Shouldn't Larry Summers be applying for fast food jobs, not working in the WH?

[brentspeak]

He was one of Bill Clinton's economics "brain-trust" clowns who helped put the world in the financial debacle that we're currently in. By all rights, he should be in jail:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/18/EDRI1479FT.DTL

[QC]

1. Why do you hate America? Why? n/t

[firedupdem]

2. These fuckers that know so much but never ran a lemonade

stand themselves are amazing to me.

[Onlooker]

3. Do you get your ideas from Rush Limbaugh?

Like you, the righties blame Clinton for the current financial debacle. I don't think you belong in this forum if you don't know enough to realize that it's Republican policies that created a disaster out of what was a strong economy.

[brentspeak]

4. Hey, genius

Read this: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x3430194

And yes, I saw your original post before you edited it.

[QC]

6. I'm a little stunned to learn that Robert Scheer is Rush Limbaugh.

I sure didn't see that one coming!

(The mods can see all edits.)

[brentspeak]

8. I hope Scheer writes a book detailing the lead-up to the economic crisis

Why can't we have people like him on MTP instead of the Cokies and the George Will's?

[Skwmom]

13. Clinton and the Republicans share the blame.

The hard truth is that Clinton with the help of the Republicans repealed Glass-Steagall which allowed this debacle to happen. Of course, the corrupt environment promoted by the Bushies didn't help but if regulations would have been in place, we wouldn't have been in this mess.

The biggest myth is that Clinton was good for this country. He pushed free trade and deregulation (and a host of other things) that have devastated this country.

[rockymountaindem]

5. I can't make up my mind about Geithner

I keep hearing the argument that he is essentially the same as Summers and Rubin, but also that during some of the crises of the 90's he was the man that ended up persuading Rubin to make the right moves (with Korea, for example). I guess we'll have to wait and see. I think the best thing the incoming team has going for them is that they're painfully aware they can't make any mistakes. The current bunch of people seem to be mostly interested in running out the clock and handing things over to the next administration. I think that's one big reason things are going so poorly at the moment.

[4lbs]

7. I would say Greenspan and Bernanke were much more responsible.

Alan Greenspan suddenly discovered a "flaw" in the way things were working.

Bernanke now admits he misgauged the impact of the mortgage fallout.

Both men were in a much greater position of power to discover, analyze, and take action to prevent the looming financial crises some years ago.

[brentspeak]

9. Summers was Secretary of the Treasury

He was in a pretty central position of power.

[4lbs]

10. Yes, but the Fed Reserve Chairman has been considered the most powerful man in the financial sector,

the way things operated for the past decade.

[amborin]

15. get your fact straight

Bernanke was a Princeton econ prof until a couple of years ago

blame for the mess lies with those who allowed the misuse of credit default swaps and initiated the deregulation: namely....Rubin, Greenspan, Gramm, and, yes, Clinton, to name a few

[Truth2Tell]

11. No kidding. I really wish Obama had kicked all

these Wall Streeters to the curb. There are plenty of talented people in academia and elsewhere who aren't tainted by their roles in causing our present shit rain.

I can only figure Obama is keeping someone happy by hiring these clowns. ??

[Shiver]

18. Um...

Yes, there are plenty of talented people in academia and elsewhere... but most don't know how Washington works, or how to work Washington. All their brilliance and talent means nothing if they can't get done what needs to be done.

[QC]

19. Yes, scholars are so hopelessly naive. They know nothing about the real world.

That's why we need to get some stock swindlers on the make--those guys are the only ones who know how things really work.

[Shiver]

21. I didn't say 'the real world'

I said 'Washington'. Politics. How may of them have experience with that? There's also a difference between the academic aspect of economics and the actual practice of it. I don't know any of these people, so you'll have to be the one to tell me if they have this experience.

My point is, however, that more than just academia is needed.

Please don't put words into my mouth.

[Truth2Tell]

24. Well then at least don't hire the poster boys of the old school.

Cheney knew how to work Washington too.

[FrenchieCat]

12. And 9/11 was Clinton's fault!

Got it.

[amborin]

14. Summers has been bad news for ages: he's the "let 'em eat pollution" guy

wanted to ship carcinogenic toxic wastes to third world nations because he argued the folks there would be dead (short life expectancy) before they contracted cancer from the toxic wastes

he's a neo-liberal, misogynistic, bad actor

[cali]

16. evidently not. at least that's not what President Obama thinks.

[leeann1317]

17. Get ready for Summers to take over for Bernake. Get ready for him to be good at it, too.

[Skwmom]

20. But will it be a real turnaround, or another period of fake boom as we

continue to send this country over a cliff?

[Jennicut]

22. Who knows? All I know is Obama has a lot on his plate.

One man cannot be expected to fix years of mistakes by both parties, but he can make changes to fell us in the future.

[ensho]

23. Summers is bad for women - is why I'm against him

some of his previous remarks and actions prove him to be not a friend of women.