Obama Talks About Financial Crisis

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONM7148cTyc]

While television ads typically are limited to thirty seconds and are limited to sound bites, Obama is gambling on the idea that Americans are more intelligent and concerned about the recent problems in the financial markets. He is putting out a two minute ad on the subject, with video above and transcript following:

“In the past few weeks, Wall Street’s been rocked as banks closed and markets tumbled,” Obama says in the ad. “But for many of you — the people I’ve met in town halls, backyards and diners across America — our troubled economy isn’t news. 600,000 Americans have lost their jobs since January. Paychecks are flat and home values are falling. It’s hard to pay for gas and groceries and if you put it on a credit card they’ve probably raised your rates. You’re paying more than ever for health insurance that covers less and less. This isn’t just a string of bad luck. The truth is that while you’ve been living up to your responsibilities Washington has not. That’s why we need change. Real change.

“This is no ordinary time and it shouldn’t be an ordinary election. But much of this campaign has been consumed by petty attacks and distractions that have nothing to do with you or how we get America back on track. Here’s what I believe we need to do. Reform our tax system to give a $1,000 tax break to the middle class instead of showering more on oil companies and corporations that outsource our jobs. End the “anything goes” culture on Wall Street with real regulation that protects your investments and pensions. Fast track a plan for energy ‘made-in-America’ that will free us from our dependence on mid-east oil in 10 years and put millions of Americans to work. Crack down on lobbyists once and for all — so their back-room deal-making no longer drowns out the voices of the middle class and undermines our common interests as Americans. And yes, bring a responsible end to this war in Iraq so we stop spending billions each month rebuilding their country when we should be rebuilding ours.

“Doing these things won’t be easy. But we’re Americans. We’ve met tough challenges before. And we can again. I’m Barack Obama. I hope you’ll read my economic plan. I approved this message because bitter, partisan fights and outworn ideas of the left and the right won’t solve the problems we face today. But a new spirit of unity and shared responsibility will.”

Obama is gambling on the American people being more intelligent than most politicians assume. He may or may not win this way, but this is a welcome difference from the McCain strategy of assuming that the American people are idiots as he repeats the same lies over and over without regards to how often his lies are exposed by the media and fact checkers. There’s no way to say how this will turn out in November, but at the moment events, and the polls, are again favoring Obama. First Read writes:

After the news of the crisis on Wall Street, McCain’s “the fundamentals of our economy are strong” stumble on Monday, the slip-ups yesterday by McCain’s two biggest economic surrogates (see below for more on that), and four days of sustained TV ad and email blasts by the Obama campaign and the DNC, the political worm seems to have turned a tad since the Palin bounce. Indeed, while we’re not crazy about focusing too much on those daily tracking polls, their needles have moved in Obama’s direction the past couple of days (and we bet that continues today). And guess what — we’re not talking as much about Palin as we were last week, except for the latest developments in the Troopergate scandal in Alaska. The race has turned back into McCain vs. Obama, and it currently is sitting on turf (the economy) that should favor Democrats.

6 Comments

  1. 1
    Jerry says:

    Barack is trying once more to take the high road.  His gamble isn’t just that the American people are more intelligent than others assume; it’s also that Americans will react to calmness during a crisis situation.
    To hear him tell it, McCain is out for blood.  You and I know that it’s just more fake outrage, but the average guy might see McCain and Obama reacting differently and think (or feel): “Whoah, do I really want that angry guy in there breaking heads or do I want this calm, smart guy fixing things?”
    My point is that it’s not just a play for peoples’ minds,but also their feelings.  Because Obama’s demeanor is one of calmness during a crisis, it should have the result of calming people down and they should respond to that positively.

  2. 2
    DrToketee says:

    This country voted TWICE for the worst President in our history, and TWICE for the loser of ALL the President debates since 2000. So there is no evidence whatsoever that the American electorate is smart enough to choose the best candidate on their own. No way. Obama has to SELL better than McCain, period.

  3. 3
    Ron Chusid says:

    I’ll respond to this with a quote from a Republican who certainly would not be a Republican if alive today:

    “You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.”
    —  Abraham Lincoln

    McCain might be able to con the voters yet again, but his lies are becoming increasingly outrageous. Attacking the press when they expose his lies won’t help him either.

    McCain’s reputation is a fiction created by favorable relations with the press in the past. Now that he lost his base in the press he will have a tough time maintaining that reputation. The question is whether there is enough time to change the minds of low-information voters who have a false impression of McCain.

  4. 4
    Plunge Protection Team says:

    Ralph, Ron, & Cynthia:

    Now they’re planning the crime of the century
    Well what will it be?
    Read all about their schemes & adventuring
    It’s well worth the fee

    So roll up and see
    How they rape the universe
    How they’ve gone from bad to worse

    Who are these men* of lust, greed, & glory?
    Rip off the masks & let’s see

    But that’s not right, oh no, what’s the story?
    There’s you & there’s me

    That can’t be right

  5. 5
    Charles Hill says:

    According to the New York Times, Democrats blocked Bush’s Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac reforms so low income people with bad credit could buy houses.
    ”These two entities -Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac – are not facing any kind of financial crisis. The more people exaggerate these problems, the more pressure there is on these companies, and the less we will see in terms of affordable housing.” said Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts, the ranking Democrat on the Financial Services Committee.
    http://strategicthought-charles77.blogspot.com/2008/09/democrats-blocked-bushs-fannie-mae-and.html

  6. 6
    Ron Chusid says:

    True, there is plenty of blame to go around to members of both parties. You are referring to events in 2003 when it is more understandable that they did not anticipate a crisis several years in the future. Since then the Republicans also pushed deregulation and did their share to contribute to this fiasco when the had control of both the White House and Congress.

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