Posted on 03/15/2009 5:37:00 PM PDT by yoe
As we noted (here), Barack Obama has had to calibrate his position on the economy carefully to achieve a series of political goals. During the Presidential campaign, he said the economy was in dire straits and relentlessly ridiculed John McCain when McCain said the economy was "fundamentally sound." Once he took office, the situation became even graver, as Obama wanted to 1) make the sure the bar was set so low that anything that happens in the next four years will be seen as an improvement, and 2) justify a series of liberal initiatives that have nothing to do with the financial crisis, e.g., socialized medicine and a tax on carbon. ("Never let a crisis go to waste!")
But then the market went into an extended tailspin, and Obama seemed to realize--perhaps for the first time--that words can have non-electoral consequences. So he and his advisers started moderating their bleak view of the economy.
We've now come full circle, as (this morning) Christina Romer, Chairman of the President's Council of Economic Advisers, agreed with McCain that the economy is "fundamentally sound." What is most interesting about this is that even the Associated Press couldn't miss the irony:
The economy is fundamentally sound despite the temporary "mess" it's in, the White House said Sunday in the kind of upbeat assessment that Barack Obama had mocked as a presidential candidate. ...
During the fall campaign, Obama relentlessly criticized his Republican opponent, Sen. John McCain, for declaring, "The fundamentals of our economy are strong." Obama's team painted the veteran senator as out of touch and failing to grasp the challenges facing the country.
But on Sunday, that optimistic message came from economic adviser Christina Romer. When asked during an appearance on NBC's "Meet the Press" if the fundamentals of the economy were sound, she replied: "Of course they are sound."
Do you think Obama will apologize to McCain for his conduct during the campaign? No, I don't think so either.
0be’s having a tough time keeping his Mumb0 Jumb0 straight.
Trillions wasted and now we find it can only get better.
I call “baloney” on this one...
The economy is definitely not sound... LOL...
yeh....right....
Yeah. Sound. A whole lot of sound from Washington. Collapses make a lot of sound, too.
If the election were held today he’d still win. Don’t you know that people who voted for him can see no wrong in him? You can point out to his supporters about how he slammed McCain for saying the same thing and you’ll probably get a blank stare. Or you’ll be told “That’s different.” But they can’t explain how it’s different.
Hillary made a speech saying it was patriotic to disagree with the president. But it’s treason if you disagree with Zero.
[. . .people who voted for him can see no wrong in him?]
Obama is recklessly alienating the most important part of his base, the rich liberals who financed his campaign. He is going to tax them into financial mediocrity, tax their IRA’s out of existence and loose class warfare on them.
They might not admit it to me or you but they are beginning to have their doubts. And the “swing voters” aren't loyal to anybody.
“Obama is recklessly alienating the most important part of his base, the rich liberals who financed his campaign.”
Including Oprah, who doesn’t seem to put this together.
Oprah can’t say anything in public because she helped stitch together this political Frankenstein.
When McCain said it, the economy was a whole lot sounder than it is now when Obama is saying it.
Ahhhh, I see you didn't get the memo. Executive Order issued 1-20-2009: Dissent is now unpatriotic. Yours, B.O.
“The fundamentals of our economy are strong. I hope you’ll join with me as we try to change them.”
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