Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Have Summers and Geithner Learned from their Mistakes?


For the most part, the media has continued its Obama swoon, praising the appointments he’s made thus far to advise him in leading the nation. This week, the president-elect, who has no background whatsoever in economics – or in any other major policy area for that matter - has introduced the team that will inherit the worst financial crisis in a century.

Remarkably, a NY Times editorial today actually questions the records of Lawrence Summers, the new director of the National Economic Council, and Timothy Geithner, the new secretary of the treasury. The editorial is fairly balanced asking only whether or not Summers and Geithner have learned from their more troublesome mistakes. That’s a question we should ask of anyone poised to take a national leadership position.

Oh, but we didn’t ask Obama about any of his mistakes during the campaign because No. 1, any appearance of criticizing him was off limits, and No. 2, his handlers argued that since he had no relevant experience for the presidency, he had made no mistakes.

Plus, I’m told, his temperament is admirably suited for the presidency – getting his nicotine fix from chewing Nicorette gum has probably helped him there.

By the way, I’m aware that Obama is drawing heavily on the Clinton Administration for his appointments – Summers and Geithner included – still I’d feel much more secure if Hillary Clinton, easily the best qualified of all those who ran for the presidency in 2008, were taking the reins of our government in January.

P.S.

The NY Times editorial referenced above doesn’t mention that Summers was recently fired as president of Harvard for his expressed belief that women have a lower aptitude for math and science than men.

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