Crisis Open Thread + McCain’s Speech Today [Update]
By SusanUnPC on September 25, 2008 at 9:21 AM in Bill Clinton, John McCain, Open Thread
UPDATE: Bill Clinton spoke up today for John McCain’s decision yesterday in an appearance on ABC’s Good Morning America, reports ABC’s Political Radar.
Former President Bill Clinton defended Sen. John McCain’s request to delay the first presidential debate, saying McCain did it in "good faith" and pushed organizers to reserve time for economy talk during the debate if the Friday plans move forward.
Clinton also mentioned that McCain has tried repeatedly to get Obama to debate him earlier than this Friday, but Obama DUCKED every time. (Many pundits think Obama made a strategic political mistake in not taking up McCain on those town hall meetings.)
"You can put it off a few days the problem is it’s hard to reschedule those things," Clinton said, "I presume [McCain] did that in good faith since I know he wanted — I remember he asked for more debates to go all around the country and so I don’t think we ought to overly parse that.". … (Read all || Read blog reactions at Memeorandum.com.)
Original Post: This is an OPEN THREAD along with portions of the full text of John McCain’s speech today before the Clinton Global Initiative, after which he departed for Washington, D.C. First, I’m extracting a few key comments, and then I’m posting his full section on the financial crisis — in which he lays out five conditions, including no earmarks.
I’m an old Navy pilot, and I know when a crisis calls for all hands on deck. That’s the situation in Washington at this very hour, when the whole future of the American economy is in danger. I cannot carry on a campaign as though this dangerous situation had not occurred, or as though a solution were at hand, which it clearly is not. If we do not act, credit will dry up, with grave consequences for workers and business across the American economy and beyond. People will no longer be able to buy homes and their life savings will be at stake. Businesses will not have enough money to pay their employees. …
The section of the speech on our financial crisis, in full (I’m not indenting it for ease of reading):
[...] I know you will understand if I begin by addressing a crisis of our own right here in America — a crisis that began not far from here in the financial district of this city.
We know this is a crisis with serious implications and consequences for our nation and others. History must not record that when our nation faced such a moment, its leadership was unable to put aside politics and to focus in a unified way to solve this problem.
It’s time for everyone to recall that the political process is not an end in itself, nor is it intended to serve those of us who are in the middle of it. In the Senate of the United States, our duty is to serve the people of this country, and we can serve them best now by putting politics aside and dealing in a focused, straightforward, bi-partisan way with the problem at hand.
For the Congress, this is one of those moments in history when poor decisions, made in haste, could turn a crisis into a far-reaching disaster. If we do not act, credit will dry up, with grave consequences for workers and business across the American economy and beyond. People will no longer be able to buy homes and their life savings will be at stake. Businesses will not have enough money to pay their employees. And, as ever, the greatest burden is borne by the American people. Seven hundred billion dollars is a staggering and unprecedented figure, and there should be no misunderstanding about the dimensions of this proposal. Seven hundred billion dollars, for example, could rebuild the crumbling infrastructure in every town, county, and state in this country. A great deal is being asked of the American people. And great care must be taken to ensure their protection.
I’m an old Navy pilot, and I know when a crisis calls for all hands on deck. That’s the situation in Washington at this very hour, when the whole future of the American economy is in danger. I cannot carry on a campaign as though this dangerous situation had not occurred, or as though a solution were at hand, which it clearly is not. As of this morning I suspended my political campaign. With so much on the line, for America and the world, the debate that matters most right now is taking place in the United States Capitol — and I intend to join it. Senator Obama is doing the same. America should be proud of the bipartisanship we are seeing.
It has become clear that no consensus has developed to support the Administration’s proposal to meet the crisis. I do not believe that the plan on the table will pass as it currently stands, and we are running out of time. So I am returning to Washington to seek five fundamental improvements to this critical legislation. I have laid out these principles over the past week:
First, there must be greater accountability included in the bill. I have suggested a bipartisan board to provide oversight for the rescue. We will not solve a problem caused by poor oversight with a plan that has no oversight. Never before in the history of our nation has so much power and money been concentrated in the hands of one person, and there must be protections and oversight in place.
Second, as a part of that oversight, there must be a path for taxpayers to recover the money that is put into this fund. When we’re talking about 700 billion taxpayer dollars, that money cannot simply go into a black hole of bad debt with no means of recovering any of the funds.
Third, there must be complete transparency in the review of this legislation and in the implementation of any legislation. This cannot be thrown together behind closed doors. The American people have the right to know which businesses will be helped, what that selection will be based on and how much that help will cost. All the details should all be made available online and elsewhere for open public scrutiny.
Fourth, it is completely unacceptable for any kind of earmarks to be included in this bill. It would be outrageous for legislators and lobbyists to pack this rescue plan with even more taxpayer money for favored companies. And frankly, members of Congress who would attempt such a thing are scarcely better than the most reckless operators on Wall Street.
Fifth and finally, no Wall Street executives should profit from taxpayer dollars. Let me put it this way: I would rather build a bridge to nowhere — and put it square in the middle of Sedona, Arizona — than take money from teachers and farmers and small business owners to line the pockets of the Wall Street crowd that got us here in the first place. And I can assure you: if I have anything to say about the matter, it’s not going to happen.
It is difficult to act both quickly and wisely, but that is what is required of us right now. Time is short, and doing nothing is not an option. I am confident that before the markets open on Monday we can achieve consensus on legislation that will stabilize our financial markets, protect taxpayers and homeowners, and earn the confidence of the American people.
I have seen Republicans and Democrats achieve great things together. When the stakes were high and it mattered most, I’ve seen them work together in common purpose, as we did in the weeks after September 11th. This kind of cooperation has made all the difference at crucial turns in our history. It has given us hope in difficult times. It has moved America forward, through all adversity. And now, in this crisis, we must work together again and put our country first.
All of this comes on top of other hardships that Americans have been dealing with, especially the rising cost of energy. And these, too — as you well understand at the Clinton Global Initiative — are problems that require us to call upon the best ideas of both parties.
For the future of our economy, nothing is more essential than a secure and affordable supply of energy. As you well know, people are hurting because the cost of gasoline is out of control. Small farmers, truckers, and taxi drivers in this city and elsewhere are unable to cover their costs. Small business owners are struggling to meet payroll. For American workers, the cost of living is rising and the value of paychecks falling. All of this, in large part, because the price of oil is too high, and the supply of oil too uncertain. These citizens believe their government has a duty to finally assure the energy security of this country, and they are right.
Every form of economic activity requires the use of energy. And that is why we need to draw on the best ideas of both parties on energy policy, and work together for the common good. Among our challenges is one that we hardly even understood back when America first learned to associate the word “energy” with “crisis.” We now know that fossil fuel emissions, by retaining heat within the atmosphere, threaten disastrous changes in climate. No challenge of energy is to be taken lightly, and least of all the need to avoid the consequences of global warming.
Over time, we must shift our entire energy economy toward a sustainable mix of new and cleaner power sources. This will include some we use already, such as wind, solar, biofuels, and other sources yet to be invented. It will include a variety of new automotive and fuel technologies, clean-burning coal and nuclear energy, and a new system of incentives, under a cap-and-trade policy, to put the power of the market on the side of environmental protection. To make the great turn away from carbon-emitting fuels, we will need all the inventive genius of which America is capable. We will need as well an economy strong enough to support our nation’s great shift toward clean energy.
Global warming presents a test of foresight, of political courage, and of the unselfish concern that one generation owes to the next. We need to think straight about the dangers ahead, and meet the problem with all the resources of human ingenuity at our disposal. We Americans like to say that there is no problem we can’t solve, however complicated, and no obstacle we cannot overcome if we meet it together. I believe this about our country. And now it is time for us to show those qualities once again.
As we deal with this challenge, we must also address the others that imperil our global security. Today too many around the world are excluded from the benefits of globalization. Disconnected from the prosperity that has lifted millions out of poverty, too many societies are plagued by violence, disease, and scarcity.
It need not be this way. And in places where scarcity can breed resentment, despair, and extremism — where problems cannot be contained by borders — it must not be this way. We can never guarantee our security through military means alone. True security requires a far broader approach, using non-military means to reduce threats before they gather strength. And this is especially true of our strategic interest in fighting disease and extreme poverty across the globe. …
by Ronald Scott
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