Theory of a “few bad apples”

The recent decision of AG Eric Holder to investigate CIA crimes limits the scope to only those who may have exceeded the Bush Administration’s legal guidelines on torture. This implies that there were simply a “few bad apples” who intentionally broke the law. In the end, if the only ones who are prosecuted are lower level CIA operatives, this will be a gross miscarriage of justice. The “few bad apples” theory may be correct; however they were those who authorized the activities in the first place. Perhaps this is why Mr. Cheney continues to vigorously protest these investigations. In the words of William Shakespeare: “Me thinks he doth protest too much.”

Healthcare Reform or Lobbyist Rhetoric?

Why we need healthcare reform and not irrational rhetoric

After reading the recent letters to the editor which simply parroted the insurance industry talking points designed to either stop or water down healthcare reform, I was struck by the fact that people are not looking at the real issues. Some members of Congress and their industry-paid lobbyist allies insist that we have the best healthcare system in the world, but in fact, our current system screams out for much needed reform. The organized effort to misdirect the conversation away from the real problems is counterproductive to resolving an impending healthcare crisis. Perhaps most members of Congress have relied for too long on their government-run health insurance to realize the problems that ordinary people face in trying to maintain their own health insurance. Instead of focusing on the real issues, they are disseminating misinformation about euthanizing senior citizens, paying for abortions, and putting government bureaucrats in-between you and your doctor. Here are the undisputed facts which can not be ignored which are available from independent sources:

*Nearly 50 million Americans do not have health insurance, and another 25 million are underinsured. Furthermore, all Americans are at risk of loosing private employer based coverage which is currently not portable when you loose you job.
*The cost of COBRA insurance (continuation of benefits from your old job) is unaffordable for most people who find themselves unemployed. Typically the employer will make the coverage available as required by the COBRA law, but they set the rates so that the former employee is paying 100% of the cost.
*Temporary health insurance policies available through private insurers are nothing less than the health insurance equivalent of predatory lending practices that got our nation into the current economic mess. These generally exclude all pre-existing conditions, so in practice they are really only available to healthy people. They also require huge deductibles and are only in effect for short terms up to a maximum of 90 days.
*A typical family health insurance plan now costs $12,000, but because employers typically pay about 70% of the cost, even those who have health insurance through their employer often don’t realize the true cost of their insurance.
*The current trend towards the so called “high deductible” plans which lowers the premium in exchange for people self-insuring more of their risk with health savings accounts simply shifts the cost of healthcare from the employer to the employee.
*The US spends more per capita on healthcare (twice as much as most other industrialized nations) and yet ranks only 19th in preventable deaths and 37th in overall performance according to the World Health Organization. In just a few years, healthcare expenditures in the US will exceed 20% of GDP.
*The annual increases of healthcare costs (average 7%) far exceeds the annual growth in real wages and is unsustainable not only for individuals but for the government’s programs like Medicare and Medicaid. Medical expenditures account for over 23% of the US federal budget and this will only balloon as the baby boomers reach retirement age and become eligible for Medicare. State governments are also dealing with the cost of increased healthcare spending as a larger part of their budgets. These same annual trends are making it increasingly impossible for business both large and small to offer medical benefits to their employees. In a globally competitive economy, this increasing cost of healthcare puts US companies at a global competitive disadvantage.

These are all symptoms of a broken healthcare system. Some would even argue that it is such a mess that it can not even be called a system because it was never designed as a system, but simply evolved over the years. Whether you agree or disagree with the characterization of the “system,” no rational person can objectively look at healthcare in the US and conclude that we are getting our money’s worth. Said another way, we are collectively getting taken to the cleaners by the current healthcare “system” as we pay premium prices and get inferior outcomes. This should be the true outrage.

This is not meant to disparage the thousands of dedicated health professionals who are tending to the sick and injured everyday; however, the collective “healthcare system’ run by insurance companies and corporate interests is more focused on financial performance than patient outcomes. This paradigm will not change unless we get some real reform, and not some watered down version of expanded private health insurance promoted by the industry lobbyists.

Here are some solutions that would have a significant impact:
*Standardize healthcare administration.
*Restrict the use of television advertising for prescription drugs.
*Change the law and allow the government to negotiate with drug companies.
*Implement a universal health insurance requirement.
*Implement a public option and restrict the ability of private insurance to deny coverage or terminate policies for frivolous reasons or pre-existing conditions.
*Increase enforcement of fraud prevention and fully prosecute perpetrators.
*Increase funding for medical scholarships and expand public universities to matriculate more medical students.
*Implement managed care programs for people with chronic diseases.
*Experiment with changing the business model from fee for service to salaried providers or payment for outcomes.

These are just some of the ways to really address the issues of healthcare reform short of a single payer system. Changes like these still leave the private sector ample room to run their business profitably, albeit with some different operating parameters. Opponents of healthcare reform are absolutely correct about the need to control costs, but they offer no concrete solutions other than disseminate misinformation like killing senior citizens. That is simply a manufactured distraction with the sole purpose of not killing seniors, but killing anything that resembles real reform. Don’t let them scare you. It is simply an effort to just maintain the status quo for the special interests who profit from the current inefficiencies of our broken system. This is the time to make changes, and if we don’t do it now, then when?

Cheney is Right - about one thing

In the recent debate between President Obama and former Vice President Cheney over closing Guantanamo, Cheney was right about one thing: "There were just a few bad apples." Where he got it wrong was that the "few bad apples" were not only at Abu Graib prison as he described, but were in fact in the White House.

In his speech to the right wing American Enterprise Institute to defend waterboarding and other enhanced interrogation techniques as legal by his mere assertion, Cheney admitted that the Bush administration authorized and condoned these activities! These are the same activities that American courts here at home and Military Tribunals from World War II have found to be crimes in violation of not only American laws, but international treaties. They are in the same category of crimes against humanity for which Nazi war criminals were found guilty. Of course, as the right wing commentators would point out, the Nazis committed far worse atrocities on a grander scale too. Nevertheless, the fact that these techniques were used on only three individuals or that the intent was for the purpose of defending the country are irrelevant and only intended to gain sympathy or divert attention from the underlying crimes. Three, three thousand or three million, it doesn't make a difference: one instance of torture is a crime, and Cheney has openly admitted to it. They certainly are not activities for which America should be proud as Mr. Cheney seems to be as he offers an unsupported argument that he defended the nation and saved lives. Where were he and his colleagues when they were provided intelligence briefings at least a month prior to the 9/11 attacks warning of their possibility, and they did nothing? Me thinks he doth protest too much.

Since the time of the founding of the nation, beginning with President Washington when he was General Washington in the darkest days of the American Revolution, our leaders have renounced torture as our national policy. General Washington opposed torture even when the British used it against our own soldiers. From that point forward, Americans have held true to their basic values to defend our nation without resort to torture. It is only the Bush Administration's "few bad apples" who have changed our national policy. They should be held accountable because these are not just policy changes, if as admitted by the former Vice President, they are crimes. As painful as the process might be, we don't need a truth commission or congressional investigation, we need an independent prosecutor to look at all the facts and circumstance and make a legal, not a political, determination of crimes. Crimes that appear to a have been committed by a few bad apples at the highest levels of our government. If we don't do this, then future administrations will simply view these activities as "policy" issues rather than the "crimes" which they are. If you rob a bank at gun point, it matters not whether your intent was to use the money for a charity. The act of the robbery is the crime itself. If he thinks that his intent will exculpate himself and his few bad apple colleagues, then let him make the case in a court of competent jurisdiction. If he truly wants all the facts to come out, then as in the words of President Bush: "Bring 'em on."

As we approach Memorial Day weekend, let us not forget that American soldiers fought and died in wars to stop dictators and tyrants from perpetrating crimes against humanity. They all took an oath to defend our country from all enemies, foreign and domestic. Let's not tarnish their sacrifices by allowing a few bad apples who were in our own government at the highest levels get away with crimes that were based on tortured logic. That would be putting America First.

"I was just following orders"

The decision by the Obama Administration to not prosecute CIA officials for violations of law using “enhanced interrogation” techniques is regrettable. Even conservative Fox News legal experts concur that these acts were illegal despite the amateurish legal opinions of the Bush Justice Department. It is a sad chapter in our history, and only made worse by not holding those who are responsible accountable for their actions. It is also ironic that in a week when there was a news story about a suspected ailing German SS prison guard from Ohio being pursued for alleged war crimes, our current Attorney General will let the current perpetrators of these crimes get away with them under the twisted legal guise of “I was just following orders." It seems like that defense was raised once before in a place called Nuremberg and it didn't fly then and shouldn't fly now. Even if the CIA officers who actually did the deeds are not prosecuted, then those most responsible at the highest levels of government should be since they are the real perpetrators anyway.

Why not bankruptcy?

I was a strong supporter for Barack Obama for President, and am still extremely hopeful that he will bring the change we need right now in America; however, today I am finding myself in more agreement with some of the Republicans on current issues. Specifically on the economy.

The issue of the day is a bailout for the auto industry.* Led by Carl Levin this bailout is being pushed by the Michigan congressional delegation who are being squeezed by the auto executives and their union allies. These are the same people who crated the mess by lobbying against increased fuel efficiency standards while they sold gas gusseling SUVs, pickups and Hummers. They are now also in partnership with Wall Street big wigs like Cerberus Capital Management who have gambled billions and are likely to loose their investment unless the taxpayers bail them out. Like the war on Iraq, like the three-page $700 billion financially system bail out, the auto crisis is now being portrayed as an immediate and impending disaster that requires a bushel full of money without any debate. We have seen this movie before. What about the taxpayer? Why should the taxpayer bear the brunt of their mismanagement and incompetence? Why not utilize the existing market mechanisms to bring about the changes we need? Specifically, why not bankruptcy?

The framing of the argument used by Levin and his cohorts (remember Carl Levin was also a leader on the Senate Armed Services Committee when they pushed the authorization to use force that got us into the mess in Iraq so he knows how to make the argument) is that if the US automakers fail, then there will be a loss of three million jobs. This is a false argument. It is not an either/or choice. The choice is not to give them a loan or watch them go out of business. There is another choice and that is a bankruptcy reorganization under Chapter 11. Levin paints the possibility of a bankruptcy reorganization as if it means that they will shut down these companies. Not true! Lots of companies have been through bankruptcy and come out of it as stronger, leaner and more competitive operations. A bankruptcy reorganization would likely remove the existing management, restructure the financing by removing the current owners, and yes, perhaps closing some inefficient parts of their organizations.

So why not get rid of the existing management? They have already failed. They put these jobs in jeopardy with poor management decisions supported by overreaching union leadership that focused more on getting unrealistic benefit packages than the viability of the enterprises. They failed to engineer new fuel efficient vehicles while their competitors did so. They failed to modernize their plants while their competitors built new ones here in America. They chose to diversify into non-auto related businesses that squandered their resources into mortgage banking, computers, and data management. They don't have a restructuring plan now and all they can do is threaten disaster if they don't get a loan. I can just about guarantee you that they will be back for more because they don't intend to make any fundamental changes in their operations. This situation cries out for a new management team that will be willing to make changes in their organizational cultures, products and manufacturing practices. This needs to happen before they get a dime of taxpayer money.

Why not restructure the finances of these companies? In the past few years, the auto makers have attempted to deal with some of their financial woes by selling investors from the private equity market to gamble on them. Big shots with deep pockets decided to take a gamble. Cerberus bought 50% of GMAC which at the time was the crown jewel of GM because it made money and subsidized the inefficiencies of the parent GM auto company. Cerberus also bought 100% of Chrysler after the German auto maker, Daimler-Benz decided they they could not make this company work. Other large well know investors have been in and out of these stocks over the last few years trying to make a fast buck by playing the market. These gambles have not paid off. It is now time for these investors to pay the piper. A bankruptcy reorganization will essentially wipe out the current stockholders, and replace the ownership of the company with the creditors. This will lower the debt service for the companies while streamlining the capital structure, and eliminating the outside influence of a hedge fund that is not obligated to report its financial performance to the public.

Will bankruptcy result in some job losses. Absolutely. There are many inefficiencies in these organizations from the top to the bottom: product development, manufacturing and retail distribution. Will some manufacturing facilities need to be closed? Yes. Will some white collar jobs need to be eliminated? Yes. Will the unions need to make concessions? Perhaps. Will some dealers shut down? Perhaps that too. But you can't get leaner and meaner if you don't make some of these changes. Remember the definition of insanity: doing the same thing you are doing and expecting different results. Putting taxpayer dollars at risk without making changes is insane.

Is the auto industry a key factor in the economy? Absolutely. Should Congress and the public be concerned about the future of these companies? For sure. Should we try to save as many jobs as possible while making appropriate changes? Definitely. But making these changes is the only thing that makes sense before we taxpayers invest in these enterprises. And when we do, we should get preferred stock, just like we have done with the banks. Taxpayers should get paid back first when these companies recover.

For a campaign that was run on "change," it is time for the incoming administration to force the changes that are needed to turn these companies around. It may still not work, but not making any changes will just get us deeper into the hole. This will require a lot of courage, because the unions and the elected democratic officials from the Midwest supported Obama and are now calling in their chips. I hope the new administration will put America First and force the changes we need before we resort to business as usual and support the special interests. This is our first big chance to put America First!

*Also, by way of full disclsoure, I worked for a subsidary of GMAC for about 9 years up until a little over a year ago.

Strategy First

Now that the euphoria of the election is begining to subside, and the stock market is retreating again, it is time to consider the best way forward. With the weak economy, the new President-elect and the Congress are talking about another stimulus package. The automakers already have their hand out for another package on top of the 24 Billion they got when Congress passed the 700 Billion dollar fund just before the election. Congress will likely not wait for the new President to take office. They will do something during the lame duck session; however, if they don't have a better plan that is part of an overall strategy, they would simply be putting us further in the hole without having a positive impact on the economy. As a short term measure, they could simply extend unemployment benefits to tide over those who are actively looking for employment.

Giving the automakers another handout is a lot more questionable. GM is already suspending product development work on new vehicles for lack of cash, and GM alone has lost over 50 Billion dollars over the last three years. For one thing, they might not survive even with the handout. For another, both GM and Chryler are either owned by or closely aligned with the private equity group Cerberus. Investing in the banking system and regulated entities to keep capital flowing is one thing, but investing in companies owned by private equity groups who represent wealthy investors and play by their own rules is quite another. As a taxpayer, I am not excited about using federal funds to prop up investments that are owned by or feed the interests of a private equity firm. Knowing that Nancy Pelosi is meeting with the automaker executives today is a scary thought. People should also know that Cerberus is a very politically connected firm with people like former Secretary Treasury Snow and Vice-President Quayle among their high profile executives. They know how to work the system to their benefit which may not align with the rest of our national priorities.

What needs to happen right now is for the President-elect to define his strategic vision for the country. Many of these problems like energy, infrastructure, and the health of the economy are interrelated and also impact national security. The old Congressional approach of simply throwing some money at the problem of the day to those who speak loudest will not work anymore. We need Mr. Obama's leadership to set the priorities of our investments in the future in a more strategic way. Only by investing in accordance with a strategic vision will we be able to fix the problems and wisely use our limited resources. He has already outlined some priorities during the campaign: Energy, Health Care, Infrastructure Investment, and his tax plan for the middle class. He needs to be clear about where he wants to focus first so that Congress doesn't squander the available investment pool on pet projects or lobbied interests. This is the problem we are attempting to fix with the new Administration. So, lets not let Congress be stupid before the inauguration. We voted for change, so don't let them go back to doing business as usual. If we do that, then we will have lost our chance to put America First.

A New Day for America and the World

It is a new day for America and for the world! We will have change in Washington that will be reflected in new policies here at home and engagement with other nations abroad. As Barack himself said last night in a great speech after the election, it will not happen in a year or maybe even his first term, but change is coming. It will require a lot of work by lots of people, but we can be very hopeful for the future with Barack Obama's leadership.

In his first address to the nation and the world, President-elect Obama made the point to say that this is about you. He provided a compelling vision of the future like all great leaders do. However, we have a lot of work to do to help this new President. We all need to reach out to listen to those who have different views because it will also require help from all the people regardless of party affiliation. We need to understand where we have common ground and can work together. Help out where you can to make a difference in supporting solutions that work for all of us on energy independence, health care, and economic reform, because this is just the beginning - not the end. Hold your elected officials at all levels accountable to do what is in the best interest of our community, your state, and the nation.

What we witnessed last evening was a triumph for democracy. It was reflected with celebrations at home and around the world. The citizens of this country spoke loud and clear that they are tired of the politics of division and policies that don't put America First. The problems are too big and we don't have time to waste.

So enjoy this day and appreciate the historic significance represented by Barcak Obama's election. However, let's all be prepared to help take advantage of the opportunity that his presidency represents. Yes we can, finally put America First!

VOTE FOR CHANGE!

If you have not voted yet, go now! GO VOTE FOR CHANGE.

If you are not better off today than you were eight years ago, go to the polls now! GO VOTE FOR CHANGE!

If you are thinking about America First, GO VOTE FOR CHANGE.

If you have already voted, thanks for voting.

Editor, America First.

Closing Arguments

On the eve of the most important federal election in a generation, we now are provided with the closing arguments from both campaigns:

Senator Barack Obama offers an uplifting message of hope for the future. He has the advantage of a huge war chest of donations from small donors and has run a magnificent campaign. Several days ago, his campaign paid for a thirty minute "infomercial" to make its final closing arguments. It featured several middle class families who were dealing with the personal challenges, of jobs, health care, and a modest retirement that are all being eroded by the current economic challenges. He offered solutions not only to these economic challenges, but to rebuilding infrastructure, expanding educational opportunities, ending an endless and mindless war, and real energy independence based on investment in alternatives that would get us off foreign oil. If you were able to watch this, you would likely agree that this was a most positive and inspirational vision for the future. This is the starting point for all great leaders: A compelling vision of the future.

John McCain offers the failed policies of the Republican right wing crowd, even though he opposed many of these same policies during his 25-year tenure as a senator. The McCain campaign does not have the financial resources like Obama because John McCain chose to elect federal funding for his campaign (remember he represents the party of choice and personal responsibility). Nevertheless, he has been strongly supported by the Republican National Committee and some private "527" groups funded by wealthy individuals who benefit from these Republican policies - policies that have been in effect not just over the last eight years, but arguably since Ronald Reagan came to office in 1980. Change comes hard to these folks since they have been the primary beneficiaries. Since these policies have not worked for the benefit of all the American people, they can not make a good case to stay with them. So instead, they are flooding the airwaves today with negative commercials and a drumbeat of false accusations, misleading messages, and divisive rhetoric. This is anything but a positive message for the future and forebodes another difficult four years if McCain and Palin should get elected.

The nation cannot afford another four years of disastrous policies that serve only the few and not the general good. It is not simply suffering through another four years, but the lost time that will be so tragic. The lost opportunity to solve these problems now will compound the issues facing America and the world. The problems grow geometrically larger each passing day. The choice for the country is clear. Make sure you get out to vote for Senator Barack Obama and his running mate Joe Biden. We don't have any time to waste if we want to truly put America First!

Election Reform

It is too late to do it now, but after this election, the Congress should take up a bill for comprehensive election reform for federal office elections. I hope that this election on November 4th will be without controversy. I would be pleasantly surprised. If the margin of victory is wide, then the underlying problems will be less visible. However make no mistake about it, the current system which is administered differently in each state and county is fraught with problems and open to mischief.

Early voting has already begun, and problems are already surfacing. As reported by CNN in Broward County, Florida yesterday, the lines were three hours long at one polling site where the two machines that printed ballots were broken for 45 minutes. A candidate for a judgeship was not on the ballot and someone else's name was put on it instead. I am afraid that this is just the tip of the iceberg of voting problems. It is eight years after the hanging chad issues of 2000, and we are still having issues about voter registrations, ballots, machines, no paper trails, purging voters from voter rolls, etc. This is disgraceful in a country that is supposed to be the beacon of democracy. Instead we look more like a third world country.

Recent allegations by Republicans about voter fraud by ACORN, the community activist group that registered over a million new voters, are headlines in the news. While under the radar are systematic efforts to purge voter rolls using tactics like purging names of anyone whose home was foreclosed and people with similar names as convicted criminals on the basis that these are aliases. The use of voting machines without paper trails or receipts only adds to the suspicion of foul play. Then there are the voter suppression efforts like telling certain people that the Democrats vote on Wednesday and the Republicans vote on Tuesday; or telling college students that if they register to vote, then their parents can not longer claim them as a dependent on their taxes. These are all problems that could be fixed. Certainly the technical problems could be prevented, and handled well in advance of an election so as not to taint the outcome.

Democracy depends on confidence of the voters that their vote counts, that all votes are counted, and that the candidates who get the most votes are the actual winners who are sworn into office. In a real democracy, there is no room for foul play, manipulation of the voting process, or intimidation of citizens who have a right to cast their vote. These are simple standards and they are fundamental to our system of government by the people, for the people. While I generally think that the federal government should not interfere with local elections which should be run by local officials, I believe federal elections are different. Whomever is elected to Congress and to be President and Vice-President will make a difference to everyone of us on the full range of national issues. Election rules for these federal offices should establish a national standard with minimum requirements for conducting these important elections in a fair and honest way. I would hope that both parties could agree on this fundamental concept. That would be putting America First.

Palin in the White House

Sarah Palin did her gig on Saturday Night Live this weekend. Some might call her a good sport while others will look at this and shake their head. If you liked her skit, perhaps you might also like this link: http://www.palinaspresident.us/
See what you can find in the Oval Office using your mouse to move the cursor over items in the office and the windows. This link is also available at the quick links section of the blog. Post a comment and let us know what ya think!

Gen Powell endorses Obama

This morning on Meet The Press, former Secretary of State and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Colin Powell announced his endorsement of Barack Obama. Among his reasons he cited the following: He viewed Barack Obama as a transformational figure who was the right person to lead the country at this time. He pointed to Obama's ability to inspire others both here at home and around the world. He also cited Obama's steady temperament and sound approach to problems as evidenced by his conduct during this financial crisis. In contrast, he characterized John McCain as being erratic and not as prepared to deal with the economy as Obama. Although he was quick to praise John McCain personally and cite their long friendship over 25 years, Powell was most critical of the Republican party and the McCain campaign strategy. He characterized the party as being narrow and non-inclusive. As for McCain's campaign,exhibit number one, the negative William Ayers campaign, Robo Calls associating Barack with terrorists, and spreading false claims about Barack being a Muslim. Powell even told a heart wrenching story about a young Muslim who died as a soldier for the American Army to further make the point that Republicans shouldn't be demonizing Muslims generally. Powell also stated very clearly that Sarah Palin was not prepared to be the Vice President. He also referenced the selection of Palin as evidence of less than sound judgement by McCain. I couldn't agree more. The recent Tina Fey skits on Saturday Night Live, while very funny, sadly speak the truth.

While partisan Republicans will discount Powell's endorsement as one black man supporting another, this will simply be another attempt to distort the truth and deflect attention from the real reasons for Powell's endorsement. When asked this question, Powell correctly pointed out that if Barack Obama is elected president it will be an historic event about which all Americans can be proud. We will find out in a few more weeks.

Who Won The Third and Final Debate?

Cast your vote at America First for Obama or McCain. The poll is now open.

Victory Bonds

With another tough day on Wall Street and another likely tomorrow if the Asian markets are an indication, perhaps the candidates might want to think about a program from the past: Victory Bonds. These are the bonds that were bought by average citizens to help finance World War II. A similar program now would help citizens save and invest for their retirement, but also help finance many of the imperatives necessary to put our country back on track while we weather the financial crisis.

Since George Bush initiated his pre-emptive wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the funding has been all done outside of the budget. When combined with the Bush tax breaks and other increases in spending, the net result is another big deficit. As reported today in the New York Times the deficit for the fiscal year that ended on September 30th was $455 Billion. This is 3.2% of our Gross Domestic Product, and is up from 1.2% last year. What this means is that we have been living as a nation beyond our means. As I have mentioned before in this blog, this is irresponsible, unfair to future generations, and now unsustainable in the current global economy. What this also means is that both candidates are promising agendas that they can not deliver. They can't cut taxes, deliver all the current government services, and invest programs for the future.

That's where a 21st century "Victory Bond" program could be the key to the future. The silver lining in the current financial crisis is that Treasury bonds are costing the government less because people and international investors are taking money out of the stock market and putting it into US Treasury bonds because they feel that they are still safe. If the Treasury had a 21st century equivalent, perhaps "Freedom Bonds," we could finance programs for energy independence, rebuilding infrastructure like roads, bridges and the electrical grids, and also invest in education, health care, and jobs retraining. These bonds could also be "tax free" bonds so that ordinary citizens would be able to save for their retirement while investing in the country. Tune into the debate tonight to see if they can figure this out. That would be putting America First.

Fire The Campaign

This was the advice of arch-conservative, William Kristol, in a NY Times column that he writes on a weekly basis. You know..... that liberal NY Times that has given one of the most influential Republican mouthpieces a weekly platform? Anyway, "Fire The Campaign" was Kristol's solution for John McCain to win the election only three weeks away. In one sense, I agree with him for John McCain's sake, but it is likely too little and too late.

How the candidates run their campaigns is also the most likely indicator of their competence to govern. From the beginning, John McCain has been on a roller coaster. He hand picked known Republican operatives, mostly lobbyists or former lobbyists, and put them in key positions. He had to fire some or push them behind the scenes because they were either outright incompetent or had a conflict of interest with their lobbying gigs: Phil Graham, Charlie Black, and Carley Fiorina just to name a few. The ones that he still has running his campaign are only demonstrating their utter incompetence at running a large organization. They also demonstrate their total lack of any deceny and principles as they orchestrate the innuendos and false attacks against Barack Obama. Contrast this with the Obama campaign which has been a model campaign from the start. They amazed everyone by beating the well organized and well financed Clinton machine. Even William Kristol admits that McCain's campaign "is totally overmatched by Obama's. The Obama team is well organized, flush with resources and the candidate and the campaign are in sync." I couldn't have said it better. But what this all goes to show is that Obama has demonstrated the capacity to lead and manage a complex organization, while John McCain has only demonstrated incompetence. Who do you want running the country?

Kristol goes on to throw everything but the kitchen sink into his argument to "Fire the Campaign." He blames the media, which in my opinion has been very easy on both McCain and Sarah Palain, but this is a standard Republican tactic. He asserts that McCain isn't Bush, but McCain now fully embraces all of Bush's policies: tax cuts for the wealthy, deregulated health care, and an bellicose foreign policy. He also points to McCain' readiness to be Commander-in-Chief which may be true if you like the ultra conservative, neocon policies like pre-emptive war, no diplomacy, trash the UN, use military force to solve every international problem. The one thing that Kristol doesn't claim for the demise of the McCain campaign are these failed policy positions which got us into the mess we are in now. Perhaps Kristol should look in the mirror because it was Kristol and his peers who masterminded the same policies that John McCain has been forced to run on by the lunatic right wing. Then they topped it off by foisting a totally unqualified running mate on him: Sarah Palin. Having her and her husband anywhere near the seat of government is a very scary proposition. Now they are not so happy that this isn't working. Guess what? it's the policies stupid!

Obama is the best chance for America right now. It is becoming clearer to thinking Americans who objectively look at the policies and his demonstrated capacity for pure leadership and sound judgement. As someone who has voted many times for Republican presidential candidates in the past, I say we can no longer afford their self-serving and destructive policies. I will go one better than William Kristol: "Fire The Campaign and His Candidates!" You will get the opportunity to do that on November 4th. Mark your calendar. It is now time to put America First and elect Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

The Return of Voodoo Economics

"Voodoo Economics" was the term coined by George H. Bush when he was running in the Republican primary against Ronald Reagan. The term captured the idea that big tax reductions, deregulation, increased defense spending, and run away deficits makes no sense. If we didn't believe it then, we certainly have the proof now. We saw the resurgence of these policies over the last eight years under Geroge W. Bush. Rather than shift to sounder economic policies, John McCain wants to continue more of the same. What is his prescription for America's economic ills? Continuing the Bush tax cuts which are mostly for the wealthy; supposedly cut spending, but not defense spending; and a bizarre proposal to buy mortgages in default at face value only to turn around and lower the balance and interest rate for selected homeowners. None of these policies will have the intended effect.

First, continuing the Bush tax cuts simply rewards the most affluent while increasing the deficits. Without this revenue, we will simply need to continue to borrow money from China, Japan, and the Middle East to finance our debt. The first George Bush was right: this voodoo economics! We can no longer afford to borrow from abroad to finance our government operations. Common sense would tell you that you need to pay it back at some point. We will either pass this massive debt along to the next generation, or devalue the dollar more by printing money in the basement of the Treasury to pay it back. Neither is good choice for America, and frankly passing the buck to the next generation is immoral.

Second, he says that he will cut spending, but not defense spending. If you are going to cut the budget in any meaningful way, you need to cut defense. You will also need to deal with entitlement payments like Social Security, but more importantly Medicare. Neither candidate talks about this in any meaningful way. They simply make general assertions about cutting programs that don't work. What programs? How much? Perhaps we can get some answers in the next debate, but I wouldn't bet on it. The sad truth is that every spending category has its own special interests and congressional sponsors. It would be great if either of these candidates could deliver on spending cuts if elected, but not likely. Moreover, we need to make more investments in infrastructure, education, and energy. Where will they get the money for these imperatives? (I have an answer, but that's for tomorrow's post. Be sure to check it out.)

Third, the proposal to buy up and renegotiate mortgages from homes in foreclosure simply makes no sense. Why should taxpayers bail out irresponsible banks and people who entered into contractual arrangements that they all knew they shouldn't make? What about the vast majority of all homeowners who are making their payments or who saved the money and paid it off? Do they get a windfall bonus check from the government for being responsible citizens?

I have been hard on the McCain-Palin team over the last week, especially for their unrepentant negative personal attacks on Barack Obama. Even if you disagree with me that this was an orchestrated campaign exceeding the bounds of decency, I hope you take a real good look at the policies that John McCain is offering. Not only doesn't his economic policy make sense, but neither does his proposal on health care or his foreign policy. The idea that the Republican candidate will be a proponent for change away from the Republican policies of the last quarter century or more is simply preposterous on its face. To borrow the concept from George H. Bush, it is more than just voodoo economics, it is just voodoo (do I dare say doodoo?). Don't be taken under the spell, think about America First.

Sunday Morning Spin

This is a special Sunday post. Having watched the Sunday morning political talk shows today, I am still flabbergasted by the pundits and media that simply tip toe around the truth: the Republicans led by John McCain and Sarah Palin have been running a vicious smear campaign against Barack Obama. They are playng the race card and appealing to our inner daemons to pull out a victory in November. They are doing all this while the country is in the middle of a financial crisis largely triggered by failed Republican strategies.

Following a week of raucous rallies where McCain and Palin have been interrupted with shouts of "terrorists," "kill him," and "off with his head," these rallies and the race card were the topics of the morning political shows. Predictably the Republican spokespeople sang the chorus from their daily talking points to lament that both sides were making attacks and they regretted this type of discourse. Making sure that they were fair, the mainstream media hosts made a reference to various things that were said by the Democrats in an attempt to be fair. But the truth of the matter is that there is no moral equivalence. While the Republicans might legitimately question Barack Obama's prior associations, including William Ayers, they are not doing this to simply question his judgement. This is an orchestrated campaign to link Barack Obama to terrorists, insinuate by association that he condones terrorism, and by such association supports the Muslim fundamentalist terrorists. One of the recent hires of the McCain Campaign to "handle" Sarah Palin is the same Bush political operative who masterminded the South Carolina whisper campaign by Bush in the 2000 election against John McCain. They insinuated that McCain's adopted daughter was in fact a black child that he fathered out of wed lock. You would think John McCain would never speak with a guy like this, but instead he hires him to work for his campaign! How outrageous. This speaks to John McCain's real character more than any words he could utter about honor, integrity, and "Country First"!

Questioning John McCain's gross lack of judgement to influence government regulators for the benefit of the convicted felon and former bank executive, Charles Keating, is a fact for which he was censured and is relevant to the current financial mess. Questioning Barak Obama's judgement for serving with Ayers on the board of a Chicago charity fund is of minor consequence. Obama did not select Ayers, and Ayers, who was never convicted of any terrorism activities, is now a respected education professor at the University of Chicago. Furthermore when Ayers was allegedly plotting terrorist acts, Barack Obama was only eight years old! Ayers made a $200 political contribution to Obama's Illinois Senate re-election campaign in 2001. Compare this to Charles Keating who either made personal contributions or influenced his employees to make over $112,000 to the various Arizona political campaigns of John McCain. Out of the five lawmakers now known as the "Keating Five," Senator John McCain took the most contributions. These are the facts, so you decide whose judgment is questionable. You decide who is really putting America First.

Its about time

Its about time that John McCain finally asserted himself to tone down the unwarranted personal attacks on Senator Barack Obama. While campaigning in Lakeville, Minnesota on Friday, John McCain was asked a question by an older woman who read about Barack Obama being an "Arab." How sad. It is sad that a poor old woman would be mislead to believe that Barack Obama is an Arab and someone un-American.

For several weeks now, as predicted in this blog, the McCain Campaign has been openly attacking Obama as associating with domestic terrorists and painting the picture of a scary radical, "not one of us" candidate. These open attacks were initially led by Sarah Palin at rallies of Republican right wing supporters chanting "terrorist" and "kill him," echoed 24 x 7 by right wing hate mongers like Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh on radio and FOX news, and a carefully orchestrated Internet whisper campaign of outright lies. Terrorists? These nuts are the real terrorists. They should look in the mirror. It is disgusting. Even Cindy McCain is now complicit in lying about Obama's record. I was shocked and surprised when John McCain defended Barack to the woman who asked him the question. He praised Barack as a decent man and urged civility. Where the hell has McCain been for the last few weeks? He has definitely condoned this distasteful rhetoric and promoted it through his running mate and surrogates. Now finally he tried to put the lid on it. Perhaps he knew it was getting out of hand or did the Secret Service tell him to back off? Maybe he was he finally coming to the realization that if he looses the election, he would be ostracized by most of his Senate colleagues for his unbecoming behavior. Whatever the reason, it is about time John McCain spoke up to put the lid on this.

At the next debate, John McCain should take just a few minutes and set the record straight. The guy who wants to be know for his "straight talk" should apologize to Barack and tell America that despite their policy differences, Barack is not an Arab, not a terrorist, and not a pervert. He is a respectable member of the United States Senate. McCain would do more for his campaign by setting the record straight for older voters and less informed citizens who don't read the "liberal mainstream media" but rely on FOX News and the trash talking radio kooks. Uncommitted voters would have more respect for McCain if he did this. Voters would be able make their decision on policies instead of this crap. It was McCain who offered the hope of having a "clean" race with Obama when Reverend Wright dominated the news this Spring. Now McCain could in fact challenge his opponent to spend the remaining time before the election on real issues and real policies. They could both take the high road and marginalize the un-American nuts. Perhaps the candidates could finally agree on something that would put America First.

Bizarre Policies

On a day when the news is dominated by another free fall of the Dow (which is now as low as it was in 1995) policy prescriptions by both the Bush administration and the McCain campaign border on the bizarre.

Starting with McCain's idea to buy mortgages at face value from banks and then renegotiate them at a lower principle balance and interest rate is nothing short of bizarre. This is especially bizarre coming from the candidate who rails against wasteful government spending, earmarks, and regulation. To begin with, these are private contracts between the mortgagor and mortgagee who agreed to the original terms. Second, most of these mortgages are now pooled into securities, so the investors who own them also have an interest how these are negotiated; however most bizarre is why the taxpayer should pay the banks face value and then turn around and take a certain loss with no chance of recovery! There are lots of responsible taxpayers who are currently making their payments or people who were fortunate enough not to have a mortgage or home equity loan at all. All homeowners, regardless of how their home is financed, have suffered a loss of the value of our homes. Why should they not get some windfall as well? Couple this with the fact that the Congress has already incorporated homeowner relief in the recent emergency rescue bill which has some safeguards for the taxpayer and what you get is simply a blatant attempt by McCain to buy votes using our money. It demonstrates his total lack of understanding of the financial markets, the free enterprise system, and any responsible federal budget considerations.

Also in today's news (http://www.nytimes.com) was a report from American intelligence agencies that Afghanistan is in a "downward spiral" and that they doubt the ability of the Karzai government to deal with it. The US Commander, GEN McKiernan has been requesting additional troops, but since all of our available ground forces are tied up in Iraq, even the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff has lamented the fact that we have none to send. Defense Secretary Gates has been begging our reluctant NATO allies to contribute more troops. However,other than Britain, mostly they have reluctantly contributed to the effort, and even then, they put restrictions on how their troops could be used. So the Bush administration is sending their point man, LTG Douglas Lute, to see what should be done. How bizarre! First, we have a field commander on the ground, GEN McKiernan, who only as late as last week was in Washington to report to the Commander in Chief himself, Mr. Bush. Second, we have a new CENTCOM Commander, GEN David Petraus who is credited with turning around the situation in IRAQ. Although he certainly did what he needed to do to quell the violence in IRAQ, the primary reason for the turnaround was not the Surge, but the Sunni Awaking (FYI, the US government is paying their militia members $300 per month basically not to fight while Iraq itself socks its money away in the bank). Since Afghanistan now is part of his area of responsibility, wouldn't it make sense for him to figure out what needs to be done? What makes sense is to eliminate LTG Lute's unnecessary position and let the commanders do their job! So much for listening to the commanders on the ground.

Unfortunately much of the reason for the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan can be explained by the lack of attention from the administration after they decided to pull resources from there to attack IRAQ in 2003. This fact has been pointed out by Mr. Obama who has been calling for more troops to support the commander on the ground. Johnny "come lately" McCain is now also calling for more troops. However, if he might have learned anything from his Vietnam experience it would have been that insurgencies can only be "won" by winning the "hearts and minds" of the population. Only when the population is on your side will they deny resources to the insurgents and provide the government forces with actionable intelligence. Unfortunately because we have not had adequate troops, they have been over relying on air strikes which have been killing more civilians than Taliban. Net result: We have alienated the population and Karzai is more like the mayor of Kabul than the leader of his country. Meanwhile the Taliban have been resurgent and the narcotics trade is the primary staple of the economy. Can this deteriorating narco-state be turn around? Perhaps. Will it take more troops? Maybe, but more likely it will take a reconstruction effort. Building schools and clinics might be a good idea, but they need to be built locally and provide jobs, and built to local construction standards. We don't need to outsource to Hailbourton and build western style buildings where there is no rural electricity or sewer service. They need simple buildings designed and built locally so that they people have a vested interest. The government might hire Greg Mortenson who is building schools on his own account in Pakistan rather than Dick Cheney's pals at KBR.

Now to end on a more positive note, the US Treasury also announced today that they may actually take an ownership position in some banks. Perhaps they have been reading this blog. In several recent posts, the editor has suggested that the Treasury make direct investments in banks to shore up their balance sheets and get preferred stock in exchange for the taxpayer. This will not only provide needed capital that will be more useful in the current crisis to unfreeze the credit markets, but also gives the taxpayer a priority security interest in the entire bank. A preferred stock investment gives us taxpayers a proportional interest in both the good assets as well as the bad assets held by the institution. They might further consider forming a holding company to take over insolvent institutions until they can find a buyer. These two actions together will do more to restore confidence in the system.It also protects the taxpayers more than some reverse auction mechanism for the Treasury to purchase non-performing securities. So I for one hope that they are seeing the benefits of a temporary partial nationalization of the banking system through stock ownership. They might as well do it now rather than suffer the drip, drip, drip, of ineffective solutions. As bizarre as this policy might seem, it just might be putting America First!

Gross Lack of Judgement

The continued antics of the McCain campaign to assassinate the character of Barack Obama by making charges of collusion between Obama and former radical William Ayers simply demonstrates the gross lack of judgement of John McCain and his totally unqualified running mate, Sarah Palin. The line was crossed at several recent rallies in Florida where a sheriff in uniform opened the event referring to Senator Obama as "Barack Husein Obama" followed by Palin using inflammatory rhetoric inciting the crowd to chant "terrorist" and "kill him." The sheriff is now being investigated for using his office to influence a political election, but even more disheartening, no despicable, is the knowledge that a law enforcement officer is participating in activities to incite a riot. This is illegal and a violation of federal law. I hope this sheriff will get some time to contemplate his actions sitting in his own jail cell. While all these smear tactics are being used,the country is embroiled in the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. McCain and Palin don't have a clue.

What all this really demonstrates is the total lack of judgement and character of those who are initiating these assaults. Despite his protests about using these trash tactics, apparently McCain can't even control his own running mate. She apparently is either too stupid to take his lead or more likely a wacko who is an extremist in her own right. As a minimum she has no compunction about lying about either her own background and her credentials or those of her opponents. This alone is enough to disqualify her as a potential "Commander in Chief" even if she were otherwise qualified, which she is most certainly not.

We have seen this movie before. W and his cohorts led by Carl Rove employed similar tactics against none other than John McCain himself in the 2000 election. They alleged that he had fathered a black child out of wedlock when in fact McCain and his wife had adopted a child from India. How dare he turns around and now uses the same tactics against his opponent while trying to convince us that he is a man of honor, integrity, good judgement. No sir, this is a gross lack of judgment and in my view, he has disqualified himself from being the next president. We don't need another president like W who has sanctioned breaking the law, misleading the public, and allowing special interests to rip off the taxpayer. Let's think about America First on November 4th.