Interstates with the rather large gasoline tax the feds already take in?

Rebuild our nations electrical grid, using the same method that we did for the Interstate System. Users pay x amount per watt they put on the grid to the customer. And take that grid into the places where the wind, solar, and geo-thermal is plentiful.

That can be done without rebuilding.

Just a few things off the top of my head.

Just a few things off the top of my head.

 

[Chris]

The stock market has doubled since the stimulus.
4.1 million private sector jobs have been created since 2009.
GDP has been growing since 2009.
Americans net worth is up $9 trillion dollars since 2009.
Auto sales are up. Retail sales are up. Home sales are up. Unemployment is down.
GM was saved, and is now the number one automaker in the world.
Obama has done a very good job.

 

[Darkwind]

It's January 20th, 2009. You have just been sworn in as President of the USA.

You have inherited a disaster. Keep in mind that you are whatever candidate you voted for, and you have the House and Senate he had on that date.

Hopefully you know enough about what was going on at that time that I don't need to refresh your memory. Unemployment was 7.8%, the big banks had just come undone, and the auto industry was one step from the tank.

What would you do.

This should help refresh your memory.

Banking Collapse of 2008: Three weeks that changed the world | Business | The Observer

I would have allowed GM to go into bankruptcy and to reorganize. I would then have gathered together a number of prominent economists (here is a hint, they were all saying that this had to run its course) and then enlisted their advice, weighed it against national security issues, and then let the worst of the offenders to either declare bankruptcy or to fold completely.

I would have begun investigations into the root cause of the problems that began this spiral and I would then have preferred charges against not only the corporate individuals that allowed this to happen, but against many Congresspeople as well as Senators for their part in the collapse.

I would then have crafted policy that would immediately stabilize the dollar (a slight increase in interest rates, and a freezing of regulatory burdens pending review).

I would have fired Bernanke. I would consider charges against Greenspan.

I would then assure the American people that those responsible will be investigated and brought to justice if wrong doing is discovered, and that the American government would be doing everything within its authority to stabilize global markets and commodities.

What I would not do.

I would not focus the vast majority of resources on passing a health care law to solve a problem that was minor at best, and not a priority in an economic meltdown.

I would not have spent twice the total combined budgets of the past 43 Presidents combined to prevent a problem that would self correct in less than 12 months.

I would not have enacted policy that cast into turmoil the stability business so that they would be willing to keep shedding jobs.

I would not have done what Obama did. And because I would not have done what Obama did, we would have come out of this recession inside of 15 months of My taking office. Not 42 (and counting) months.