Attribution: https://www.hairyfishnuts.com/

Well, it happened the way our forefathers intended. A corrupt Administration wanted to push something through without thinking and the House flipped them the bird, in a bi-partisan manner, sending the $700 bailout bill down in flames. It’s interesting, and somewhat ironic, that the House could have, and I’ll argue should have, sent such a message years ago but that they chose this time to reflect the will of the people. A time when, perhaps the people actually need to be protected from themselves.

I’ve expressed grave doubts about the bailout – but with the modifications that made it into the bill, it was much better than the initial proposal. Like Republicans, I’m very worried about the precedent being set for the government interfering in the marketplace and like the Democrats I’d like to see more help for “Your Street ™” (everyone is talking about Wall Street and Main Street – like most things, I think this is local, it’s about Your Street ™ – you heard it here first…)

Now the bailout bill has to be rescued, and ultimately I believe it will be. Again, I’d like to see more about Your Street ™, but it will do with some minor modifications. Now is time for the House to show some gumption and get this thing passed. Forget about the drop in the stock market, it will come out in the wash. The really troubling aspect of this is for small business, 80% of our businesses in the US, who depend upon credit (leverage) to do things like pay their staff while customers take their sweet time paying for their goods and services. This tends to be short-term stuff that covers the lumpiness of revenue streams in the small business.

Now, given that small businesses are denied access to this lever they’ve been using, their ability to grow is inhibited at a minimum, their ability to survive is often times called into question. It’s not about Wall Street, it’s somewhat about Main Street, and it’s all about Your Street ™. If you’d like to prevent catastrophic job loss and economic meltdown over the next few months, now is the time.

Finally, a word about politics in all of this. I was shocked – literally shocked – to read that John McCain’s campaign was blaming the failure of the bill on Obama for not working hard enough to get folks on board. The fact is, of the Congressional delegation from Arizona, Senator McCain’s home state, 4 Democrats and 4 Republicans, all voted against the measure. Over 60% of Republicans in the House overall voted against the measure. It’s hard for anyone to see that Obama had a thing to do with the bill’s failure.

McCain is getting desperate, he’s losing his mind, or he’s fraught with “senior moments” – none of these are good and a man who has been seen as a moderate leader is now being revealed as an erratic flip-flopper with bad judgment (Palin, lobbyists, suspending campaign) who has no grip on reality. No matter what one thinks of Obama, he’s certainly showing himself to be a more mature and stable leader in these times of distress. Does anyone what McCain to get that 3am call? Really?