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Florida’s 24th district featured a decisive win for Democrat Suzanne Kosmas over three term Republican incumbent Tom Feeney. Kosmas is cited as having a real estate business and serving eight years in the Florida legislature. She will represent four Florida counties and while some refer to her as a moderate and having a history of working with Republicans and opposing tax cuts in Florida there are also hints of typical liberal agendas. At the top is her redeployment stance on Iraq, supporting massive infrastructure spending as well as propping up the Kennedy Space Center in her state, universal health care and alternative energy. If she believes in balanced budgets, pay as you go, ‘accountability’ and tax cuts how does that live with the spending she supports?

No need to scream about the lack of performance by Congress or the White House or either major political party on matters related to money. Managing budgets, appropriations and trying to empty the Treasury includes all of the above as co-conspirators. Only time will tell if Kosmas is just another liberal and the jury will probably be out for some time as she is another freshman member of the US House.

While this blog is something of a fan of NASA and its long history the agency is not without serious flaws. The relatively small portion of the federal budget used by NASA (16 billion a few years back) may be made leaner if the space agency ever decides to pursue some of the technologies advanced by the private sector in recent years. Kosmas states in her brief announcement and introduction on The Hill’s Congress blog that she views NASA, or more precisely, the Kennedy Space Center as ‘one of the most significant issues’ in her district. That is followed by this statement. ‘We will keep people working there and flying into space.’ It would seem reasonable to conclude NASA’s future and the employment prospects of those at the Kennedy Space Center will be determined by more than a statement by a freshman member of the House.

In the last paragraph of her blog post Kosmas indicates her constituents want bipartisan cooperation in Washington and adds her party leadership says they intend to do just that. Oh, the optimism and hopeful chants expressed by newly elected politicians. Armed with nothing more than a new job in Washington with the small probability that she will be able to accomplish anything significant during her first term or two Kosmas mirrors most of what the other newbies are saying. Would it be premature to conclude that the freshman described in these few posts as well as all the ones before them contribute to Washington politics as usual as their entry to national politics is taken from the same tired old script and political playbook used by those in Congress and elsewhere for years?

Veteran lawmakers typically gloat after their efforts defeat a competing effort from the opposition party. Likewise they blame the opposition party when things do not go well which is often. Veteran politicians and newbies use approved rhetoric when speaking publicly in an attempt to snow the voter. When things get really bad they all talk about the word ‘bipartisan’. It is used to equally distribute blame when they are all guilty and agree to collective job saving, their own. It is also used in an attempt to make the opposition party look bad when nothing is being done typically in regard to legislation. So the newbies mentioned here as well as the veteran lawmakers are all relying heavily on their political playbooks which supports the notion that, yes, newbies are complicit in Washington politics as usual.

Regarding Suzanne Kosmas specifically, there is a chance with what has been said about her and some of her previous state legislative performance something positive may occur. But those hopes may be dashed by her status as freshman and how her party will manipulate that fact to their advantage. Most likely will be the pressure to ‘do as we say’ or no money for you at re-election time.

We may never hear about her again.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

This third installment of The Downside of Elections as Term Limits features an interesting politician. For he was in politics as a staffer at the state level in Ohio. He is a veteran of the Air Force and tours in Iraq, etc., and advocates for veterans. He was a member of the state legislature in Ohio and has pursued his education to the level of master’s degree. Another US Congressional freshman with a substantial resume’ who is no stranger to politics. That may be further qualified by his announcement on The Hill dot com Congress blog. That is where this series of post’s started and continues to this third post. What is similar and what is contrast within John Boccieri’s blog post compared to the first two freshman featured here?

The classic excuse of representing one’s home constituents as a politician prepares to lobby for funds on his state’s behalf is presented in Boccieri’s opening at the Congress Blog. While separating Ohio from the remainder of the country in terms of economic strife he ignores state’s like Michigan who are in similar straits. Later in the second of two paragraphs he hints at favoring the auto industry bailout while explaining 25% of Ohio’s economy rises of falls with the Big Three. Maybe there should be some mention of why Ohio puts that many eggs in one basket? There are other examples where for instance agriculture dominates the economic landscape. And we all know how much of that industry was manipulated by others. From government subsidies tempting family farmers to abandon good principles in exchange for a sure thing by growing this or more frequently not growing that to the corporate heavyweights buying up or putting out of business those family farms which had been the core of American culture and economics. With all the talk of diversity these days there is a definite lack of it in American business demonstrated by forestry in the northwest, agriculture in the ‘heartland’, commercial fishing in the coastal areas and the list goes on.

While Boccieri is a veteran and advocates for veterans he seems to favor withdrawal from Iraq, etc. It is difficult to tell by his words but it may leave you with the impression his ‘bring them home with honor’ mirrors those liberals demanding surrender or appeasement before the troop surge but softening their tone after victory became the likely outcome. More pandering may be present in his use of hot button issues like health care and all those items focused on Ohio. Sure, all politicians do it. Lobby for their states through pork and earmarks and other political prizes. Does this freshman to the US Congress possess those characteristics attributed to long term lawmakers by virtue of his state experience? How else can one interpret his blog announcement?

There are videos at youtube where you can simply search by this freshman’s name to view them. None reviewed here gave a good glimpse into this politician’s motives or agenda. His blog post of two paragraphs seemed to do it better. That is why there are none published here as with the two former freshman featured.

Getting People Back To Work And Bringing Our Troops Homes (Congressman-elect John Boccieri)

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Now, for another installment of The Downside of Elections as Term Limits the featured freshman is GOP Congressman-elect Tom Rooney in Florida’s 16th district. Above all it is hoped that Mr Rooney will not follow the examples provided by his two predecessors. GOP Congressman Mark Foley caused a scandal by sending emails to Congressional pages that could only be viewed as inappropriate and along with other particulars in the story indicate Foley has some real problems Foley’s replacement proves once again that the truth is stranger than fiction by causing his own sex scandal in cheating on his wife and getting sued by the woman with whom he had an affair. So, enter one Tom Rooney here to save the 16th for the Republican party. But…..

With an impressive resume’ Tom Rooney’s brief blog post at The Hill dot com does him a disservice. A Florida native according to Wiki and an Army vet, a lawyer who served at the JAG, for a US attorney and as an assistant AG and a teacher at West Point as he indicates in the blog post, his entry at The HIll’s Congress blog is unimpressive with one exception. While his resume’ includes service as a children’s advocate his blog post advocates for veterans and providing necessary services especially for those who return from combat with serious health issues. That is commendable and to be supported. That is the exception to an otherwise poorly presented announcement on the blog.

For instance, why should the typical reader know that the 16th district in Florida is the panhandle and home to one NAS and two AFB’s? The lame opening to the single paragraph post gives a disinterested mention of the budget, fiscal policy and the ‘bailout’. Rooney quite ‘obviously’ indicates energy independence and the veteran’s issue is what holds his interest. Well, sir, without effective attention to those issues for which you show little interest your primary issues will never be solved. The odds seem long that a freshman representative would get a seat on the Armed Services Committee let alone a significant voice anywhere in Washington. It would have been better if the Congressman-elect Rooney would have postponed his announcement until such time as he could present an introduction that at least matches his resume’.

Given that there is no chance a Democrat would display conservative principles any GOP candidate or in this case Congressman-elect holds the only promise for supporting a reasonable agenda. For that reason success for Tom Rooney would be a benefit to his constituents and possibly the rest of America too. With that in mind and the recent history of the 16th district in Florida, Rooney falls somewhere between the up and downside of elections as term limits. No doubt it is good Mahoney and Foley were ousted or outed as the case may be. Only time will tell if Rooney is up to the task. The upside is the two losers were eliminated via election so term limits were indeed part upside. If Rooney doesn’t work out that would demonstrate the downside once again. Not only suggesting newbies are a risk but all the time wasted over the last few election cycles with losers and rookies. But not like that supports the notion of veteran lawmakers being a better choice by default.

This emphasizes the importance of selecting qualified candidates for public office. The Florida 16th is a perfect example. Two successive office holders, one from each major party violated the public trust and their oath of office by behavior which is unacceptable but not uncommon in politics or elsewhere. Party politics regularly sacrifices due diligence and proper vetting for political expediency if not just for the lack of interest in matters other than political strategy. You cannot govern if you do not win. But by selecting those with glaring personal flaws you can do nothing of value.

Do right Mr Rooney. Your district’s recent representatives seemed to be incapable of doing right.

Stanford Matthew
MoreWhat.com

Give thanks, remember those who may not be having the best day and help out where you can. Try to avoid conflict, confrontation, over-consumption or obsessing on anything.

For the troops about all this blog has the resources to do is extend the holiday greeting from here and again express appreciation for your service and expecting there will be significant distribution of items to bring a little holiday spirit to your location.

God bless you and God bless the United States. And thanks to anyone who has made the past year a little better for someone else. The world can use more of that.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

The first example of what is wrong with the term limits effect of elections features the contest between Tim Walberg and Mark Schauer in Michigan’s 7th Congressional district. Mark Schauer (D) defeated Tim Walberg (R) in the 2008 Michigan 7th district Congressional election. Prior to that Walberg had defeated competitors in the 2006 election after dethroning Joe Schwarz (R) in the 2006 GOP primary. Schwarz had won the seat in 2004 after a losing bid in the 2002 Michigan Gubernatorial race. The point here is that each candidate in each victory defeated their nearest challenger by about 4 points and each stayed in office for one term of two years.

In Michigan’s case their economy continues to slide and they were considered to be in recession long before the US economy was being described that way by the MSM in the run up to the 2008 Presidential election. The races in Michigan like many others demonstrates the typical outcomes where numbers representing about half the people voting for each candidate. The economic situation in Michigan continues to decline, voters reflect a near universal trend of splitting votes between candidates and those elected hold office for a short period of time. Not much different than the remainder of the country. And we wonder why the only things that change are those who hold elected office.

It is true that those who hold office for long periods of time rarely earn credit for dramatic improvements for this country through governing or politics. Their electoral victories however may reflect a larger margin of votes than the rookies. But the common bond between them is the continuous application of cliche campaign rhetoric in an effort to sway voters as well as colleagues in their discharge of official duties. Below a video from newly elected Michigan 7th district Congressional Democratic representative Mark Schauer is offered as testimony to what a new politician brings to the table after victory. Other items will also be presented.

In the words of Mark Schauer there is reference to whom he represents, comments on his opponent, specific problems of constituents he implies he will address and a range of issues mingled with political rhetoric designed to reassure his supporters that their requests to the great and powerful OZ will be granted. Rest assured as well that most first time and seasoned politicians employ this tactic. And in the case of Michigan it supports the notion that the state’s situation that has not improved with the constant repetition of the components of politics as usual which includes the public’s long standing reaction to elect someone new or retain an experienced lawmaker for all the wrong reasons. More troubling in the case of a freshman lawmaker is there ineffective presence due to no seniority or status within the ranks of their party. Their presence in Congress is largely inconsequential.

Issues I’m Passionate About (Congressman-elect Mark Schauer) on Congress Blog at The Hill dot com.

The reference above demonstrates why a freshman Congressman should remain quiet until he or she has something meaningful to bring to the table. If he is so concerned about, for instance, the problems with motor city USA he would do well to pound on Detroit to get their collective act together. The auto industry looking like an extension of how business is done in Washington has not benefited them, their workers, their states or our economy. Now they want a handout as they view themselves something of an American icon. That notable distinction died when they partnered with their more successful competition years ago.

This post grew too large so the other planned discussions of other freshman politicians will have to wait for the next post on this topic.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Trackposted to The Pink Flamingo - Wordpress, Rosemary’s Thoughts, Faultline USA, Conservative Cat, Right Truth, The World According to Carl, and Gone Hollywood, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe

“The economic recovery plan we are going to bring in January has to be big enough to deal with the huge problem we face, to do the range of things we need to do - not just to get out of our problems in the short-term, but to build our economy in the long-term,” said David Axelrod. “Our hope is the new Congress begins work on this as soon as they take office in January, because we do not have time to waste.”

Given a contracting economy with rising unemployment and a plummeting stock market, Mr. Obama clearly believes that aggressive government action is required to reverse America’s financial slide.

Has everyone lost their mind? While President Bush attends to tasks generally expected by a president in the final days of an administration and likewise President-elect Barack Obama attends to the tasks of a president about to take office, some of what the Obama transition team is suggesting coupled with what is happening at the Treasury, Congress and the Bush White House has certainly grabbed the public’s attention.

What was once measured in millions and then billions is now being moved in the trillions of dollars. To hell with partisan politics and Washington gridlock because they have all lost any evidence of reason in proposals and decision making. This country cannot continue to spend money like it grows on trees or we can print it. Okay, we can print it but that won’t help either. At some point you have to pay the price for or consequences of prior actions. From Wall Street to the corporate boardrooms to Congress, the White House and all our houses the time to correct the excesses of the past and present is long overdue. Continuing to spend trillions of dollars we don’t have will not solve the problems but make them worse. When you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.

Probably the most often expressed excuse for government action and corporate begging in the current financial troubles reported from around the world is that banking or financial systems must be protected and large corporate interests are too large to fail. The follow up to that as an excuse for the massive spending of taxpayer money suggests that the solutions presented are flawed but it has to be done to prevent something worse from happening. Why are those kind of statements not being challenged?

The only challenge submitted so far seems to be Congress requiring the group of automotive manufacturers who have gotten in line to participate in the taxpayer money gravy train to provide business plans before receiving any funds to ‘bail’ them out. But that may just be a typical ploy of politicians to appear responsible. There is nothing in place to oversee their analysis of whatever is presented to them by the private jet execs who balked at adjusting their annual compensation as a good faith gesture for admittance to the public money train. So both sides of that discussion bought a little time to cover their collective butts as they approach the predetermined outcome for the exchange of money from public coffers to private treasuries. Someone has to pay those multimillion dollar salaries.

So the well-heeled politicians and corporate warlords with plenty of economic security at taxpayer’s expense can continue business as usual while the rest of us are left to fend for ourselves. Not that most of us mind doing it but when the pols and CEOs are living off the fruits of our labor they should not be entitled to enrich their own lives while adding risk to ours.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

After the publishing of the press release recounting the announcement of an economic team and corresponding speech by President-elect Obama on Monday November 24, 2008, a follow-up post is required. As with any speech from a radical new leader the injection of a little fear is a good way to get people’s attention.

‘if we do not act swiftly and boldly, most experts now believe that we could lose millions of jobs next year.’

After a relatively vague fear tactic short on reasons why a severe job loss may happen beyond the understanding that the economy is declining comes the equally vague list of solutions to the vague fear tactic predicting impending doom.

‘move forward in a new direction to create new jobs, reform our financial system’

Even John McCain began using the liberal phrase from the 2006 midterms, ‘new direction’, and it made no more sense when he did it. Hope, change, new direction, they’re all rather useless beyond speech fodder for the feeble-minded.

‘We know this won’t be easy, and it won’t happen overnight’

The little quote above is another speech requirement to give advance notice of a solutions failure. That is so it can be brought up later when the providers of the solution that didn’t work regroup to try again.

Below is the first really scary part of the speech. It is a description of the members of the economic team in Obama’s words. The key is the ‘bold new ideas.’ Yes, the word will be used now. Socialism is a bold new idea in a democratic republic. That is because it does not belong. Taking one step further in the quote below one could interpret, as it may be intended, that if main street or the ordinary citizens, workers, working class or proletariat suffer, the aristocrats or wealthy class or upper class featured here as ‘wall street’ cannot thrive. Sure, you could assume he means wall street should not succeed at the expense of main street. But that is not what he said. And one can just as easily understand his words to mean his earlier talking points where the redistribution of wealth is a good thing.

‘a depth of experience and a wealth of bold new ideas — and most of all, who share my fundamental belief that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers’

Whether Mr Geithner knows it or not he may be getting setup to take the heat. Later in the speech Obama indicates the team will present recommendations on ‘the plan’ to those in Washington, etc. That may indicate the economic plan is already assembled and the ‘team’ is merely who will get the credit for it if it fails and a pat on the back from the President-elect if it succeeds as they just helped him implement ‘his’ plan. Why do you suppose he says they share his vision or their ideas compliment his ‘core’ values or visa versa?

On Geithner….
‘He will start his first day on the job with a unique insight into the failures of today’s markets — and a clear vision of the steps we must take to revive them.’

Below is a little reminder of the sitting down with no preconditions with any leader of any country and caving or appeasing to push the Obama agenda. It is no different than listening to the United Nations press statements and we know how their agendas work out.

‘we will need to reach out to countries around the world to craft a global response’

on Larry Summers…..
‘He also championed a range of measures — from tax credits to enhanced lending programs to consumer financial protections — that greatly benefited middle income families.’

Larry Summers has actually received compliment from others in the public sphere on both sides of partisan politics. But the troubling mention of tax credits and ‘enhanced lending programs’ smells like promoting social policy that got us in the subprime mess in the first place. You know, the Community Reinvestment Act in the Carter years, followed by Fannie and Freddie and Franklin Raines, Chris Dodd, Rahm Emanuel, Barney Frank, community organizing, Valerie Jarrett and a host of other accomplices including Tony Rezko that are featured in the Obama rise to power.

But the primary indicator of Obama’s agenda was glimpsed by the following excerpt from this speech.

‘As a thought leader, Larry has urged us to confront the problems of income inequality and the middle class squeeze, consistently arguing that the key to a strong economy is a strong and growing middle class. This idea is the core of my own economic philosophy and will be the foundation for all of my economic policies.’

Did Larry really urge the President-elect to tinker with the social experiment of income inequality or class struggle or other socialist or Marxist doctrine? This is where Barack Obama can be blunt since he already won the election and may believe one term as a socialist President is adequate to shape this country into his own little kingdom. If he has enough accomplices he may just pull it off. That is what should worry you.

The New Deal is alive and well in the Obama Administration. What twists will be added along those lines based on his statements about Christina Romer?

‘perhaps best known for her work on America’s recovery from the Great Depression and the robust economic expansion that followed.’

Yes, let’s see if we can destroy all the mechanisms in place to restore strength to the economy and return to soup kitchens and the government running everything. Then as they don’t tell you in the speech we can enter another wartime economy like WWII and by much pain and suffering embark on a post war economic boom which by the way featured the baby boom who is now retiring and you know the rest of the story.

‘Finally, we know that rebuilding our economy will require action on a wide array of policy matters — from education and health care to energy and Social Security. Without sound policies in these areas, we can neither enjoy sustained economic growth nor realize our full potential as a people.’

In the quote above, more spending targets are featured along with the rhetorical reference to his socialist agenda and reaching THAT full potential.

‘So I am pleased that Melody Barnes, one of the most respected policy experts in America, will be serving as Director of my Domestic Policy Council’…..

Together with health care lobbyist consultant Tom Daschle, Barnes will tweak the Obama health care issue for all of us. Barack Obama is connecting it with the agenda on economics. And her other social programs will be born from the following description of her work.

‘As Executive Vice President for Policy at the Center for American Progress, Melody directed a network of policy experts dedicated to finding solutions for struggling middle class families. She also served as Chief Counsel to the great Senator Ted Kennedy on the Senate Judiciary Committee, working on issues ranging from crime to immigration to bankruptcy, and fighting tirelessly to protect civil rights, women’s rights and religious freedom. ‘

It may sound good to some but one must translate the rhetoric in terms of how it will be used later. When complaints roll in that the Obama agenda does not reflect campaign pledges besides the tired old excuse that things have changed (part of the change mantra) the Obama Administration will remind us all that this was laid out when the economic team was announced and we weren’t paying attention.

Here’s another scary insight from Barack Obama on Melody Barnes and his domestic (socialist) policy.

‘ Melody’s brilliant legal mind — and her long experience working to secure the liberties on which this nation was founded and secure opportunity for those left behind — make her a perfect fit for DPC Director.’

The quote below is a reminder that socialism is not all upside for those in the worker class supporting such notions. The belt tightening for families and businesses will result from the government interfering in just about everything.

‘the turmoil on Wall Street means a new round of belt-tightening for families and businesses on Main Street’

The quote below is another out for Obama so he can continue on certain items and if they fail use the same argument from the campaign that all the bad was caused by President Bush. If anyone in Congress from the GOP opposes him they will receive blame for failures too. But there is nothing new in that.

‘And my Administration will honor the public commitments made by the current Administration to address this crisis.’

An entire paragraph is cited to indicate what is in store for this country when the ‘new direction’ Obama agenda really gets moving

‘Further, beyond any immediate actions we may take, we need a recovery plan for both Wall Street and Main Street — a plan that stabilizes our financial system and gets credit flowing again, while at the same time addressing our growing foreclosure crisis, helping our struggling auto industry, and creating and saving 2.5 million jobs — jobs rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges, modernizing our schools, and creating the clean energy infrastructure of the twenty-first century. Because at this moment, we must both restore confidence in our markets — and restore the confidence of middle-class families, who find themselves working harder, earning less, and falling further and further behind.’

Not in sequential order but the first reaction points to the overuse of the terms middle-class and families ‘finding themselves’….’falling further and further behind’. During the Clinton Administration, Mr Clinton had stated that incomes were decreasing in value for average Americans for a long time. The Obama characterization suggests this is something new as if to blame it on President Bush. While it still remains does not mean it started recently.

It is too lengthy a task for one post to detail all the spending, policy and legislative plans indicated by the Obama speech paragraph quoted above. It should be sufficient to say each issue included in that paragraph represents a combination of proposals or initiatives that based on other parts of the speech need no development but are already available to be viewed as new ideas from the most recent hires to the Obama team. This has been the announcement of socialism to come and the smoke screen to allow the uninformed to sign on to the audacity of hope and mantra of change with yes we can as the collective acceptance witnessed in the election of this mystery man as the next American President.

In the remaining parts of the speech Mr Obama again forgets his expression that we have one president at a time by having this team ‘consult’ with everyone in Washington and saying he will be briefed daily and tell us all what is being done in the next few weeks and months on his agenda before inauguration. Maybe a little premature for his role as President. Adding that Americans cannot wait and hope for solutions contradicts that liberal mainstay slogan of hope and change.

When he says ‘to scour our federal budget, line-by-line, and make meaningful cuts and sacrifices as well — something I’ll be discussing further tomorrow’ you can be confident his spending ideas will replace those already on the books. While cutting spending is a good idea, merely replacing one spending item with an equal sized substitute changes nothing in the equation. But it means where Obama wants to spend will replace where others want to spend. That is no guarantee of an improvement contrary to the belief of some. More money remaining with the taxpayer for them to use as they see fit is a better idea.

Could it be that in closing the speech his opinion of setting aside partisan politics and working together and planning to do so as President really means others have to concede and submit to his wishes? If you think this is being unfair and is not giving Barack Obama a chance to be President consider this. The closer the President-elect gets to inauguration the more hints, clues and parts of his agenda are featured in his words. They are becoming less vague and more specific. And with each new item exposed by the one some refer to as the Messiah another tidbit of socialism is supported.

The overuse of middle-class can easily sound like historic speeches and doctrine of others when they used working class, under-class or even proletariat. Wall Street can be replaced with aristocrat or the wealth-class or upper-class. Don’t so easily dismiss the criticism of others raising the issue of class warfare. A plan for both Wall Street and Main Street can as easily mean two plans as one. With the bailouts by taxpayer money of private sector entities directed by the public sector the notion of government run businesses is a socialist idea not far from the actions of this republic’s democratic leaders’ actions.

The jury may still be out but the evidence is piling up suggesting what may be feared in an Obama Administration will come true. If being fair requires ignoring the scrutiny required and expressing disfavor of the plans a newly elected President puts forward then being unfair is the appropriate action to take. It is often said the people get the government they deserve. For those who did not vote for this President-elect is the responsibility to hold him accountable for doing what is right for the nation in order to get a government we deserve. The manner in which this nation has survived as a republic through good and bad must be preserved. If a president intends to do something that would not preserve, protect and defend the Constitution it would be a violation of the oath of office. To radically change this democracy would violate that oath. Especially if that radical change included socialism or Marxism. Not a stretch for the uber liberal in this country.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Newsroom: Press Releases (from change.gov)

Geithner, Summers among key economic team members announced today

Chicago — President-elect Barack Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden officially announced key members of their economic team today, naming Timothy Geithner as Secretary of the Treasury and Lawrence Summers as Director of the National Economic Council. Obama and Biden also named Christina Romer as Chair of the Council of Economic advisors, and named Melody Barnes and Heather Higginbottom to serve as Director and Deputy Director of the Domestic Policy Council.

“Vice President-elect Biden and I have assembled an economic team with the vision and expertise to stabilize our economy, create jobs, and get America back on track. Even as we face great economic challenges, we know that great opportunity is at hand — if we act swiftly and boldly. That’s the mission our economic team will take on,” said President-elect Obama.

The economic team members announced today are listed below:

Timothy F. Geithner, Secretary of the Treasury

Timothy Geithner currently serves as president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, where he has played a key role in formulating the nation’s monetary policy. He joined the Department of the Treasury in 1988 and has served three presidents. From 1999 to 2001, he served as Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs. Following that post he served as director of the Policy Development and Review Department at the International Monetary Fund until 2003. Geithner is a graduate of Dartmouth College and the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.

Lawrence H. Summers, Director of the National Economic Council

Lawrence Summers is currently the Charles W. Eliot University Professor at Harvard University. Summers served as 71st Secretary of the Treasury from 1999 to 2001 and as president of Harvard from 2001 to 2006. Before being appointed Secretary, Summers served as Deputy and Under Secretary of the Treasury and as the World Bank’s top economist. Summers has taught economics at Harvard and MIT, and is a recipient of the John Bates Clark Medal, awarded to the American economist under 40 judged to have made the most significant contribution to economics. Summers played a key advisory role during the 2008 presidential campaign.

Christina D. Romer, Director of the Council of Economic Advisors

Christina Romer is the Class of 1957 Professor of Economics at the University of California, Berkeley, where she has taught and researched since 1988. Prior to joining the faculty at Berkeley, Romer was an assistant professor of economics and public affairs at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Romer is co-director of the Program in Monetary Economics at the National Bureau of Economic Research and has been a visiting scholar at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

Melody C. Barnes, Director of the Domestic Policy Council

Melody Barnes is co-director of the Agency Review Working Group for the Obama-Biden Transition Team, and served as the Senior Domestic Policy Advisor to Obama for America. Barnes previously served as Executive Vice President for Policy at the Center for American Progress and as chief counsel to Senator Edward M. Kennedy on the Senate Judiciary Committee from December 1995 until March 2003.

Heather A. Higginbottom, Deputy Director of the Domestic Policy Council

Heather Higginbottom served as Policy Director for Obama for America, overseeing all aspects of policy development. From 1999 to 2007, Higginbottom served as Senator John Kerry’s Legislative Director. She also served as the Deputy National Policy Director for the Kerry-Edwards Presidential Campaign for the primary and general elections. After the 2004 election, Higginbottom founded and served as Executive Director of the American Security Project, a national security think tank. She started her career as an advocate at the national non-profit organization Communities in Schools.

The President-elect’s full statement is below.

Good morning.

The news this past week, including this morning’s news about Citigroup, has made it even more clear that we are facing an economic crisis of historic proportions. Our financial markets are under stress. New home purchases in October were the lowest in half a century. Recently, more than half a million jobless claims were filed, the highest in eighteen years — and if we do not act swiftly and boldly, most experts now believe that we could lose millions of jobs next year.

While we can’t underestimate the challenges we face, we also can&’t underestimate our capacity to overcome them — to summon that spirit of determination and optimism that has always defined us, and move forward in a new direction to create new jobs, reform our financial system, and fuel long-term economic growth.

We know this won’t be easy, and it won’t happen overnight. We’ll need to bring together the best minds in America to guide us — and that is what I’ve sought to do in assembling my economic team. I’ve sought leaders who could offer both sound judgment and fresh thinking, both a depth of experience and a wealth of bold new ideas — and most of all, who share my fundamental belief that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers; that in this country, we rise and fall as one nation, as one people.

Today, Vice President-elect Biden and I are pleased to announce the nomination of four individuals who meet these criteria to lead our economic team: Timothy Geithner as Secretary of the Treasury; Lawrence Summers as the Director of our National Economic Council; Christina Romer as Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors; and Melody Barnes as Director of the Domestic Policy Council.

Having served in senior roles at Treasury, the IMF and the New York Fed, Tim Geithner offers not just extensive experience shaping economic policy and managing financial markets, but an unparalleled understanding of our current economic crisis, in all of its depth, complexity and urgency. Tim will waste no time getting up to speed. He will start his first day on the job with a unique insight into the failures of today’s markets — and a clear vision of the steps we must take to revive them.

The reality is that the economic crisis we face is no longer just an American crisis, it is a global crisis — and we will need to reach out to countries around the world to craft a global response. Tim’s extensive international experience makes him uniquely suited for this work. Growing up partly in Africa and having lived and worked throughout Asia; having served as Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs — one of many roles in the international arena; and having studied both Chinese and Japanese, Tim understands the language of today’s international markets in more ways than one.

Tim has served with distinction under both Democrats and Republicans and has a long history of working comfortably, and as an honest broker, on both sides of the aisle. With stellar performances and outstanding results at every stage of his career, Tim has earned the confidence and respect of business, financial and community leaders; members of Congress; and political leaders around the world — and I know he will do so once again as America’s next Treasury Secretary, the chief economic spokesman for my Administration.

Like Tim, Larry Summers also brings a singular combination of skill, intellect, and experience to the role he will play in our Administration.

As Under Secretary, Deputy Secretary, and then Secretary of the Treasury, Larry helped guide us through several major international financial crises — and was a central architect of the policies that led to the longest economic expansion in American history, with record surpluses, rising family incomes and more than 20 million new jobs. He also championed a range of measures — from tax credits to enhanced lending programs to consumer financial protections — that greatly benefitted middle income families.

As a thought leader, Larry has urged us to confront the problems of income inequality and the middle class squeeze, consistently arguing that the key to a strong economy is a strong and growing middle class. This idea is the core of my own economic philosophy and will be the foundation for all of my economic policies.

And as one of the great economic minds of our time, Larry has earned a global reputation for being able to cut to the heart of the most complex and novel policy challenges. With respect to both our current financial crisis, and other pressing economic issues of our time, his thinking, writing and speaking have set the terms of the debate. I am glad he will be by my side, playing the critical role of coordinating my Administration’s economic policy in the White House — and I will rely heavily on his advice as we navigate the uncharted waters of this economic crisis.

As one of the foremost experts on economic crises — and how to solve them — my next nominee, Christina Romer, will bring a critically needed perspective to her work as Chair of my Council of Economic Advisors.

Christina is both a leading macroeconomist and a leading economic historian, perhaps best known for her work on America’s recovery from the Great Depression and the robust economic expansion that followed. Since 2003, she has been co-director of the National Bureau of Economic Research Monetary Economics program. She is also a member of the Bureau’s Business Cycle Dating Committee — the body charged with officially determining when a recession has started and ended — experience which will serve her well as she advises me on our current economic challenges.

Christina has also done groundbreaking research on many of the topics our Administration will confront — from tax policy to fighting recessions. And her clear-eyed, independent analyses have received praise from both conservative and liberal thinkers alike. I look forward to her wise counsel in the White House.

Finally, we know that rebuilding our economy will require action on a wide array of policy matters — from education and health care to energy and Social Security. Without sound policies in these areas, we can neither enjoy sustained economic growth nor realize our full potential as a people.

So I am pleased that Melody Barnes, one of the most respected policy experts in America, will be serving as Director of my Domestic Policy Council — and that she will be working hand-in-hand with my economic policy team to chart a course to economic recovery. An integral part of that course will be health care reform — and she will work closely with my Secretary of Health and Human Services on that issue.

As Executive Vice President for Policy at the Center for American Progress, Melody directed a network of policy experts dedicated to finding solutions for struggling middle class families. She also served as Chief Counsel to the great Senator Ted Kennedy on the Senate Judiciary Committee, working on issues ranging from crime to immigration to bankruptcy, and fighting tirelessly to protect civil rights, women’s rights and religious freedom.

Melody’s brilliant legal mind — and her long experience working to secure the liberties on which this nation was founded and secure opportunity for those left behind — make her a perfect fit for DPC Director.

I am grateful that Tim, Larry, Christina, and Melody have accepted my nomination, and I look forward to working closely with them in the months ahead. And that work starts today, because the truth is, we don’t have a minute to waste.

Right now, our economy is trapped in a vicious cycle: the turmoil on Wall Street means a new round of belt-tightening for families and businesses on Main Street — and as folks produce less and consume less, that just deepens the problems in our financial markets. These extraordinary stresses on our financial system require extraordinary policy responses. And my Administration will honor the public commitments made by the current Administration to address this crisis.

Further, beyond any immediate actions we may take, we need a recovery plan for both Wall Street and Main Street — a plan that stabilizes our financial system and gets credit flowing again, while at the same time addressing our growing foreclosure crisis, helping our struggling auto industry, and creating and saving 2.5 million jobs — jobs rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges, modernizing our schools, and creating the clean energy infrastructure of the twenty-first century. Because at this moment, we must both restore confidence in our markets — and restore the confidence of middle-class families, who find themselves working harder, earning less, and falling further and further behind.

I have asked my economic team to develop recommendations for this plan, and to consult with Congress, the current Administration and the Federal Reserve on immediate economic developments over the next two months. I have requested that they brief me on these matters on a daily basis, and in the coming weeks, I will provide the American people and the incoming Congress with an overview of their initial recommendations. It is my hope that the new Congress will begin work on an aggressive economic recovery plan when they convene in early January so that our Administration can hit the ground running.

With our economy in distress, we cannot hesitate or delay. Our families cannot afford to keep on waiting and hoping for a solution. They cannot afford to watch another month of unpaid bills pile up, another semester of tuition slip out of reach, another month where instead of saving for retirement, they’re dipping into their savings just to get by.

Again, this won’t be easy. There are no shortcuts or quick fixes to this crisis, which has been many years in the making — and the economy is likely to get worse before it gets better. Full recovery won’t happen immediately. And to make the investments we need, we’ll have to scour our federal budget, line-by-line, and make meaningful cuts and sacrifices as well — something I’ll be discussing further tomorrow.

Despite all of this, I am hopeful about the future. I have full confidence in the wisdom and ingenuity of my economic team — and in the hard work, courage and sacrifice of the American people. And most of all, I believe deeply in the resilient spirit of this nation. I know we can work our way out of this crisis because we’ve done it before. And I know we will succeed once again if we put aside partisanship and politics and work together, and that is exactly what I intend to do as President.

Thank you, and I’m now happy to take questions.

With the possible exception of Christina Romer, everyone knew Timothy Geithner and Larry Summers would be on President-elect Barack Obama’s economic team. But the anticipated announcement did come Monday as advertised.  And in a post that will follow this one there will be additional criticism for all involved in this financial mess.  By the report below from VOA it appears the markets did not respond well to the introduction of Obama’s economic team.  Not because of his choice for Treasury or advisers but earlier announcing a massive stimulus plan that will be larger than first estimated yet was not part of this discussion.  For a man who stated we only have one president at a time his actions seem to be advancing and withdrawing between President-elect and President although the inauguration is weeks away.

U.S. President-elect Barack Obama has nominated New York Federal Reserve President Timothy Geithner to lead the Treasury Department, former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers to head the National Economic Council, and Christina Romer to his Council of Economic Advisers.

Geithner has been deeply involved in the current administration’s effort to rescue battered U.S. financial markets. Mr. Obama said Geithner has a “unique” insight into the crisis.

The president-elect said he is drawing his economic team from the “best minds in America” and credited Summers with good work in coping with previous international economic crises.

Mr. Obama said crafting an effective economic recovery plan is the new team’s top priority. He called for a big stimulus package that will “jolt the economy back into shape” and said he intends to create two and a half million jobs.

The stimulus plan will be far larger than the one the Bush administration used to briefly boost the U.S. economy earlier this year, and much bigger than the $175 billion package Mr. Obama had proposed earlier.

from Reuters……

 Timothy Geithner, 47, president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank, will become Treasury secretary, and Lawrence Summers, 53, a former Treasury secretary under President Bill Clinton, will be director of the National Economic Council.

Obama also named University of California, Berkeley, economics professor Christina Romer to head his Council of Economic Advisors and Melody Barnes to head his Domestic Policy Council. Barnes, a former chief counsel on the Senate Judiciary Committee, was a policy advisor to Obama’s presidential campaign.

All you have to do is go to change.gov and look for Obama’s list of players there.  His transition team, group leaders and others are listed.  A casual internet search reveals hints at what an Obama Administration will look like and what one can expect.  The biggest problem so far is, go figure, tax and spend.  How soon will he inform the public that all bets are off and to pay for his big plans will require not only taxing the rich back to the stone age but the middle class as well?  The disadvantage for the minority party in Congress may prove a serious obstacle to overcoming an expensive Obama agenda.  Sure, President Bush and the GOP abandoned fiscal restraint in the last eight years.  So does that mean the liberals get to even the score by running it up more? Guess who loses?  (everyone else)

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

The reports on unauthorized access of ‘an inactive personal account’ of Barack Obama’s at Verizon Wireless is a good reminder of several issues. Everywhere you turn there are stories of identity theft and database breaches of personal information as well as one company after another offering protection from such problems. First, why should anyone trust a company offering the protection. Second, little is discussed in terms of what happens to those who commit the crimes or allow the crimes to occur through lax attention to security. Third, it would not be totally outrageous to agree that there will always be risks like these now that we are well into the digital realm. But that shouldn’t stop or slow the progress of effective solutions and response to the threats.

Whether before, during or after the election the people responsible for unauthorized access to personal accounts, active or inactive, should face more than disciplinary action from their employer. The consequences for choosing to perform these actions on any level should carry adequate punishment to present a disincentive severe enough to dissuade the tempted even if serious crooks are not convinced. But consequences for the serious professional or full time criminals need to be adequate to the task also.

Prevention is of course the preferred solution although illusive and we cannot simply avoid it because it is difficult. Those employing state of the art defenses should be shown some leniency when the efforts fail and those who neglect their responsibility should face penalties equivalent to that of the perps. If we are to continue on the path through ever increasing sophistication of technology our efforts to protect ourselves from the result of misuse must also be sophisticated. And based on stories of security breaches in recent years the problem seems more of doing nothing to protect rather than a failure of systems put in place.

Remember the laptops that mysteriously disappeared from the White House that were later determined to be taken home by government employees against restrictions or similar laptop problems within secure national labs? There are other stories as well as many related to espionage on one extreme to the current story about Obama ’s ‘non-issue’ inactive account from Verizon on the other. That of course assumes the report is accurate. What are the odds both Verizon and the President-elect, et al, would like to play this one down?

Malicious hacking and other unauthorized access to information of others should carry some serious penalties and periodic review of outcomes in all cases prosecuted and those which fell through the cracks for any reason. We need to get real good at defeating this type of activity. One problem is we need to be good at hacking people like terrorists and similar targets yet we need to keep ourselves from being victim to the very technology we need. Quite the dilemma wouldn’t you say?

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

A U.S. mobile phone company says some of its employees gained unauthorized access and viewed an inactive personal account of President-elect Barack Obama.

In a statement, Verizon Wireless President and Chief Executive Lowell McAdam apologized to Mr. Obama. He said the device in question was a simple voice phone that did not have email capabilities.

Mr. Obama’s aides also said the president-elect’s voicemail messages and emails were not accessed.

McAdam said all employees who had access to the president-elect’s account have been put on immediate leave with pay. He promised the company will soon impose disciplinary action against those who viewed the account improperly.

Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.

There have been too many instances lately in which Barack Obama invites criticism. This is just too easy. If you haven’t yet done the heavy lifting to develop a plan to increase jobs how did you choose a number like 2.5 million? Better yet, if you haven’t officially put together an economic team, how do you know they can deliver? Will this be another announced plan which afterwards must be scaled down because reality will not allow it to happen as advertised? As Mr Obama stated in his speeches after the election, his time as President will not be without setbacks and mistakes. Maybe to ‘hit the ground running’ in January he thought it might be helpful to get some of those pesky mistakes out of his bag of tricks early.

Even if he could present a plan to increase jobs by two and a half million by 2011 how do you suspect one pays for projects like building roads, modernizing schools and developing new energy technologies if the government is involved? That’s right, taxpayer funds. With the bailout craze, defense spending, less revenue with more unemployment and a business downturn, how does the government fund such ideas without adding to the national debt, the budget deficit and further restricting credit to business and consumers? The fact is you don’t.

Contrary to other reports which suggest Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State is a done deal, the report below indicates all may not be as reported. Just another day in Washington with all the pundits, politicians, lobbyists and politics as usual calling the ball. Nothing and no one has landed yet. Obama’s team floating the Geitner idea after a deluge of media comments urging a move on the economy from the President-elect suggests little will be different this time around. Meaning the change mantra will require more hope than most people possess. After all, when was the last time you could count on Washington to do what’s right or what works?

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

U.S. President-elect Barack Obama says he has directed his economic team to develop a plan to create 2.5 million jobs by January of 2011.

In Saturday’s Democratic radio address, Mr. Obama said details of his economic recovery plan are still being worked out, but he promised to sign it soon after taking office on January 20.

The incoming president says the two-year action plan will lay the foundation for a strong and growing economy and put people back to work rebuilding roads, modernizing schools, and developing new energy technologies.

U.S. media report Mr. Obama will announce his economic team on Monday.

News agencies say Mr. Obama will nominate Timothy Geithner, head of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, to be his treasury secretary.

Geithner is one of the top central bank officials who set U.S. interest rate policy and made other decisions aimed at keeping inflation and unemployment in check.

Meanwhile, the office of former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has denied reports that she has decided to give up her Senate seat and accept the position of secretary of state. But a spokesman said talks with the Obama transition team are on track.

On November 17, 2008 a story broke in Houston, Texas. Marvin Driver Jr. was arrested at his home for outstanding traffic warrants. He was taken to jail. Upon arriving at the jail he was at some point judged to be ‘unresponsive’ and taken to the hospital. His family had gone to the jail to assist him. Sometime thereafter they arrived at the hospital when he was not located at the jail. The family later informed the press either directly or through a chosen spokesperson that Marvin Driver Jr had been beaten by the police who had arrested him.

A couple of items surfaced through other reports and sources which have received little or no coverage since. There was some mention that the officers allegedly forced Mr Driver to swallow something which was blamed for his inability to talk later. Nothing more was said about this in subsequent reports. There was a third policeman added to the original pair. It was stated he sides with Driver’s family in their account of what happened. There was also mention that one of the officers may have a history of violence against citizens more precisely fitting Mr Driver’s demographic. Most of this is up in the air in terms of being confirmed.

That it took the HPD three or four days to remove the officers from regular duties to desk duty is disturbing for one reason. Marvin Driver Jr’s son is Donald Driver, a wide receiver for the Green Bay Packers. That fact combined with the possibility of at least one officer having a history of abuse toward citizens, the third officer who may side with Marvin Driver’s family and the odd initial description of the event report suggest the handling of this matter so far is suspect.

The developments so far increase the tendency to wonder if the typical allegation of cover up will follow allegations of police brutality. Obviously the story may conclude with any number of possibilities but the response by local law enforcement may have complicated arriving at an honest and plausible outcome. Truth whereever it takes this would be the desired course.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Updated Statement on Internal Affairs Investigation

November 21, 2008 - Following a preliminary briefing late Thursday (Nov. 20) of an internal affairs investigation into allegations Houston police officers assaulted a male citizen, Police Chief Harold Hurtt has temporarily reassigned Officers B. Guzman, G. Cruz and M. Marin to administrative duties pending the outcome of the investigation.

Mr. Marvin Driver Jr. was arrested during a traffic stop and placed into custody on outstanding traffic warrants about 1:30 am on Monday (Nov 17). Mr. Driver was transported to the Southeast Jail at 8300 Mykawa Road where a jail doctor found him to be unresponsive. The doctor advised officers to contact HFD paramedics who then transported Mr. Driver to Memorial Hermann Hospital.

The Houston Police Department’s Internal Affairs Division investigates allegations of police misconduct. The allegations being raised by Mr. Driver’s family are that injuries he sustained were following his arrest.

Investigators are awaiting medical reports on Mr. Driver to determine what injuries he sustained.

“We take allegations such as these very seriously and will conduct a thorough investigation into the matter and be transparent in our findings, whatever the conclusion,” Chief Hurtt said.

For additional information, please contact the HPD Public Affairs Division at 713-308-3200.

Below is a link from Texas Cable News for video news report on Driver, his dad, and inquiry. Donald Driver is a wide receiver for the Green Bay Packers. Local stations in Green Bay covering the story are WBAY, WFRV, WLUK and WGBA. There is video available at these sites as well. Just google the call letters.

Donald Driver: Dad is ‘a tough cookie’
NFL player’s dad says Houston police beat him
06:35 PM CST on Friday, November 21, 2008
By Wendell Edwards / 11 News

Officers involved put on desk duty

HOUSTON— The Houston Police Department confirms two officers accused of beating an NFL player’s father have been taken off the streets.

Gilbert Cruz and Bacillo Guzman have been reassigned to desk duty pending the outcome of the investigation into the alleged beating of Marvin Driver.

Excerpt from one source in Wisconsin covering the story…..

FRI., NOV 21, 2008 - 2:12 PM
Packers notes: Driver returns to team
By JASON WILDE
608-252-6176
jwilde@madison.com

GREEN BAY — Donald Driver was back where he’s the happiest Friday: On the football field.

The Green Bay Packers’ veteran wide receiver returned to work after missing the previous two days of practice while traveling to Houston to be with his ailing father, Marvin Driver Jr., who was hospitalized after what his family claims was a police beating early Monday morning.

“I’m doing fine,” said Driver, who visited with his father on Thursday before flying back to Green Bay. “I sat down with my dad and talked to my dad the last couple days, and I was just trying to get an understanding of exactly what happened, and we seemed to get that understanding.

Most reports quote Donald Driver saying his father told him to get back to work and is probably why the story above starts with ‘Driver returns to team.’

It is not a big surprise that this story was picked up by larger MSM outlets like CNN….

(CNN) — Three police officers in Houston, Texas, have been temporarily transferred from patrol duty to desk jobs after claims of assault against the father of Green Bay Packers wide receiver Donald Driver, authorities said Friday.

The fates of police officers Bacilio Guzman, Gilberto Cruz and Matthew Marin will be decided based on the findings of the department’s internal affairs division, Police Chief Harold Hurtt said in a statement.

Interesting….. 2 reports at The Houston Chronicle, one frem AP, one from THC…..

Cops in case of Driver’s father taken off duty
By JUAN A. LOZANO Associated Press Writer © 2008 The Associated Press
Nov. 21, 2008, 3:44PM

HPD cops in Driver case taken off street duty
Investigation will be thorough and transparent, Chief Hurtt says
By DALE LEZON Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle
Nov. 21, 2008, 3:12PM

The Bank Holding Act of 1956 was referenced in a post on Michelle Malkin’s website prompting some minor research at this blog. While typing this post another news report was heard on the radio announcing the past week’s unemployment figures up 27,000 from the week before and the highest number reported since the recession of 1992. This information and other reports on the condition of financial matters in the US plus looking into the BHA of 1956 and related legislation draws attention to previous actions which may be at least in part responsible for where we are right now.

Some may rightly question who was minding the store all this time for the situation to become so dire? Is it fair to single out individuals for their contribution to the economic, banking and financial problems the country faces now? Only if you can clearly compile a complete list and support it with equally complete and valid evidence. That is a task which may be beyond anyone’s capacity if it is to be presented before this entire mess is nothing more than a historical footnote. But some information will be presented here in hopes that someone will take note and add it to the list of items to review when the time comes to establish real protections to avoid another failure like this in the future. While the possibility of producing adequate protections for this purpose is remote the effort should be attempted.

RIEGLE-NEAL INTERSTATE BANKING AND BRANCHING EFFICIENCY ACT OF 1994 is legislation which amended the Bank Holding Act of 1956. One of the items included in this measure required a Study and Report on the United States Financial System. The Secretary of the Treasury was to chair or designate someone else to chair an Advisory Commission made up of people who were not government employees. Together with input from nine related government entities from the Board of Governors to the Office of Thrift Supervision and HUD, to name three, a report was to be submitted within 15 months of the law being enacted and the group terminated 30 days after giving the report to the President pro tempore and the Speaker of the House.

The very problem facing the country today was what this report was intended to prevent. All manner of financial concerns were to be addressed and steps taken to correct any deficiencies found. The report would circulate sufficiently that all pertinent agencies, departments, groups and individuals responsible for oversight and subsequent action to maintain the health of the country’s financial system would be in the loop.

One would think such a mechanism would have already been in place and that we would still have this type of mechanism operating. The particular one noted above was to be terminated after its initial report. Not unlike following the activities of Congress or any other government entity, the quantity of reports and analysis published present a formidable and time consuming task of retrieval and review. That may be by design or simply the way it works out. The easiest report or analysis of the present situation was of course available from the MSM and two representative links are offered here as examples.

Ahead of the Bell: Financial Services (AP)

The item above cites an analyst’s report on the debts of financial companies and what they believe is required to solve the problem. Mentioning the US financial system has $37 trillion in debt can get your attention and renew the concern that this problem is beyond huge. The analyst calls for more government intervention to promote confidence in the system and return investors to the markets, etc. That comes as no surprise.

A TARP Report Card (Fortune)

Another item linked above is no more surprising than the first one but for other reasons. It seems the article cannot make up its mind whether to hop on the Paulson bashing bandwagon or not. To give the Treasury Secretary applause for not just submitting a plan but moving on it quickly is equivalent to saying do something even if it is wrong. And wrong seems to be the dominant opinion on TARP so far.

Offering the minor research indicated at the top of this post may be as deficient as the efforts employed to date to fix the financial crisis. The Riegle-Neal bill presented in this post demonstrates only one action in a long list of measures related to finance and banking which promoted more options for this sector of the economy that exposed the nation to this crisis. Mention also of the report connected to that legislation indicates everyone in government has the opportunity and responsibility to discharge their duties and successfully respond to potential problems that lead to the very situation we have that the mechanisms were intended to prevent.

All the taxpayer money being offered to those in financial trouble may only serve to delay the inevitable. With no hint of corrections coming from legislators to eliminate their previous actions which allowed the crisis to develop the main problem appears to be two-fold. TARP will not provide the necessary solution to lead the economy and financial system away from further decline and needed corrections in current law will not be delivered in Congress.

It may be all that is happening so far will only delay a further meltdown in which we may hit bottom and then be able at some point to recover through a more natural process. Hold on for a bumpy ride in 2009. As if you didn’t already know it was coming.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Comments have been expressed that based on actions taken by President-elect Obama’s transition team the campaign slogans of change or change you can believe in were nothing more than that, slogans. This would be in keeping with related commentary that mystery man Barack Obama presents a wide range of unknowns for anyone attempting to predict the agenda or path to be taken starting in late January 2009.

Those supporting the new President-elect most heartily urge others to withhold judgment at least until his first official day in office. But that may be the only urging his support can muster as nothing since the election suggests an Obama Administration will be change outside of the fact that President Bush will be leaving office and Barack Obama will be entering.

The report below states Napolitano, picked by Obama for Homeland Security, has been praised for her efforts related to that job. A little more detail might make that statement useful. And mention of what the Governor’s own website states would be expected to be positive. And advocating for the federal government to take responsibility for anything can be viewed as Governor-speak for the state does not want the expense so let federal tax dollars cover it.

Based on the nickname, Rhambo, it is not unrealistic to suggest a meeting between GOP leaders and Rahm Emanuel may be nothing more than the new Chief of Staff dictating how things will go if Emanuel has anything to say abou it and he probably will.

Selecting Tom Daschle for HHS chief appears to contradict the Obama claims of ousting lobbyists from politics since Daschle and his whole family seem to be involved in the activity. And there is the addition to current equations of Congressional Democrats trying to convince Hillary Clinton to remain in the Senate. One suggested offer has her leading a working group for health care. With Daschle as HHS and dealing with health care, any inclusion of Hillary in the mix would suggest there will no success on that front in the foreseeable future.

That leaves one more Clintonista in this report, Gregory Craig, who assisted former President Bill Clinton through troubled waters. Does that mean Obama is planning ahead for expected troubles as President? Probably not, but the addition of more former Clinton Administration ‘employees’ gives support to the notion little will ‘change’ with an Obama Administration.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Democratic Party sources say U.S. President-elect Barack Obama has picked Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano to lead the department of homeland security.

Napolitano presides over a southwest border state and has been praised for her handling of immigration and homeland security issues. The governor’s Web site says Napolitano is a national voice in calling for the federal government to take responsibility for securing the nation’s borders.

Sources say the Democratic governor was selected pending the results of a vetting process.

The Cabinet negotiations are expected to continue as Mr. Obama holds private meetings in the midwestern U.S. city of Chicago Thursday.

In Washington, incoming White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel is to meet with Congressional Republican leaders to discuss how best to work together. Emanuel has said Mr. Obama plans to govern in a bipartisan fashion during his term in office.

In other Cabinet selections, Democratic officials say Mr. Obama’s pick for the Department of Health and Human Services, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, has accepted the job.

The Obama transition team has not confirmed the report, but did say the South Dakota Democrat will lead a team of health policy advisors.

Separately, there is still speculation that Mr. Obama’s former Democratic rival for the White House, Senator Hillary Clinton, will join his Cabinet as secretary of state.

Reports say her husband, former President Bill Clinton, will submit to an extensive ethics review if Senator Clinton is nominated as the top U.S. diplomat.

Mr. Obama’s transition team has also announced the appointment of Gregory Craig as White House counsel. Craig served as special council and lawyer to former President Clinton during Mr. Clinton’s impeachment proceedings.

Is there anything good to come of the current and so-called global economic crisis? Below is another report suggesting there might be. Although situations like the current international turmoil invite participants and observers to discard any uncomfortable or distasteful epiphany that results during times like these it is incumbent on the rest of us to keep them alive.

The epiphany suggested above is the revelations surfacing that the rest of the world is to one degree or another dependent on the bad old USA for their economic survival. Certainly the reverse is also true and in a perfect world everyone would cooperate with everyone else. But how often is America criticized by nearly everyone else on the planet? Why is it so often suggested that all the bad in world emanates from the US? This whole global mess dominating the conversation of late may in fact shed some light on how the world really works and what the US component contributes.

Sabre rattling and war mongering are not the least of the complaints expressed and directed toward the US. No one seemed to mind when the US led forces to expel Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi Army from Kuwait. There was a coalition of forces but we all know who carried the largest burden in human and financial risk. No one on the right side of WWII seemed to mind the US supporting Britain in the early years or landing at Normandy or liberating France or anything else right up to the surrender of Germany and Japan. Oh ya, there was the little matter of a couple of bombs and two cities in Japan. That may be criticized now but you can be certain few were raising objections as the war ended.

And how about after WWII, who spent immense quantities of money rebuilding what the war destroyed? After the spirit of cooperation between Russia and the US faded at the end of WWII, who stood as the only nation ready, willing and able to confront the only other true superpower? To this day, all the criticism about the US and military and national security measures employed avoids the very real likelihood that American strength and intervention is quite probably the reason the planet still spins and we are all here to complain about this year’s set of problems and who is responsible for them.

There is little discussion attending to the obvious fact that the reason this crisis is global is due to the fact that all the other countries experiencing financial difficulties participated in how we got here just as much as the US. A fine example in the last few months was China scaling back on purchasing US debt especially that which was or is backed by real estate assets. Can anyone say subprime? Everyone hopped on the gravy train.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is again referenced in the report below as she was in the one here yesterday from the same source, VOA. You can add BASF, a VP from the EU and others to the list. Oh no, on the one hand recipients of orders from US companies as well as international business partnerships will suffer if the US auto industry cannot be turned around and on the other hand propping them up is viewed with disdain as unfair competition. These days on this planet the US simply cannot win. No can please all the people all the time but a little honesty from those who benefit from American resources would be appreciated. If for no other reason than it would be a truthful evaluation.

Sure, the United States makes mistakes and Americans do not always do the right thing. Show me a country and people who do. But for all the good the US has done for others in the rest of the world a little balance between compliment and complaint would make the statements more credible. But then around the world just like in the US all politics is local and much of what is said may be intended for a select audience which resides elsewhere, namely the sources own constituency.

Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com

Guenter Verheugen, EU VP of Enterprise and Industry

Sluggish sales and disappearing profits for the U.S. auto industry are being blamed for growing problems around the world.

The world’s largest chemical company, BASF, says Wednesday it is suspending production at 80 plants, affecting about 20,000 workers.

BASF officials say the company is preparing for “tough times” after the auto industry canceled orders on short notice. The German-based chemical giant makes a variety of products used in automobiles, including chemicals used in exterior paint, emissions control devices known as catalytic converters and plastics used in engine components.

BASF also says orders from the construction and textile industries have decreased dramatically.

Meanwhile, the European Union’s Industry commissioner is blaming the troubles of European automakers on the ailing U.S. auto industry.

Guenter Verheugen says the EU should take “extraordinary measures” to prevent German carmaker Opel from collapsing. Verheugen warns if Opel - a division of U.S.-based General Motors - fails, it would hurt the entire European auto industry.

Also Wednesday, Japan’s largest carmaker said it would shutter production at its U.S. and Canadian plants for two extra days in December. Toyota also said it would lay off about 250 temporary workers.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Tuesday European officials would closely monitor the type of help the U.S. offers its auto industry, saying she did not want European companies to be at a competitive disadvantage.

Verheugen says any aid to European automakers would be targeted, and not part of a larger, industry-wide bailout.

We are all “bank holding companies” now   (Michelle Malkin)