Everything Old is New Again

Member Comments

• Posted By: Nins @ 07/13/2008 1:18:19 AM

  Comment: Know why McCain wants to distance himself from former Senator Phil Gramm? It's not because of Gramm's obnoxious remarks calling Americans "a nation of whiners" who are in "a mental recession." Those remarks were so ascerbic that they may've been made just to give McCain an excuse to distance himself from Gramm. This issue is a lot deeper than it looks on the surface.
  
  When Gramm was a Senator he was Chairman of the Banking Committee. He pushed through the legislation known as the "Enron Loophole." This loophole allowed US investment banks to bypass Federal regulations governing futures trading, and is the reason why investment banks were able to falsely inflate the prices of oil, wheat, corn and other commodities through massive futures trading, causing your costs of gas, heating oil and food to go through the roof.
  
  Gramm also created the Gramm-Leach-Biley Act, which got rid of the laws that seperate banking, insurance and brokerage activities in America. The Gramm Act was touted as a new way to protect consumer privacy, but the real meat on the Act's bones was banking deregulation. Essentially, this Act did away with laws written after the Great Depression to protect us from another Wall Street/Banking Industry collapse. That's right, Gramm stripped the system of it's safe guards nine years ago, and guess what? The value of the dollar has nose-dived, four major economic institutions have failed, Wall Street is unstable, and we are in a worsening recession.
  
  Notably, the US investment banks that gained the most from the Enron Loophole and from the Gramm Act contributed more than a million dollars to Gramm's campaign.
  
  Currently Gramm is Vice Chairman of UBS, the Swiss Bank that came up with the idea of "death bonds." Worse, though, UBS is involved in a scam where they sold auction rate securities to American customers. Auction rate securities are supposed to be as safe as cash, but the way UBS did it, the fees garnished by their in-house investment bankers were intentionally higher than the return on the securities, ripping off their American customers. The Massachusetts Attorney General has already filed charges against UBS, and private brokers world-wide have dropped UBS stock. UBS is forecasted to lose 82.91% of it's value in 2008. We are talking about the corporate bank where Gramm is Vice Chairman. Looking at his track record there and at the havoc he has wrought on the US economy through the Senate Banking Committee, it's clear that Gramm is a either criminal or grossly incompetent.
  
  Now McCain wants nothing to do with Gramm, wants us to forget Gramm has been a key player on McCain's team. Gramm was McCain's campaign CO-CHAIR and LEADING ECONOMIC ADVISOR. Previously, McCain had said that he planned to appoint Gramm as SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY.
  
  With Gramm as McCain's leading economic advisor, now you know why economists and analysts say that McCain's economic policy plans are untenable.

• Posted By: datzamore@aol.com @ 07/09/2008 10:21:38 PM

  Comment: The issues of VP choice, flip-flopping and shifting to the middle will pale in comparison to Obama's connections. Around most of America, east coast, west coast and midwest....this man is being viewed as a phony....the most extreme left wing candidate we have ever had to this point....but with a nice smile.
  Obama's "close 20 year relationship" with a bigot named Reverand Wright is being discussed at the water cooler by Americans every day more and more. And that reverand's "close relationship" with one of America's biggest racists, Louis Farrakhan, who was given a lifetime achievement award by Obama's church. (hello?). Birds of a Feather, folks.. Most of America is starting to figure it out. Especially Hillary fans and Jewish voters.
  Remember, this is the same nation that re-elected a very unpopular George Bush only 3 1/2 years ago during an unpopular war. Also remember that Kerry led Bush 51-44 in July....and he lost. - And now....at only 46-44....the Obama Fever Gap is wearing off fast. - John McCain will win this election.
  

• Posted By: loriw @ 07/01/2008 11:11:41 PM

  Comment: I would love to see Colin Powell as VP but doubt it will happen.
  I read where his wife begged him not to run for POTUS so i doubt she would be happy about him being the VP either.