Crisis Management

I've sat and quietly watched since Janurary 20th with amazement at how the new President is working on so many different fronts all at the same time. With the 17 (so far) executive orders, "summit" after "summit" on issue after issue at the White House, and more press conferences than the Sham Wow guy has infomercial time, it is an understatement to say that President Obama has his hands full right now.



The thing that concerns me is we have a crisis on our hands. It's not just affecting the USA, but the entire world. Instead of taking the bull by the horns and facing this head on, giving this financial crisis the full undivided attention it deserves, it is only one of several items being taken on by the White House right now. Let's see, Stem Cell Research, Education, Health care reform, political (pork barrel/ear mark) reform, and RUSH LIMBAUGH (?) all seem to get the same attention as the one item that should be front and center.



Reminds me of the plate spinner at the circus. If you put a dozen or so plates all spinning on the sticks at once, it may seem OK to let one or two fall off and break in a million pieces. I mean, c'mon, the guy had 11 (or was that 10) plates all spinning on sticks at once! Give the man a round of applause!

All of the other stuff being thrown up there are programs that can't be funded if we don't stop the hemorrhaging of the economy. It is disturbing to see company after company cut pay across the board by 10 to 20%, or lay off up to 20% of the workforce, or bite the bullet and just go out of business. The more people out of work, means more people that can't pay mortgages, and more people that are needing government assistance.

You are the leader of the free world, Mr. President. You may want to tell Carville and the rest of the guys whispering in your ear to shut the hell up for moment so you can think. If you don't get the financial crisis turned around in quick order, you will reach a point of no return. Once there, the America we all know and love will never be the same. Some say we have already reached that point, but it seems to me that we have a very limited time before we get there.



Did anyone else catch the article from the New York Times (on drudgereport.com) about the banks wanting to give the money they got from the government back? It isn't because they have found the miracle cure to the issues that caused them to ask for the money in the first place. No, it's because the government is turning around and attaching more and more strings to the "free money" now that there has been public outcry about how the money was being used. Now, the government wants the banks that took money to stop foreclosures and restructure the mortgages. Wait, wasn't that what congress said they wanted the money to be used for when they passed this so called "stimulus" bill? So, let's see if I get this straight, you take the money because it is there, knowing that it is suppose to be used to stop the foreclosures and allow you to restructure mortgages, then want to give it back when the government says you actually do it? Have I got that one right?



The only focus of the White House right now needs to be getting the economy turned around. All this other smoke and mirrors stuff will make for something for the news cycle, but doesn't give this crisis the attention is needs. You can put band aid fixes together only so long before the fixable issues become insurmountable obstacles because no one was willing to step up and face the music. It doesn't matter who started it, or what was inherited, the only thing important now is that the crisis is contained, and the economy turned around before it can not be corrected.