The Fact of My Ignorance

At this point I think most political observers agree that the selection of Tim Geithner for Treasury Secretary was not one of President Obama’s best decisions.  Its not his tax evasion that gets me, though that’s disappointing in its own right, its his apparent inability to recognize the great importance of image in his position.  I’ve just recently watched Geithner’s debut press conference from last week and it was shockingly poor.  Part of Geithner’s problem is that, while he’s undoubtedly an intelligent person with nearly ideal experience and education for his position (he has graduate degrees in East Asian Studies as well as International economics), his boyish features make him look like he’s still a frat boy from some angles.  And his jilted speech, constant eyes on the tele-prompter, nervous rocking back and forth, and deer-in-the-headlights facial expression make him come-off… Continue reading

Well I might as well get started.  On this blog I’m planning on spending a fair amount of time covering principles rather than current events, but with all that’s happening now with the stimulus, and with us being at the beginning of one of the greatest economic crisis in American history, I thought it would be appropriate to talk about it a bit.  Just in case you missed it, these are the prepared remarks from President Obama’s news conference a few days ago.  Its via Hulu so you may have to watch a commercial before it starts.  If you haven’t watched it yet I suggest you do so.  In fact its probably a good idea to watch the rest of his remarks as well.  Which can also be found on Hulu.

I thought he did a good job explaining some of the rationale behind the plan and driving home some of the most important points.  Overall I just thought it was great to have a president who was willing to admit that the plan wasn’t perfect and that things may not turn out the way they hope.  His candor was really refreshing.  And he took the time to explain things to the American people.  He didn’t just say “trust me”, he didn’t just spew slogans and talking points, he tried to explain the plan the way a friend would try to explain it to you.  Once again, very refreshing.

Still the stimulus plan is complex, and he was only able to address a few of the issues surrounding the bill.  Hopefully I’ll be able to delve into some of them a little more deeply tomorrow.