John McCain’s Economic Axis of Evil

After the attacks of September 11th, 2001, the American people were told by people at the highest levels of the US government that we were attacked because Al Qaeda hates our freedom and because they see us as infidels who must be destroyed.

The deeper history of United States policy in the Middle East was almost completely ignored in favor of this simplistic view that lent itself as a justification for what has become the “War on Terror”.  Repeated claims that we were attacked because of who we are instead of for our foreign policy made manufacturing consent for the Bush Doctrine possible.

The fact that they both generally avoid simplistic and blatantly false ‘feel good’ answers was what first drew me to Senator Kerry in 2004 and then Senator Obama in this election.   In 2004 it seems that a good portion of the US voting population was not ready for nuanced and complex explanations of world events.  This year, it seems more and more people are ready to sit down and listen to explanations that are longer than a sound bite.

The McCain campaign is suffering all across the country because the more details Americans hear from Obama and Biden the more they see their world view and governing philosophies as relevant to their lives.  At the same time, it seems that the more people hear McCain and Palin try to explain the core tenets of their policies (Drill Baby Drill!) the more likely to see these simplistic and superficial solutions for what they are – emotional Bandaids for people hurting economically.

Last night I received an e-mail from John McCain that opened with this:

My Friends,

Millions of Americans on Main Street are feeling the effects of our current economic crisis largely brought on by corruption and greed at Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Wall Street. Our next president must come into office with a plan to address the very root the failing housing market. (emphasis mine – full letter below)

When I read that line condemning two mortgage company and an entire segment of the economy I couldn’t help thinking back about 9/11 and how the terrorists “hate our freedom”.  McCain seems – from the first paragraph – eager to redirect the anger that Americans justifiably feel towards his party’s policies onto two companies and a geographical spot in lower Manhattan. Of course, there had to be three entities since politicians love their trinities.  I guess we can all be grateful he hasn’t actually called them the Economic Axis of Evil.

To be generous to McCain I have to state that I doubt he really believes this himself and that he is just using this as a political tool to deflect attention from the relationship between core GOP policies of ‘free’ markets and deregulation and the current economic mess we are in right now.

Even if McCain knows better himself, as a candidate who is not willing to face up to reality both publicly and privately, he is no position to lead us out of this mess.  This problem with the MCCain camp and reality is not new.

As long as Palin has been running for VP, she has been repeating her position on climate change. “A changing environment will affect Alaska more than any other state, because of our location. I’m not one though who would attribute it to being man-made,” Palin was quoted in a Newsmax interview.

McCain’s e-mail blaming the economic woes on Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Wall Street fits nicely with McCain’s answers about climate change.  Both are designed to sooth troubled voters and stop further conversation on the topic.  The problem with those kinds of answers is that they preclude real issues discussion about real issues.  Without those kinds of in-depth examinations there is no way to build a consensus on how to move forward.

If the economic crisis is a result of such a simplistic cause as McCain claims then the solution must involve simply attacking those villainous entities.  If climate change should not be attributed to people, then ‘people’ will not necessarily need to be part of the solution. As long as the McCain campaign keeps up this propaganda campaign aimed at providing simple causes for complex problems, the American people should continue to expect massive shocks to the financial system as reality ‘rears its head’.

Senator McCain, my friend, you are doing a major disservice to the people of America by not opening up and admitting that the current economic ‘perfect storm’ is the result of years of policy changes that have led to people gaming the financial system across the board.  Blaming this on a few bad apples the way Bush did when Enron’s and other corporate accounting abuses came to light instead of publicly acknowledging that this problem is systemic seems anathema to the idea of you as a Maverick and a Straight Talker.

My Friends,

Millions of Americans on Main Street are feeling the effects of our current economic crisis largely brought on by corruption and greed at Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Wall Street. Our next president must come into office with a plan to address the very root the failing housing market.

Last night, during my debate with Senator Obama, I announced my plan to fix the root of our problem and I’d like to share a little more with you today.

If elected president, I will direct my Treasury Secretary to implement an American Homeownership Resurgence Plan to keep families in their homes, avoid foreclosures, save failing neighborhoods, stabilize the housing market and attack the roots of our financial crisis.

America’s families are bearing a heavy burden from falling housing prices, mortgage delinquencies, foreclosures, and a weak economy. It is important that those families who have worked hard enough to finance homeownership not have that dream crushed under the weight of the wrong mortgage.

For those that cannot make inflated payments or their mortgage exceeds the value of their home, mortgages must be re-structured to put losses on the books and put homeowners in manageable mortgages.

This Resurgence Plan would purchase mortgages directly from homeowners and mortgage servicers, and replace them with manageable, fixed-rate mortgages that will keep families in their homes.

By purchasing the existing, failing mortgages the resurgence plan will eliminate uncertainty over defaults, support the value of mortgage-backed derivatives and alleviate risks that are freezing financial markets.

I am ready to lead our country out of this financial crisis and I am ready to work with anyone and everyone who will help. Together, I know we can work together to find solutions for these challenging times. Please do your part today and spread the word about my new plan by forwarding this email on to your neighbors, friends, family and coworkers. Thank you for your time and support.

Sincerely,

John McCain

P.S. Homeownership represents the very core of our American economic system. This is not the time for politics. We must move aggressively to provide relief and stability for all Americans.