Candidate Bush, told the American people he wanted to bring the Nation together, he wanted a transparent government, and that he was a uniter, protector of the people. We trusted him to live up to his promises. As President, Bush promptly forgot his mantra when elected, had his way stringently supported by the Republicans to get his way, and do what he wants. Our Nation is economically crippled and paying the price for his folly as President.
Federal Reserve Chairman , Ben Bernake appeared before a congressional hearing recently discussing the need for a stimulus package to forestall the financial tail spin of the American Economy. The Bush Republican government believes the economy is very sound. Yet, he is very busy avoiding, and in some instances denying what the American people have known for the past few months. The nation is in a recession. Bush calls it a down-turn. Face it Mr. President, we are not heading for one, our economy is in a recession. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernake advises the stimulus has to be done quickly, or it will be counter productive.
None of this hubbub over the economy comes as any surprise to the suffering middle class, who have been living it for a long time, bearing the brunt of this governments stupidity: the failing economy, the result of excessive unchecked government spending and borrowing , the mortgage crisis with its earth shattering amount of foreclosures of homes especially in the Midwest and heartland, tightening credit, the stock market out of control, not to mention the unsound fiscal polices of the Bush administration with their borrowing to finance the the unwanted Iraq war. And the relentless assault on what Bush considers his private bank, our Social Security funds.
President Bush on a recent television appearance indicated we are not recession bound, but we need to take precautions with a 150 billion dollar "growth" package. This is no growth package, even a stimulus package but a bail out. Pure and simple. Who is going to pay for it...China! On which planet do you live, Mr. President!
Now Bush is practically begging for his growth package, asking both sides of the aisle to to co-operate on a bipartisan basis. This is an empty gesture coming from the boys and girls who worked diligently over the past seven years to bring us to this situation. They have made it a bragging point not to cooperate with the Democrats, blocking most all of the bills the Democrats have proposed., especially on funding and ending the Iraq war. Republicans do not care one iota about the middle class. Who they really care about are the fat cats on Wall Street who brought about the mortgage crisis, and do not want to be held accountable to the incredible breech of faith with home owners they seduced and gouged only satisfy their own financial greed.
The Democratic presidential candidates know the frustration and feelings of the people. They hear their voices loud and clear every town hall they speak, all over the country. The front runners are establishing help to pained Americans whose government has let them down in their time of need. They know something must be done. Before this crisis took life, Hillary Clinton saw the problem, took the lead. She didn't wait, she offered an emergency 70 billion dollar stimulus package to boost the economy. In it was recommendation to freeze the mortgages for the next 90 days to give time to the homeowners to work their situations out with lenders and put the onus on the lenders ot solve the problem. She acted with her package much before Bush even talked about his "growth" package. The Democrats know what has to be done and will make the ideological arguments and fights. They have to stand for the middle class who is struggling to keep their lives afloat and pay their bills. Certainly the government is not held to this standard.
Democrats on Capitol Hill are very suspicious of the President's proposal. Many are indignant and upset because the Bush proposals do not include relief for the lower level income and the middle class.
Whether the Republicans do hear the people is hard to say, with the exception of Ron Paul who has been preaching about the Bush errant fiscal policies for the past seven years.
