House Republicans Re-Enact Hoover Moment

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Although this was posted at the Racine Post way back on September 29, 2008, it's worth mentioning again now that we know not one House Republican voted for Obama's Main Street stimulus bill.

Racine Post Excerpt:
“This bill offends my principles but I’m going to vote for this bill in order to preserve my principles… to preserve [the free enterprise system]. This is a Herbert Hoover moment.. he made mistakes during the Great Depression… Let’s not make those mistakes… If we fail to do the right thing, heaven help us—if we fail to pass this I fear the worst is yet to come.”

But that was when the stimulus plan belonged to George W. Bush. Back then, Rep. Paul Ryan was called “courageous” by his supporters when he voted to "preserve" his principles in favor of the Wall Street Bail-Out. Yes, you read that right.

Racine Post Excerpt:
What’s more, while he says the bill “offends” his principles, he probably also now understands that the vast majority of these mortgages are actually really good investments and the taxpayers could ultimately benefit quite a bit if we can buy a bunch of these perfectly good mortgages for 40 to 50 cents on the dollar.

That’s not exactly how it is. The truth is, it was the other way around. For every dollar the taxpayers were put on the hook for in the Wall Street Bail-Out, we were lucky to receive 40 or 50 cents worth of toxic mortgages nobody else wanted. Sure, we may be able to pick a few cherry notes out of the batch, but don't count on a windfall.

Alter Net Excerpt:
It is abundantly clear that the Republican leaders are going to do everything to prevent Obama and the Dems from doing anything constructive.

Their position of course is not good for the country, but I'm actually thrilled about Republican's willingness to accept the responsibility by their own admission that the worst is yet to come if they fail to act. They have turned the confidence the President's plan must have in order to succeed into a major gamble, and are willing to risk the entire economic health of the country for any chance to save their own miserable careers. Just shameful.