The New York Times has reportedthat efforts to save Lehman Brothers have failed, and that bankruptcy could be declared as soon as today. This could likely trigger a severe sell off in the stock market, and with other implications for the health of the U.S. Economy.
The law that made this all happen was the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act brought to you by John McCain and the Republican Party, with Phil Gramm McCain's ex-Campaign co-chair, and Secretary of Treasury Designate as prime sponsor.
Ben Stein, yeah the guy from T.V, who also happens to be a lawyer, writer, actor and economist, is the semi-official spokesperson for the conservative perspective at the New York Times, where he had this to say in his article, Where to Direct All That Rage
The problem was not too much regulation, but far too little.
OR look at the current financial madness caused by wildly imprudent lending by major banks and investment banks. Basically, a major piece of deregulation, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, overturned most of the laws that had kept commercial banks and investment banks separate. This made it much easier for monster-size banks to lay down enormous bets on the direction of housing prices.
When these bets turned out to be wrong, the losses to the banks and their stockholders were staggering. (Naturally, those who approved these wagers left, if they left at all, with monster-size severance. You and I will pick up the monster-size bill in many different ways.)
This is not from a Democrat, but from a man with conservative credentials surpassed by none. And this law, while signed by President Clinton, was passed by a party line vote, every Republican for it, and every democrat opposed, including, thank goodness, Joe Biden, even with all the banks incorporated in Delaware.
This should be the message for the few weeks, actually few days before early voting begins in some states, that remain in this campaign. This illustrates the stark difference between the Republicans who will sell out the country to allow the CEOs and shareholders of banks to rake in more profits, while they ignore the obvious risks to our entire economic system.
We can't let McCain get off the hook on this one.
I hope I'm wrong, and the stock market goes up tomorrow. But the neighborhoods destroyed by the housing bubble remain, This artificial run up of prices engineered by McCain-Gramm was the actual disaster, not the inevitable foreclosures to return houses to affordable prices.
It was the Republicans, the porported defenders of the free enterprise system that have come close, let's hope it's only a near miss, to destroying this very system that has allowed our country to thrive.
Not only should they be removed from political power, they should be relegated to the dust bin of history.
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Addendum:
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This commentfrom Libertarian Friend confirms this diary's premise:
I swung to Obama immediately after McCain secured the nomination. Never voted Democrat before that. Hell, I hope that I never have to vote Democrat again. We need a viable two party system, not one.
The "message" in your diary will resonate with Republicans like me who are weak McCain.
IMO, Obama needs to point this out and pre-announce his economic team with heavy hitters. I would suggest from my perspective former Clinton economic team members.
That would resonate with voters as the Clinton era was good economically.
One thing I know for sure is that a change in Washington will help restore confidence. If there was a Dem in the White House, I would be saying the same thing.
On one of the diaries someone wrote, "Its 3:00 AM and financial markets are collapsing in Asia, who do you want to answer the phone?"