Winds of Washington & Wall Street

Now everything's a little upside down, as a matter of fact the wheels have stopped,
What's good is bad, what's bad is good, you'll find out when you reach the top
You're on the bottom.

from Idiot Wind, by Bob Dylan

So, Republican President George W. Bush asks Congress for a bailout plan. His Treasury Secretary, Henry Paulson, makes the case. Just weeks before the presidential election, John McCain “suspends” his campaign, but after the plan is revised, supports the bill that goes to the House floor. Barack Obama doesn’t like the plan but backs it, too, after he’s assured that certain conditions are met. Then the bill fails. Forgive my reiteration of the obvious, but this is so bizarre, writing it out and seeing it on the screen serve as a reality check.

During news cycles, the historic dimension of what is happening can be obscured by the volatile nature of breaking news. The scale of this financial system failure and the inability of President Bush to get his own party’s House members on board, bode ill for the rest of us. And presidential politics adds an unprecedented dimension to this strange brew. Mostly, though, we have a leadership vacuum based on Pres. Bush’s record of failure and the public's distrust. Attempts by Sen. McCain to assert leadership become counter productive because of the obviousness of the political nature of these gestures. Sen. Obama’s approach, though more rational and reasoned, fails, also, to drive the political winds in non-idiotic direction. So we are stuck with House members, all up for re-election in a few weeks, too afraid to make a move that might be perceived back home as the wrong vote.

What it will take, in the next few days, is an uncommon and extraordinary approach, a difficult task rendered even more challenging by the timing of the election. But if there is greatness lurking anywhere in the halls of the Capitol, now is the time for men and women of both parties to rise above their own self interest, and political orthodoxies, and act in ways that will keep the economy moving forward. Wouldn’t it be refreshing for John McCain and Barack Obama to join together--really together--in asking Congress to act in the best interest of the country? They are not that far apart. If they won’t, maybe it’s time for one of those George H.W. Bush/Bill Clinton TV spots urging us to work together. Inaction is not an option.