Glenn Wilson

Nouriel Roubini predicted this mess and continues to predict further mess.

The IMF warned on Saturday that the global financial system was on the brink of meltdown, while France and Germany pushed ahead with a pan-European crisis response to try to prevent the worst global downturn in decades.IMF warns of financial meltdown

German Chancellor Angela Merkel heads to Paris to present Sunday to her colleagues from the euro zone a financial sector bailout plan for Germany that's expected to be more than half the size of what has been enacted in the U.S.
German Bailout Likely to Be Over $400 Billion

Those responsible for the meltdown are trying to shift the blame to minorities and the poor:

As the economy worsens and Election Day approaches, a conservative campaign that blames the global financial crisis on a government push to make housing more affordable to lower-class Americans has taken off on talk radio and e-mail. ...

Federal housing data reveal that the charges aren't true, and that the private sector, not the government or government-backed companies, was behind the soaring subprime lending at the core of the crisis. ...

Federal Reserve Board data show that:

• More than 84 percent of the subprime mortgages in 2006 were issued by private lending institutions.


• Only one of the top 25 subprime lenders in 2006 was directly subject to the housing law that's being lambasted by conservative critics.

"I don't remember a clarion call that said Fannie and Freddie are a disaster. Loaning to minorities and risky folks is a disaster," said Neil Cavuto of Fox News.
Private sector loans, not Fannie or Freddie, triggered crisis

Now, as he spends his last months in office trying to avert a global economic collapse, Mr. Bush has been telling people privately that it’s a good thing he’s in charge.

“He said that if it was going to happen at all, he was glad it was happening under his presidency, because he had a good group of people in D.C. working for him,” Dru Van Steenberg, one of several small-business owners who met with Mr. Bush in San Antonio earlier this week. The president expressed the same sentiment, others said, during a similar private session in Chantilly, Va., the next day.

“He said that whoever was going to take over in January was going to have a huge crisis on their hands the day they come into office,” Ms. Van Steenberg added. “He thought by this happening now, that perhaps everyone could see signs of improvement before the next president comes into office.”In Final Months in Office, Bush Is Burdened but Still Confident

Meanwhile, back in the world of reality and facts:

So what do we get from this? Well, the economy performed best under Clinton, then JFK/LBJ. Then Carter, and since he’s almost as good, we’ll call Reagan a tie for third. Then Nixon/Ford, with Ike and GW tied for sixth, and GHW bringing up the rear. And in terms of parties, there is no contest… the economy as a whole seems to grow faster under Democrats. Giving Reagan the benefit of the doubt, he’s the only the Republican that does as well as the worst Democratic President. 100% of Democratic administrations in the sample get at least a bronze medal.Comparing Presidents: Rankings of Economic Growth

Labels: economy