$700 billion for “Bad Paper”. Not enough NOW, so McCain flourishes ANOTHER $300 billion at voters.
(EUGENE, Ore.) - Senator John McCain’s age showed clearly, absolutely unmistakable in this second Presidential debate.
His walk, his talk, even his speaking-tone was revelatory for any and all to see. Expert eyes trained to find the symptoms agree, as national reports make very clear.
Anger-contained bubbled to the surface unmistakably, reflected in his contemptuous language to Obama: “That one...” he said, loud, clear and with that certain tonal emphasis making its coded meaning clear to all.
His proposal to bail out every householder with a rotten mortgage --”bad paper !”-- reflects familiar well known judgment failings, probably from both age (72) and illness.
He is the oldest Presidential candidate ever, admittedly suffering from melanoma, life-threatening skin cancer.
Other disabling health elements may be present, since his 1,200pp. record has been artfully obscured.
He was skewered right through his campaign statements by the sharp horn of worldwide financial collapse on all fronts --increasing desperately following this debate.
Feeling the pain already highly evident, he struck back with “more of the same” --”bigger” and therefore “better” -- mortgage bailouts this time for all American households involved nationwide.
McCain stated he would order the Treasury Secretary to immediately “buy up the bad home mortgages in America and renegotiate...at the diminished value of those homes, and let people be able to make those...payments and stay in their homes.”
That’s “a turnabout from an earlier position, would require a radical shift in the government’s position”, states the New York Times report. (Verbatim, Oct. 8)
Neither McCain nor his campaign had any word --or any plan-- for providing the $300 billion this new-departure would demand IMMEDIATELY.
Did he make this desperate promise under stress of the debate ? It certainly appears so on the face of the record.
Was it planned ahead of time, with his campaign advisers, including leading lobbyists and former Sen. Gramm, killer of the Glass-Steagall Act triggering the financial industry collapse?
IF set up in advance, surely the campaign would have immediate and detailed statement(s) ready --and even in print for handout rapidly and widely. None appeared.
IF “off the cuff”, under stress of the “town meeting” format barring unseemly --and unprovable-- character assassination, its emergence proves up precisely the age-driven poor judgment reported here as observed.
McCain’s desperate device is decidedly an old idea now in process of failure around the world: “Buy Up All That Bad Paper! Bail “Em ALL Out!”
It fails because rotten paper is just that: ROTTEN --and thus devoid of whatever dollar-value it ever had. That is unmistakably clear also for those millions of home mortgages in the McCain “New Departure” plan, too.
But that already-demonstrated affront to his own years of “Government IS the problem” bothers him not at all. To the largest financial rescue-raft ever floated in world history, he now wants to add another entire level.
What’s another $300 billion to him? Not much, it is clearly not his money -but that of taxpayers.
After all, he’s “got his” already, with more coming via every bottle of beer sold in his wife’s brand. Then, too, he has all those lavish houses --so many he cannot even keep count.
Each of those factual statements reflect what his obviously failing facilities tell you about his judgment now, and his character-change over the past few years. Both have been degenerating while age took over from that original “maverick” image he worked so hard to build.
You will recall he had to rebuild, after the Keating Five scandal, for which he was disciplined for his part by the Senate itself. That was the savings-and-loan bank debacle across the nation, costing taxpayers more than $100 billion.
It is notorious for setting the pattern within the financial industry for what has now followed with worldwide consequences.
Forced by that necessity, of his own making in his earliest Congressional years, he made sure to make his image that of “the real maverick”. That’s why he has disdained and denyed “earmarks” and anything else reeking of “conflict of interest” --but with close ties all those years to lobbyists for the financial industry, among others.
More than 80 are listed as consultants and major advisers on this, his second Presidential run, especially including Sen. Gramm and Foreign Policy Consultant Randy Schuenemann, who signed the PAMC proposal which was root of the Iraq war, and has lobbied for the world’s worst dictators.
McCain was politically assassinated by dirty-trick politics earlier, by George W. Bush.
But now he lovingly embraces George W,, with close adherence also to the Bush-Cheney policies extending and enhancing those of the Reagan-Bush I era. That’s where all of the neo-con/cabal deregulation, privatization, “free trade” and globalization trends were multiplied and magnified.
“More of same” was reflected also in his overconfident “I can do it” declaration that he can deal with three major American crisis-issues simultaneously --while most Americans are engulfed and mightily confused, as well as righteously angered.
Moderator Tom Brokaw asked both candidates, "In what order what you put [energy, health care and entitlement reform] in terms of priorities?"
Energy, health care and entitlement reform happen to be three of the most important and complex issues confronting the next president. The man who couldn't even juggle his campaign and participation in a debate on a bill in its final stages before a US House vote, responded, "I think you can work on all three at once, Tom."
He did not immediately don his gravity-defying Master of The Skies jacket, and fly away into the stratosphere.
But the implication was there, nevertheless, echoed in many other matters throughout this wrecking-point encounter --only now becoming well understood.
In all truth, for this one, we really have no choice.
There is only one responsible, reasonable --and completely rational-- action we can take as truly responsible citizens of a strong nation.
What YOU DO can offset all those repeated politically-pandering,wild, unstable, immature and irresponsible charges, made in Rovian mode for manipulating minds and thus the decision, otherwise inevitable.
Just be very sure your vote is cast, and that it is counted, too.
Op Ed: 'More of Same':Salem-News.com