To those who are conservative, and believe in the economic policies that conservatives generally do, the idea of Obama being elected sends chills down their spines. They believe that it’ll be the mistakes of the 30’s and 40’s all over again (especially those who think that FDR prolonged or worsened the Depression).
However, things are a lot different these days. There are people who actually know what happened during the Depression era. The global economy is a lot more interconnected with other countries that don’t have an Obama or a Democratic Congress. And, of course, there are plenty of experts who disagree with conservatives (or, if they ARE conservative, have a more complex position than the usual pundit).
So what do you think Obama and Congress will do? What CAN they do, given political, economic, and practical limitations?
Both parties are waist deep in the idea that the government has a large role in spending. I don’t know why a conservative who would be scared of an Obama administration could vote for McCain.
The same John McCain who is so much for limited government that he proposes that the government spend 300 billion (with a B) dollars to buy home mortgages? I can’t imagine Herbert Hoover saying that.
The fact is that this economic situation is so dire that it will require a huge government intervention. And a huge government intervention will be more effective with someone who wouldn’t have to hedge his bets with a half-assed response to appeal to his base with talk about private markets and such.
We are talking about almost a trillion dollars. No way the market can help us, and at least Obama has been consistent with his idea of government intervention. McCain changes his proposals daily; so much, in fact, that I don’t think anyone, including McCain himself, can articulate what his core beliefs are. All we know is that he is a maverick.
The swap market is estimated at about 60 trillion dollars. The financial institutions do not have to tell, so it is difficult to see how deep under each company is. It is hard to solve a problem, if you can not define it. We just know it is huge.
The bailout is small when compared to the swaps.