Players
Thunder
only happens when it's raining
Players only love you when they're playing
Players only love you when they're playing
- Fleetwood Mac – Song:
Dreams
To
further sweeten the (TPP) deal for Democrats, the package includes expanding
trade adjustment assistance — aid to workers whose jobs are displaced by global
trade — to service workers, not just manufacturing workers.
- Deal Reached on Fast-Track Authority for Obama on Trade Accord, New
York Times
By J.M.
Hamilton (4-24-15)
From the
perspective of a liberal, and a libertarian on foreign policy and monetary
issues, President Obama can simultaneously be one of the most exciting and
frustrating presidents to watch. We may not see in our life time a
President this gifted, again. In many respects, President Obama
reminds me of a Nixon, sans the personal demons, who won his second term by the
greatest popular vote margin, since WWII. As the President advances in
the fourth quarter, or the winter, of his Presidency (free of seeking
re-election or a mid-term vote), all Americans can finally get some feel for
where the President truly stands.
He’s bold
on Cuba; he’s proposed free community college education. To his
everlasting credit, he’s attempting
to negotiate with the Iranians on nukes, rather than reflexively, as the
GOP and Israel would have us do, launch into yet another failed Middle-East
war.
Like Nixon,
President Obama is capable of pivoting right and left; and to the frustration
of Republicans, co-opting some the GOP’s very own policies, and reminding
Republicans of their far more moderate recent past (going into the 2012
election, J.M.H.
cited President Obama as the GOP’s best candidate). Since the 2014
midterm, the President has stuck his neck out, exercising executive power, in
the face of a reactionary and incompetent Republican led Congress. In a
key event, the exercise of executive power was utilized as a patch for
immigration reform. And the President has pushed for net
neutrality. All great actions.
None of these
efforts are to be taken lightly, and they are certainly encouraging; the
public, particularly Dems, recognizes the President’s efforts, and his poll
numbers reflect as much. The real President Obama maybe finally stepping
forward and not a moment too soon. However, one gets the feeling on some
of the more crucial issues of the day (campaign reform, legislative and
judicial terms limits, wage and wealth inequality, regulatory capture by Wall
Street and the roll back of financial regulation, and the growth of monopolies,
cartels and M&A activity during his presidency)…. Mr. Obama is not engaged
or, perhaps conveniently, has grown tired. The appearance is, when it
comes to protecting the economy and the American people from the predations of
the aristocracy,
the President still leans towards the plutocracy, monopolist and multinationals
(whose support any candidate or political party needs – under current campaign
law and SCOTUS rulings - in order to get elected).
Hence, the absolutely critical need for campaign financial reform, the roll back of Citizens United and
McCutcheon decisions, the separation between moneyed interests and state, and
terms limits for all state and federal officials, especially the judiciary.
In short, when it
comes to taking on the aristocracy,
most Dems and the POTUS are, largely, MIA. And as J.M.H. has stated on
more than one occasion, there is no greater threat to Americans, the American
economy, capitalism, and our national security, than monopolies, cartels, and
the concentration of power (economic and political) into too few hands.
To be sure, the
Obama Administration makes the second Bush Administration (W) look like amateur
hour. However, for a man who originally campaigned on the basis of
“change”…. this debt
based economy, the power of the plutocracy, the massive scale of the police
and surveillance state, the devotion to an adventurist foreign policy, and the
economic and military
support for some of the planet’s most nefarious dictatorships, at times it
sure feels an awful lot like more of a Bush administration redux, or
worse. I guess when it comes to some of these moral quandaries and vices,
it’s just too hard to quit cold turkey.
The bittersweet
Obama Presidency reminds me of the old Fleetwood Mac song, Dreams,
and in particular the lyrics, “Players only love you when they’re
playing.” President Obama, like all Presidents to varying degrees,
played us, the people, the electorate, with promises. Promises that
perhaps he never could have delivered upon, but promises the electorate clearly
expected him to fight for. And with the energy and oratory skills of this
President, clearly more could’ve and should’ve been done.
If we look at the
revolving door of Obama Administration friends and officials, one gets the
feeling that not only is the “will” non-existent, but clearly, on some of these
issues, like Wall Street (banking, hedge fund, and private equity) regulatory
reform, there is zero interest in rocking the boat. The revolving door
between administration officials and friends, and private equity, banking, and
hedge funds, is spinning full throttle. Despite the global financial
pandemic unleashed in 2008 by many of these same institutions, and the havoc
wreaked upon ordinary Americans, the
Obama Administration seems to have lost the will to fight this regulatory
battle, and like the Clintons before him, may have joined
the other side. The Congress passed a weak/lame law called
Dodd-Frank, largely written by the lawyers and minions of the Wall Street
cartel, and it has been rolled back ever since. Moreover, despite
billions of dollars in fines paid by Wall Street banks, which will never begin
to pay for the damage done to the American and global economies - to date, not
a single bank executive has done hard time. In
fact, many remain in power.
And speaking of remaining in power, look at how the turnstyles fly,
between government and the private sector:
- Timothy Geithner moves from Treasury secretary to private equity;
- General Petraeus loses his job at the CIA for passing secrets onto a lover and confidant, and lands a cushy job at private equity;
- Deval Patrick, a long time Obama supporter and a former Massachusetts Governor, runs directly into the arms of private equity, upon leaving office; and then there’s,
- Ben Bernanke, former Federal Reserve chairman, who just picked up a sweet gig at a hedge fund.
This is just a
recent sampling of a long list public officials, appointed by Democratic
administrations, who made their way into Wall Street, post government
career. Many more arrive directly from Wall Street, and shadow banking,
to slide and slither
into highly important government positions – regulating their very own
industry. Much of the deregulation and laissez faire policies that
directly led to the 2008 financial crisis came from the Clinton
Administration, and his appointees: Messrs. Rubin, Summers, and the former
SEC chairman Mr. Levitt (The Clinton
financial dereg included, but was not limited to, the repeal of
Glass-Steagall, and swaps and derivatives deregulation).
And why would
banking, shadow banking, and private equity hire Dems? Well that’s
easy. Many of these “Dems,” or GOP-Lite,
made policies, printed money, or softened regulation that was highly favorable
to an industry that short- sells America, Americans, and our future on a daily
basis. Just to be clear, private equity (PE) thrives on a dysfunctional
Congress, the lack of regulation, the
free flow of cash from the Fed, and every day is a tax holiday for PE,
given the carried interest loophole and the exceptionally low capital gains tax
rate. They call private equity operations “chop
shops” for a reason, and that’s because they are literally disemboweling
American business, jobs and opportunity, and the U.S. economy. And yet,
the President remains mysteriously reticent about the exodus of his
administration’s friends and officials into private equity’s waiting arms.
How are we to trust
the Democratic Party to regulate and rein in job killing cartels, monopolies,
banking, private equity, and shadow banking…. When many of our top appointed
Democratic public officials, either came from Wall Street, or landed there,
post White House career?
Gives a whole new meaning to President Obama’s quip to John
Stewart: “Change
that you can believe in, but...”
And now President
Obama, like the Clintons before him, is doing a number on the middle class, yet
again, by aligning
with Republicans to pass the TPP, free trade agreement. Before
it becomes an election year issue, the White House has crossed political lines,
and is doing a full on push for TPP fast track passage (aka TPA).
Spoiler
alert! Here’s
a hint for my readers: When Obama and Republicans are getting along, and
are all buddy-buddy, you know the American public is about to get royally
scrod, in favor of the plutocracy. Obama and the GOP are generally at
each other’s throats, so
why the bro-fest?
The TPA/fast track
agreement negotiated
behind closed doors, has a provision within it offering government support
and welfare for displaced American workers. That’s how egregious this
deal is: To make the “free trade” agreement appealing, it doesn’t promise U.S.
jobs, but rather, it promises U.S. welfare to workers who will get the shaft
(like recent free trade agreements). The TPP cannot stand public
scrutiny, so the agreement
itself and the negotiations have become“classified.” So much for
transparency and democracy; only insiders, big business, and the wealthy are
privy to this agreement.
Looks like our
“liberal” President is in bed with banks, hedge funds, private equity, and
multinationals, who benefit most from the TPP’s
globalization. Namely, global tax/regulatory/labor loophole
exploitation, at American worker expense. And many wonder why the country
has suffered with stagnation and subpar economic growth for the last seven
years. Look no further than free trade agreements and a government that
caters to the predators on the Street and in multinational suites.
Yes, President
Obama sounds like the second coming when he’s on the stump, when he needs your
vote/love. He’s a very talented man. But now, when he needs
nobody’s vote/nobody’s money, when the President is finally free, arguably we
see his true colors? Free trade agreement across the Atlantic, same thing
(but many Germans
aren’t buying). President Obama, defender of the faith? More
like defender of the people who least need government help and assistance, the
plutocracy. The
game is rigged, and under TPP guess who wins, again?
Like the song says,
thunder only happens when it’s raining, and the liberal and populist base of
the Democratic Party is finally being heard like a roar from the
heavens. Hence, presidential candidate Hillary
Clinton’s left turn. Hillary hasn’t campaigned much since her
announcement, and shrewdly she has said less, and offered even fewer
details. To her credit she has placed wealth and wage inequality front
and center, so far. Mrs.
Clinton was the first candidate, or prospective candidate, to raise the
campaign finance reform issue.
Alas, the devil is in Mrs. Clinton’s unstated
details.
It’s a hell of a start coming from a plutocrat.
The Clintons, however,
have a track record of signing off on free trade agreements, like NAFTA; and
they have a definitive history of siding with the interests of Wall Street
banks, shadow banking, and private equity… and against
America’s interests.
Will
Hillary and Bill play us all over again? Whispering sweet
promises during the election, only to give their love to their fellow
plutocrats (post-coronation), who need it least?
As more then one
wag has stated: The Clintons
are always there for you when they need you.
From the perspective of left center field, the Dems are clearly the lesser
of two evils, vis a vis the GOP. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if
the next President actually acted upon their campaign pledges and promises, and
they showed their appreciation and love to the electorate throughout their term
in office? Wouldn’t it be great if the Dems became something more than
the “lesser
of two evils,” or GOP-Lite?
Wouldn’t it be nice
if the American public was no
longer played?
Would’ve,
could’ve, should’ve!
Nah, the only thing that will set the system right is if Americans boycott the
2016 election in droves (continue the 2014 trend of record low voter
turnouts). Why give compromised
politicians the legitimacy of our vote; why give our crony government, owned
and operated by the plutocracy, the legitimacy of our support?
Why indeed?
Copyright JM Hamilton Publishing 2015