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It’s the stupid candidate who’s not talking about the economy these days.
Stock markets were plunging in Asia this morning — another reminder of the precarious state of the U.S. economy.
Little wonder those overseas investors are worried. They finance a large portion of the U.S. debt simply because they rely on American consumers to purchase what those overseas factories are producing. But with recession looming, consumers may be forced to cut back anyway, causing the whole house of cards to come tumbling down.
(Reminds one of Donald Trump’s line: “If you owe the bank a little money and can’t pay, you’re in trouble. But if you owe the bank a lot of money and can’t pay, they’re in trouble.”
In any case politicians from both parties are coming to the realization that it’s the economy, more than the war or terrorism, that if of most concern to voters these days.
President Bush says he can fix things by making the tax cuts for the wealthy permanent and sending everyone a check for $800. If Democrats don’t agree they’d better be ready with an alternative.
It will be interesting to see what members of the Massachusetts and New Hampshire delegations in Washington have to say over the next few weeks.
Meanwhile, we wonder how much the sale of wide-screen TVs spiked in the wake of Bush’s proposal last week. Put a little money in the average American’s pocket and that’s what they want — the latest in electronic gadgetry.