Bob Herbert: Government movers and shakers are on the side of the millionaires and billionaires

[Better Believe It]

Op-Ed Columnist
Misery With Plenty of Company
By BOB HERBERT
January 7, 2011

Consider the extremes. President Obama is redesigning his administration to make it even friendlier toward big business and the megabanks, which is to say the rich, who flourish no matter what is going on with the economy in this country. (They flourish even when they’re hard at work destroying the economy.) Meanwhile, we hear not a word — not so much as a peep — about the poor, whose ranks are spreading like a wildfire in a drought.

If you’re still having trouble deciding whose side the Republicans are on, just keep in mind that the House G.O.P. bigwig Darrell Issa sent a letter to 150 businesses, trade groups and think tanks asking them to spell out which federal regulations they dislike the most. These are lifeguards on the side of the sharks.

Scared to death of being outdone, President Obama and his sidekicks climbed into their spiffy new G.O.P. costumes and promised in humiliatingly abject tones to shower the business world with whatever government largess they could lay their hands on. The first order of business (pun intended) was the announcement that William Daley, the Chicago wheeler-dealer and former Clinton administration official who landed a fat gig at JPMorgan Chase, would become the president’s chief of staff. Mr. Daley was a loud critic of recent financial regulatory reforms and has been obsessed with getting Democrats to be more subservient to business.

The poor, who have been hurt more than anyone else in this recession, don’t stand a heartbeat’s chance in this political environment. The movers and shakers in government don’t even give a thought to being on the side of the angels anymore — they’re on the side of the millionaires and billionaires.

Please read the full article at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/08/opinion/08herbert.html?ref=bobherbert

[highplainsdem]

1. K&R. This is a must-read for progressives.

[Carolina]

2. K&R

[ljm2002]

3. That is a great op-ed...

...and there are some great comments on it also.

It brings the current situation in our national government into very sharp focus.

K&R

[Waiting For Everyman]

4. K&R

[HereSince1628]

5. No kidding, that's part of the DLC philosophy

I can remember that as the Labor movement screamed warnings, Billy J. clucked that the Dems shouldn't leave corporate money to the Republicans.

International corporate interests and national labor interests are very hard to reconcile. Unfortunately, we know exactly how the balance was worked out.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

6. The Emperor Has No Clothes.

Someone needs to be saying it. Thank you, Bob, for stepping up and taking care of business.

[Better Believe It]

7. He doesn't pull any punches.

[Buns_of_Fire]

8. K & R & Don't miss the comments to the article! nt

[Fool Count]

9. NY Times, really? What, Duh! Magazine rejected this submission as

too obvious?

[somone]

10. Great article