Down 777?  Isn’t that a sign of the end of days?

TruValu: I thought that was 666.

I love how this is going to tie Bush even more firmly around McCain’s wattled neck. Almost makes up for the hole in the bottom of my 401(k) account.

John McCain is toast.

From this morning (before the bill failed):

John McCain’s presidential campaign claimed credit as Congress readied Monday to vote on an emergency economic package, but Democrats said the Republican’s last-ditch intervention had been no help.

Mitt Romney, McCain’s erstwhile rival for the Republican nomination, said the deal on a Wall Street bailout worth up to 700 billion dollars would never have happened without the Arizona senator.

Speaking on NBC television, the former Massachusetts governor said “this bill would not have been agreed to had it not been for John McCain.”

“That doesn’t mean that he’s the only guy doing that. And there many people ... who have been critical to it,” Romney said.

“But, you know, this is a bipartisan accomplishment, a bipartisan success. And if people want to get something done in Washington, they just watch John McCain,” he said.

“He’s been the guy whose name is at the top of major pieces of legislation for a long time.”

Epic FAIL!

I mailed my Representative to ask her not to support the bill the second time around.

Is it just me or was the far-right and far-left wing in agreement that this bill sucks?

What’s funny—and I mean ROTFLMAO funny—is that McCain’s campaign is trying to blame Obama because the legislation didn’t pass.

Yes, even though McCain made a big publicity stunt about “suspending” his campaign and returning to Washington to exercise his “leadership” in rustling up support for the bill, his campaign is now saying that the failure of Republicans in the House to vote for the bill is Obama’s fault.

Huh?  Perhaps Grampy didn’t take his meds today.

Let’s recap:  McCain got all dramatic about what a crisis we were in, ansd suspended campaigning to go to Washington to work on a solution—without, however, saying whether he supported the solution proposed by the Bush Adminstration.  McCain did nothing in the negotiations except to strengthen the hand of those who opposed any bailout, then luke-warmly endorsed the compromise reached between Obama and other Democrats on the one hand, and the Bush Adminstration on the other.  Nevertheless, the compromise proposal goes down to defeat, due to lack of Republican support.  McCain then blames Obama for the proposal’s failure.

In short, McCain didn’t do anything except to play partisan politics and get in the way of the people trying to address the problems facing the country.  He wasn’t an honest supporter of the compromise bill, and he wasn’t an honest opponent.  Whatever your opinions on the merits of the bill and the proposal for a bailout, you ought to regard McCain as an interfering old busybody.

Good. There’s going to be pain no matter what happens, so I’d rather see a bailout that’s put together with some thought and long-term benefit to the citizenry, rather than some under duress variant or compromise on Paulson’s “trust us"proposal.

The Bush legacy is now complete. He’s like his nemesis Hurricane Katrina, destroying everything in his path.

Anyone who followed Prince Bush’s illustrious career in business understood from 2000 onward how his latest “bid’ness venture” would turn out—another one run into the ground, with a bailout attempt by Poppy’s cronies. This time the money isn’t flowing quite as easily as it did in the old days of coke and booze, though.

I feel sorry for the next president. The messes left by Bush will take years to clean up.

Those who voted for Bush in 2004 excepted, feel sorry for all of us—one way or another, we’ll all be paying. At least Obama is willing to admit that fact, but of course in November you’ll see roughly half of Idiot America vote to stay the course.

Speaking of which, Matt Taibbi on Palin:

http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/17504

Sarah Palin is a symbol of everything that is wrong with the modern United States. As a representative of our political system, she’s a new low in reptilian villainy, the ultimate cynical masterwork of puppeteers like Karl Rove. But more than that, she is a horrifying symbol of how little we ask for in return for the total surrender of our political power.

Not only is Sarah Palin a fraud, she’s the tawdriest, most half-assed fraud imaginable, 20 floors below the lowest common denominator, a character too dumb even for daytime TV -and this country is going to eat her up, cheering her every step of the way. All because most Americans no longer have the energy to do anything but lie back and allow ourselves to be jacked off by the calculating thieves who run this grasping consumer paradise we call a nation.

of course in November you’ll see roughly half of Idiot America vote to stay the course.

No, you won’t. McCain will get somewhere around 40% of the popular vote. Around Dukakis/Mondale territory.

And America isn’t “eating up” Sarah Palin. She’s a joke, and her favorability ratings are in freefall.

People are smarter than you give them credit for, especially when they’re losing their homes and bank accounts.

No, you won’t. McCain will get somewhere around 40% of the popular vote. Around Dukakis/Mondale territory.

At a certain point, you have stop asking yourself “How bad will things get before people wise up?” and start admitting that a great lot of people are Just.That.Stupid. I reached that point in November, 2004.

So I’m still willing to bet on a 2-3% margin in the popular vote—too close to call, and that’s not taking into account GOP cheating and gaming of the Electoral College.

And America isn’t “eating up” Sarah Palin. She’s a joke, and her favorability ratings are in freefall.

Our America isn’t “eating up” Sarah Palin, but Taibbi paints an accurate picture of the America that loves her. Good companion pieces here:

http://www.nypress.com/print.cfm?content_id=10369

http://www.esquire.com/features/ESQ0207GREETINGS

People are smarter than you give them credit for, especially when they’re losing their homes and bank accounts.

If that were the case, right now we’d be seeing a mass exodus of Republicans to the likes of Ron Paul—not particularly smart, but at least a sign of them stirring from their intellectual lassitude.

I’d hope that an 800-point drop in the market would scare the beejeezus out of GOP supporters, but as we’ve seen in the comments here and on wingnut blogs their “thought leaders” (heh) are more interested in blaming Clinton and blacks and illegals for the crisis than the real malefactors.

No, America in general (EVERYONE, Democrats, Independents, and Republicans but together) *does not like her*.

My God have you seen any recent polling on her?

Obama is up in Virginia and North Carolina and tied in Indiana. Pop quiz: when was the last time those were Democratic states, let alone battlegrounds, Gracchus?

What’s your logic? Because the last two votes were close thus it will be forever more, amen? Come on. Bush had a 52% approval rating in 2004. About half the country thought we were on the right track then. The numbers are totally different.

Obama is on the verge of a double-digit PV lead and EV landslide, and this was *before* the 800 point drop and McCain’s white knight stunt.

As to voter fraud, the Republicans don’t control the state governments in any battleground states this time thanks to 2006. It’s pretty fucking hard to commit fraud when the Attorney General/Secretary of State in said battleground states are Democrats, unless the Republicans have some kind of mind-control device I’m not aware of.

pragmatic idealist: How do you feel about case-by case nationalization of failing institutions instead of a Bulk-buy bailout? That’s the suggestion that seems to be floated by DeLong, Krugman and Roubini right now.

Given the respective ability of those three to accurately foresee the current economic meltdown, (At least more-so than Bernake and Paulson), I’m much more inclined to trust their judgement.

I’m just hoping the leveraged debt bubble isn’t irreconcilable. If everything else is relying on that bubble of bullshit, I don’t think any amount of money pumped into the system will keep things afloat, and would just delay the inevitable.

No, America in general (EVERYONE, Democrats, Independents, and Republicans but together) *does not like her*.

My God have you seen any recent polling on her?

I have. I’m also old enough to recall similar polling regarding Dan Quayle. The sort of people who’d vote for a Republican these days are also the sort who are able to fool themselves into thinking that McCain is hale and hearty enough to fulfill his term with no problems.

That said, if the GOP isn’t just sandbagging about her glaring incompetence in the upcoming debate, I can see McCain figuring out a way to dump her. But it has to be an “Eagleton’s shrink says he’s koo-koo bananas” level of incompetence.

Obama is up in Virginia and North Carolina and tied in Indiana. Pop quiz: when was the last time those were Democratic states, let alone battlegrounds, Gracchus?

I’m going to be honest here, because I’ve seen the demographics and polling and registration data. African Americans make up significant voting blocs in both Virginia and North Carolina. They’ve never had a candidate worth mobilising for like they do now. Make no mistake, Obama’s race isn’t the only reason they’re mobilising in far greater numbers than before and defying GOP voter supression chicanery, but it’s one heck of an added incentive.

The tie in Indiana is still just that—a tie. It’s a positive sign, but not an indicator of the landslide you predict.

I will agree with you that the 50-state strategy combined with the best-run campaign I’ve seen since Clinton—if not Reagan—is increasing his margin. But I’ve learned to wait until election day to see the results.

What’s your logic? Because the last two votes were close thus it will be forever more, amen?

My logic is that, given the results of 2004, a large proportion of the electorate is incapable of seeing the disaster that’s right in front of their eyes. And as I noted, at a certain point you have to make a judgement call on that. Voting takes place once every 4 years, but stupid and ignorant is a lifelong affair.

As to voter fraud, the Republicans don’t control the state governments in any battleground states this time thanks to 2006.

Vote count fraud isn’t the only way the Republicans cheat, especially in the south. And that kind of cheating and supression takes place on the local, polling precinct level. If you’re predicting a landslide, well sure, those small potatoes efforts won’t make much of a difference. But if we’re talking about the 2-3% margin the GOP relies upon, every little bit helps.

Look, I hope you’re right. Obama’s charismatic, vibrant, intelligent, cool, with a great campaign org and ground game—everything that McCain isn’t. If I had the same faith you had in the average American voter, I’d agree with you that it’s Obama in a landslide. But as it is, I can only hope so. And as many of the voters still fail to grasp, hope isn’t a plan.

It is worth seeing my retirement savings go to hell to know that at least ACORN won’t be getting any of the bailout money!

It is worth seeing my retirement savings go to hell to know that at least ACORN won’t be getting any of the bailout money!

To Ben D. : Not that I’m a fan of ACORN, but the general sentiment underlying AlexanderBuinov’s comment above supports my point.

George H.W. Bush won with Dan Quayle because he was running against Michael Dukakis.

Kerry ran a godawful, milquetoast, “me too” Republican Lite campaign in 2004. That’s why he lost. I don’t blame the STUPID AMERICAN VOTER stuff, because I think a lot of progressives stayed home because he was so damn wimpy, and I don’t blame them. If you’re offering a store brand immitation of the name brand (in this case, Republicanism) people are going to go for the name brand everytime. And that’s what Kerry was doing—being “store brand” Bush.

It’s not just AAs in Virginia. My own father, a conservative white protestant older southerner hasn’t voted for a Democrat since 1976 and Carter, and he’s actually voting for Obama this year. That’s like a miracle.

Gracchus-

I stand by my statement this election won’t be close enough to have fraud. The lily-white Republican suburb of Chester, VA that I grew up in had thousands turn out to see Obama.

ACORN:Right::Diebold:Left

“Everyone’s kind of upset with the political grandstanding that’s going on. We haven’t solved any problems that we’re in,” he said.

Does anyone know what the problem is?
So far it seems like we’re just throwing money into a pit and hoping our children can dig their way out.

A glimpse into a possible McCain presidency.

The man is weak, figuratively and literally.

Does anyone know what the problem is?

The problem is that financial “wizards” build a huge house of cards on the idea that (a) no one ever defaults on their mortgage and (b) home prices will never go down.  They were buying and selling packaged mortgages and now they have no idea which of those mortgages are still good and which ones are upside-down or even in foreclosure.

I’ve been comparing it to trading card collectors:  they bought a big package of stuff whose value depends on the fact that no one really knows what’s in it.  Now they’re having to open up all of those packaged mortgages and see if there’s anything worthwhile in there or if it’s all just a bunch of junk.  There’s a reason Atrios has been calling it The Big Shitpile.

Does anyone know what the problem is?

See here and here.

Insofar as mortgages are tied to tangible assets (land) that can be repossessed, isn’t that their value?

Insofar as mortgages are tied to tangible assets (land) that can be repossessed, isn’t that their value?

“Value” is what people will pay for an asset; it isn’t an objective measure.  A few months ago, a house was very valuable, due to easy credit and an expectation of capital gains by willing buyers. Now, not so much.  A mortgage for then won’t be covered by what you can sell the land for now.

Insofar as mortgages are tied to tangible assets (land) that can be repossessed, isn’t that their value?

No.  I’ve picked up a little during my work for a real estate appraising office, though I’m on the commercial side of things.  One of the primary value indications for real estate is “Sales Comparison.”  Or basically, what are similar properties in similar neighborhoods with similar economic conditions worth?  You’ve seen it in action when a neighborhood gentrifies or decays, and home values rise or fall accordingly.  Well, the bottom dropped out of the market, which means that your neighbor’s house sold for $50,000 less than it might have sold for two years ago, which now means that your house is less valuable in comparison.  And heaven help you (or the institution that holds your mortgage) if you live in an area really hard hit by the housing crisis, with home values decimated by foreclosures.

I think.  I’m an English major, not an economics major, so correct me if I’m wrong.

Republicans are sunk.
The best thing they can do right now, is throw a hail-mary pass… and replace Sarah Palin with Mitt Romney. This would most-likely stop the bleeding and rush of Republicans from leaving the party, and stop their base from casting absentee ballots for Barack Obama. I should know… I am a Republican that just cast mine for Barack.

Mccain is in Iowa right now holding an economic summit.

Is his campaign still “suspended?”
He’d better un"suspend” his campaign formally, otherwise this is ALL backfiring on him. He’s supposed to be in Washington talking to other Congressional leaders who are NOT JEWISH!!!

“Republicans are sunk.
The best thing they can do right now, is throw a hail-mary pass… and replace Sarah Palin with Mitt Romney. This would most-likely stop the bleeding and rush of Republicans from leaving the party, and stop their base from casting absentee ballots for Barack Obama. I should know… I am a Republican that just cast mine for Barack. “

I thought Palin was the Hail Mary pass. How many stunts can a candidate pull before he becomes a joke?