Monday, December 8, 2008

Building Attitudes

"We have nothing to fear but fear itself"
FDR 1933
"It's only going to get worse"
BHO 2008
To date New Deal II reads as a re-hash of New Deal I. New Deal I was a bust! I expect to see Adolph Berle, Harry Hopkins and Harold Ickes in the cabinet and quite soon if they haven't already been announced. Is it possible to serve from the grave?
Post January 20 is going to be very interesting. One thing for certain is that the initial success of the new administration will be to keep the public in a crisis mindset. There were periods in the Carter and Clinton administrations when unemployment was higher than it is now but we're in a crisis mode. When FDR took over in March of 1933 the mantra of both Republicans and Democrats was that the house was burning down and to give the President whatever he wanted to put out the fire. No wonder he came to be called Franklin Deficit Roosevelt.

No comments: