Deal or No Deal

It is fascinating to watch the drama unfolding in Washington. It might even be entertaining, almost soap operatic, were the stakes not so high. Earlier in the day I read that Congress had essentially worked out a deal to take to the President's afternoon summit. Both McCain and Obama were there. McCain "suspended" his campaign to help work out a deal and suggested that tomorrow evening's debate be postponed.

I'm not sure what's going on here -- whether it is another dramatic political stunt designed to catch headlines or something else. Obama has rejected McCain's idea, saying that they should be able to do both debate and deal with the crisis. The reality is that while either of these two candidates will inherit this mess, neither of them are yet President nor are either of them on the Senate Banking committee. They can offer input, but hanging around Washington does little good.

What appears to be the case is that the Republicans won't back the President's call for action. It is possible that the President will have to work out a deal with the Democrats, but success really requires a bi-partisans plan. That doesn't seem to be forthcoming, at least at this point.

So, we wait to see what happens next and consider the question: what's the hold up?

Comments

Anonymous said…
Maybe I am naive.. but I think you honestly have hit a nerve on the two parties most basic ideological lines. Repubs do not want government to be the solver of problems, especially in business. Less government is more. Dems believe regulation and an active government is best for the nation. The basic question is.. how do you use tax payer money and is this an appropriate use?

While I personally don't like the idea of a bailout, and really HATE the fact the auto biz will get $25B b/c their states are up for grabs, part of me does say that Paulson knows more about this than anyone and it maybe time -GULP- to trust him on the seriousness of the issue.

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