No Runny Eggs

The repository of one hard-boiled egg from the south suburbs of Milwaukee, Wisconsin (and the occassional guest-blogger). The ramblings within may or may not offend, shock and awe you, but they are what I (or my guest-bloggers) think.

Archive for March 24th, 2009

Press Conference Recap

by @ 20:10. Filed under Politics - National.

If you weren’t able to catch President Obama’s press conference tonight or if you’d purposely avoided it so that your head wouldn’t explode, I’ve got a recap of the Q&A period.  I’m not saying that what I’ve laid out is a verbatim recitation of what was said but, it will give you the gist of both the question and answer…at least as I interpreted Obama answering it.

Q – Regarding the request for new ability to takeover financial institutions? 

 

A – Financial institutions = bad

      Government knows better than public

 

Bottom line:

More government control is always the right answer

 

 

Q – Why haven’t you asked the public to sacrifice more?

 

A – Workers unite!

       If the government spends more we’ll all be better

       Financial institutions = bad

 

Bottom line:

You’ll sacrifice a whole lot more, just give me time and pass my budget!

 

 

Q – Will you sign a budget that does not have a middle class tax cut or cap and trade?

 

A – We need to spend a lot more

      We need to raise the cost of energy dramatically

      We need government control of health care

 

Bottom line:

Don’t worry you’re sweet head.  My ego will carry this through.

 

 

Q – Aren’t you passing on problems by dramatically increasing debt?

 

A – I inherited this from Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuush!

      Growth only comes from government spending

      The CBO can’t do math

 

Bottom line:

You’re damn lucky I’m here.  This would really be a mess if Buuuuuuuuuuuush were still here!

 

 

Q – Why does you budget deficit go up dramatically in 6 of the next 8 years?

 

A – Did I call this a budget?  This is really a guideline!

      I can’t take over the entire economy in the first 2 months

 

 

Bottom line:

Quit asking me questions that I can’t answer!

 

 

Q – Do you consider the violence in Mexico a national security threat?

 

A – We’ll throw more money at the problem

      The problem is that we don’t have gun laws

      I’ll fix this next week over a tequila

 

Bottom line:

Don’t ask questions that could screw up my Mexican vacation

 

 

Q – Are you cutting defense spending?

 

A – I inherited this problem from Buuuuuuuuuuush!

      Second only to the financial industry, military contractors = bad

      Did I say we were withdrawing from Iraq?

 

Bottom Line:

I’m a Leftist.  Of course I’m cutting defense!

 

 

Q – How come you didn’t come public on what you knew of AIG?

 

A – I like to know what I’m talking about before I speak

 

Bottom Line:

This would be the first and last time that will happen

 

 

Q – Are you concerned about the rising debt?

 

A – I’ve only been here 60 days!

      We need government to control health care

 

Bottom Line:

Quit asking tough questions a second time

 

 

Q – How comfortable are you with foreign governments saying you’re spending too much?

 

A – China calling me Socialist….that’s rich!

      Europe calling me Socialist…..that’s rich!

      I’ll wow them at the G20!

 

Bottom line:

I’m planning another world tour.  They’ll love me again after that!

 

 

Q – Are you reconsidering the mortgage and charity deduction cut?

 

A – No

      Financial institutions, military contractors and rich people = bad

      Charities will have to suck it up

 

Bottom line:

Hey, Joe and I don’t give to charities so this doesn’t impact us!

 

 

Q – Do you have a message for homeless children?

 

A – Just look at the jobs we’ve saved!

       The States aren’t doing their jobs!

       Obviously, we haven’t spent enough!

 

Bottom line:

If they had been aborted they wouldn’t be homeless

 

 

Q – Did you wrestle with your change on stem cell research?

 

A – I’m a deep, deep thinker

      I said to myself, self and got no reply

      It’s no harder a decision than abortion

 

Bottom line:

I’m the most pro infanticide President ever….stupid question.  Next!

 

 

Q – Can you bring peace to the Middle East with a Neocon leading Israel?

 

A – Israel needs to give in

      If George Mitchell stays awake long enough, he’ll make a trip there.

      The Middle East is no different than the situation in Ireland

 

Bottom line:

We’re sending them an “Easy button” next week.

Pinky And The Brain

by @ 9:37. Filed under Miscellaneous.

Yesterday I wrote on Geithner’s new Public Private Partnership Investment Program.  It seemed to me that for having missed 3 self imposed deadlines and allowing the markets to roil each time he did, his final plan was woefully lacking in complexity or uniqueness so as to explain why it took Geithner so long to spit it out.  I think most able minded individuals could have come up with a version of “Just another bailout” in far shorter time.

The question I was left with after reviewing the PPPIP was “what has Geithner been doing?”  Now we know.

This morning, Geithner and President Obama have unveiled a new initiative they are taking to congress.  They now believe that a big reason why the economy is in the trouble it is is that large financial companies didn’t have anyone to tell them “no.”  They reason that if someone had been able to tell them “no,” then the companies would have been compliant and we all would be living in financial Nirvana today.

Not feeling like they’ve socialized the financial industry enough, Obama and Geithner will be asking Congress for the ability to:

initiate the seizure of non-bank financial companies, such as large insurers, investment firms and hedge funds, whose collapse would damage the broader economy.

Admittedly, some additional oversight seems to be warranted after what we’ve experienced.  In my mind, a big piece of the oversight and change in regulations should be focused on the rating agencies who continually priced assets as if they were gold and diamonds when in fact they knew they were more like iron ore and copper…still valuable but at a significantly diminished value.  However, as Obama has done on nearly every change he’s implemented, he’s not satisfied with “improvement.”  Obama’s view of change is only satisfied with a complete takeover and control of whatever the issue is he’s focused on.

In defense of their request, Geithner and the administration state:

According to the administration officials, the government could have been better equipped to deal with AIG aggressively before it engaged in behavior that was so risky, its failure threatened to bring down the entire financial system with it.

“Before it engaged?”  That doesn’t sound like a company in collapse.  That sounds like further dictation of what an industry can or can’t do.  Yeah, that’s working out so well for all the GSE or GSE like enterprises.  Let’s just look at Fannie, Freddie, Amtrak, US post office etc.  Can you find one in these or others where the government is involved “before they engage in behavior that is risky,” that operates for a purpose other than lobbying Congress for it’s future life blood?

I think it’s now safe to say that Geithner did not spend the last two months putting together his PPPIP.  Rather, at the direction of Obama, he has been working on a plan and talking points that makes another industry servants to the dictates of their new government masters.  In another time, this may have passed for absurd.  Now, it’s just more of business as usual.  It looks like for the past two months, rather than finding solutions to the issues immediately in front of us, Pinky and The Brain have spent their time doing “The same thing they do every night, Pinky—try to take over the world.“

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