Obama's Biggest Mistake: Selling Out to the Bankers - James K. Galbraith

[BrklynLiberal]

http://www.alternet.org/story/148770/obama%27s_biggest_mistake%3A_selling_out_to_the_bankers

The original sin of Obama's presidency was to trust bank-friendly economists and Bush carryovers, whose primary goal was to protect their own past decisions and futures.

Bruce Bartlett says it was a failure to focus. Paul Krugman says it was a failure of nerve. Nancy Pelosi says it was the economy’s failure. Barack Obama says it was his own failure -- to explain that he was, in fact, focused on the economy.

As Krugman rightly stipulates, Monday-morning quarterbacks should say exactly what different play they would have called. Paul’s answer is that the stimulus package should have been bigger. No disagreement: I was one voice calling for a much larger program back when. Yet this answer is not sufficient.

The original sin of Obama’s presidency was to assign economic policy to a closed circle of bank-friendly economists and Bush carryovers. Larry Summers. Timothy Geithner. Ben Bernanke. These men had no personal commitment to the goal of an early recovery, no stake in the Democratic Party, no interest in the larger success of Barack Obama. Their primary goal, instead, was and remains to protect their own past decisions and their own professional futures.


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[LWolf]

1. That original sin covers more than economic policy.

The same can be said for education policy. Arne Duncan.

For "defense:" Robert Gates.

Chief of Staff: Rahm Fucking Emmanuel. Replaced by Rouse, a less abrasive centrist.

For Agriculture: Monsanto's toy Tom Vilsack.

[Le Taz Hot]

2. Communication Director: Gibbs

(The go-to guy for bringing down Dean in 2004 and ensuring the DLC's Kerry was Das Party's nominee.)

[LWolf]

3. Yep.

I think the direction is administration was headed was pretty damned clear from the start. The constant "give him time, he hasn't had enough time" mantra was obviously wrong. Why give him time to go further in the wrong direction?

[phasma ex machina]

4. Bankster royalty made a seamless transistion from Bush to Obama. nt

[joeybee12]

5. Agree...nt

[Poboy]

6. recommend

[Larry Ogg]

7. History leaves a painful conclusion

Legalized cronyism is the epitome of our banking and financial systems, and a political candidates view on these systems is an important indicator as to what they will do once elected. Promises to repair it means you won't upset the minority of predators that own it, and you as a politician will be their subservient puppet, repairs are superficial and mainly for looks, and the biggest beneficiaries are the predators that own it, while the biggest losers are we the debt slave majority who doesn't have a clue as to how inimical, to their best interest, our monetary system is; so they just play right along with the fraud hoping to someday get rich.

[amborin]

8. K&R candidate Obama lobbied for TARP well before the election;

such a shame! then choosing Summers (reaganomics) and Geithner (ny fed) would make anyone weep;

one chilling thing I took away from watching "Inside Job," which didn't reveal anything I hadn't already read about in depth, was how much of a tool or puppet Obama appeared to be, and how ruthless the true power mongers are.

Let's not forget how Open Secrets reveals the big banks donated more to O's campaign than to any other canditate, by vast sums! I think O was paying them back.

[JuniperLea]

9. Did he?

I thought he voted against it.

[amborin]

10. please re-read what went on; Obama lobbied hard behind the scenes,

calling senators, etc....to get TARP passed; it was voted down on the first vote