It's not just our imagintion; Obama's economic team really does suck.

[girl gone mad]

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=av2Wtqnf1X7E">This is an odd and somewhat simplistic article from Bloomberg, contrasting Obama's foreign policy team (good) with his economic team (bad), but it does contain a few interesting tidbits that point to a deeply dysfunctional atmosphere among the economic advisers, with Larry Summers coming off exactly as one would expect.

Some excerpts:

Several administration insiders, prominent outside Democratic economic advisers and a few Congressional heavyweights, all worry this is symptomatic of a process that isn’t working well. Summers, they argue, is brilliant on policy and ill-suited for a high-level staff job, which is what the head of the National Economic Council is. “If you came up with 10 words to describe Larry, coordination and collaboration would not be two,” says one person requesting anonymity who has worked with Summers extensively and admires his intellectual force.

(snip)

Still, others say Summers too often is dismissive of fellow economic advisers, other than Geithner, although he gets a bum rap for supposedly freezing Volcker out of major decisions. The 82-year-old Volcker wants a freewheeling advisory role. But advisers acknowledge Summers rarely reaches out to include him. Volcker takes a much tougher line than Summers or Geithner toward Wall Street.

The other problem, an inability to effectively communicate an economic policy, was typified in a Dec. 4 interview with Geithner, who was asked what is the “clear, coherent economic message” of the administration. He proceeded to talk about “high-class education” for children, affordable health care, better incentives for energy and infrastructure, public-private arrangements and the like.

There are 15.4 million unemployed Americans and another 11.5 million “underemployed,” either having given up looking and thus not counted in the jobless numbers or involuntarily relegated to part-time work. A laundry list of the Democrats’ agenda is unlikely to prove comforting.

(snip)

The result: On the economy, Americans are losing confidence in the president, who gets little credit for policies that avoided an economic calamity and are starting to turn things around. In a survey by pollster Ann Selzer a few weeks ago for Bloomberg News, voters by 50 percent to 45 percent disapprove of Obama’s performance on the economy; the numbers were worse on handling the budget deficit and dealing with Wall Street.

[rockymountaindem]

1. K&R n/t

[babylonsister]

2. Is that why this depression is happening? Do you ever find a positive

article in stuff you look for? I bet you do, but you'd confuse us!

And Americans are losing confidence?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=388&topic_id=9069&mesg_id=9069

Not everyone.

[girl gone mad]

5. This isn't about me. n/t

[babylonsister]

6. No, but it's about your pov. So I don't have to read the constant

negativism. :thumbsup:

[pundaint]

13. Yes, please find us some happy lies.

[sendero]

15. Negativism...

.... what pollyannas claim is possessed by people pointing out the obvious truth.

It isn't negativism that Obama is failing in the worst possible way on the economy, it is a fact.

[tbyg52]

17. >>So I don't have to read the constant negativism

You don't wanna read it? So don't.

[OnceUponTimeOnTheNet]

20. Kick and Rec. The Thread that is.

Not you.

[TheWatcher]

22. Living in Rose Colored Delusion isn't healthy either.

No one attacks you for being positive.

It's your inability to process reality that is troubling.

You can't just conveniently ignore all of the things that don't fit your fantasy paradigm and call yourself objective.

You mean well, but you don't want to face reality.

You are interested in perception management so you can feel good, and feel like you and the rest of the country is "winning" and "recovering".

When all of this tumbles to the floor again, I imagine you'll be right there with the talking heads on TV exclaiming "No one could have foreseen......"

No, it wasn't that at all.

Everyone just REFUSED to see what was going on.

The people of this country never seem to learn, and if the current crisis doesn't teach you anything, maybe you aren't capable of learning.

[Zenlitened]

24. I hope that was just poorly worded, because it sounded a lot like...

... "Why should I waste my beautiful mind on something like that?"

:wow:

[Hannah Bell]

14. I don't think a poll of attitudes in the month of December is likely to show trends.

Why not post the trendline from the inaugural to the present?

Oh, because it would show a loss of support.

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/obama_administration/obama_approval_index_history


I guess that's the "reality" some keep lecturing about.

[FLAprogressive]

3. Obama's Financial Flunkies are all Wall Street types and Clinton retreads for the most part

[WT Fuheck]

4. The day he announced the economic team was a dark, dark day

for anyone who believed in either "hope" or "change."

[emilyg]

7. Let me belatedly welcome

you to DU. I have enjoyed your comments much.

[WT Fuheck]

16. Why thank you.

I'm glad to be here.

[chill_wind]

8. Bloomberg (hard-hitting article) Nov 2008--

"So, by my tally, almost half the people on Obama's economic advisory board have held fiduciary positions at companies that, to one degree or another, either fried their financial statements, helped send the world into an economic tailspin, or both. Do you think any of that came up in the vetting?"

Obama's Bailout Bunch Brings Us More of the Same
Jonathan Weil

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&sid=aNCFKvAMUQ6w

Pretty much laid it out.

[laughingliberal]

9. Yes, I read this earlier today

It seems to suggest a level of incompetence in the economic team. That could be part of the problem but I think the bigger part of the problem is that the misery of the American people is not their first priority. I would have a teensy bit more confidence in them if Volcker had more of an influence. I have seen him interviewed several times and he is dead on about the problems with the financial institutions. Which means as long as Rahm is running the show he will continue to be a back bencher. Rahm (and Obama for following his advice) is all about making Wall Street happy.

[chill_wind]

11. Summers, the wrong man but the right Gatekeeper..

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=5389801&mesg_id=5391013

[laughingliberal]

12. It's just disgusting.

I have never seen the selling out hit such breathtaking speed. I just can't get over the impression that we are, essentially, in failed state status and being propped up long enough to let the corporations pillage what little is left before the whole show is over. The HCR bill is to make sure the insurance cartels get their cut.

[tbyg52]

18. >>being propped up long enough to let the corporations pillage what little is left

Bingo.

[NoUsername]

27. Exactly. That's their economic plan and it has been from the beginning.

So hey, from THEIR standpoint (e.g, that of the top .01%), Obama's economic plan has been a smashing success. So what's with all the "failure" crap here anyway. The system is working well (FOR THEM) so who are we to complain? I swear, you goddamn serfs and peons are nothing but a bunch of ungrateful bastards. :sarcasm:

[waiting for hope]

10. Well, they may suck to us little guys,

But they are Wall Street's Wet Dream team - and they are singing their praises. I think they were put into place to do exactly what they have done, given more to those at the top and screwed us at the bottom.

K&R

[jgraz]

19. Nailed it.

This administration doesn't really care what we want or need.

[pokercat999]

23. That's ok, we know were our money went and when things get

bad enough for enough people we'll go get it back. It's not going to be pretty.

[amborin]

21. sure does! K&R one result:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=7349160&mesg_id=7352391

[4dsc]

25. I could do a better fucking job than Obama's staff

[roamer65]

26. Volcker is a Raygun lackey.

Raygun loved him so much he re-nomimated him as Fed chair. Volcker was one of Carter's capitulation to the right, after G. William Miller resigned as Fed chairman in 1979 to become Treasury Secretary.

Summers and Geithner...don't even get me started on those guys...LOL.