Caryn Freeman
In anticipation of Mondays stock market slide the blame game began early Sunday morning on the talk show circuit. Reaction and opinions to Friday’s stock market losses were flying and while many forecasted what would come when the US markets opened Monday morning I think none predicted the 635 point slide we saw by the time the markets closed Monday afternoon. Alan Greenspan, former Fed Chair appeared Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Greenspan said he did expect the markets to slide Monday in reaction to the credit downgrade issued by Standard and Poor’s and markets that the markets would take time to bottom out indicating that Tuesday could be another rough ride on Wall Street.
U.S. Congresswoman Betty McCollum (D-MN) issued a statement Monday afternoon noon condemning the Tea Party for their carelessness and lack of foresight in regard to their negotiation tactics and how their strategy could affect U.S. and world markets. The statement released Monday read, "The Tea Party Republican strategy of exploiting the debt ceiling increase into a political crisis has clearly damaged U.S. credibility in the global financial markets. The S&P downgrade cited 'political brinksmanship' and the willingness to use the debt ceiling as a "political bargaining chip." These factors can only be attributed to the irresponsible and irrational game playing of the Tea Party GOP House leadership and freshman. Today's turmoil on Wall Street and the ever increasing possibility of a recession are direct consequences of the Tea Party Republican's careless, destructive political conduct which is now devastating the markets and middle class America."
Other legislators chimed in on the market crash including the President in his afternoon address Monday, “"No matter what some agency may say, we've always been and always will be, a AAA country," the President said. Unfortunately the market doesn’t react well to inside the beltway talking point speeches. The cold hard facts of real world financial markets aren’t influenced by the Washington speech writers writing reassuring speeches for the American public to hear. In a town where accountability starts with who points fingers fast and first followed by which direction the press chooses to point their pens. In this round everyone involved loses. Congress and the president have shown the world with their maladroit handling of the country’s finances that the U.S. markets and political system are suffering from remarkable disorder. Everyone is to blame and yesterday the emperor had no clothes because we aren’t an “AAA” country any longer and no the tooth fairy isn’t coming tonight either.
Despite the president's assurances, the debt debacle has clearly created an economic disaster. Once in office, unlike life on the campaign trail, the uplifting speeches subside and you’re responsible for answering truthfully for the state of affairs in this country not just giving “hope” to the masses. New York's Senator, Charles Schumer (D) offered a more candid response to yesterday’s stock market turmoil at a ground breaking ceremony for New York State ISO's new power control center in East Greenbush. As the stock market has shown over the last few days and as the stock market has shown, you pay a price when you say 'We're not going to pay our bills,'" the Senator remarked.
Even though there are whispers QE3 or QE2.1 the panic may continue to spread until Todays Federal Reserve’s announcement on monetary policy due at 2:15 p.m. Eastern time. However there won’t be any QE3 or QE2.1 until Congress is able to chime in which won’t be for another four weeks after Labor Day when they return from their August recess. Market insider and celebrated investor Jim Rogers, CEO of Rogers Holdings said the U.S. doesn't deserve an AA-plus credit rating, much less triple-A. Rogers also said the country was unlikely to be able to pay off its debt and Standard and Poor's rating cut had come too late and should have happened long ago. "It seems to me it's physically, humanly impossible for the U.S. to ever pay off its debt. They can roll it over and continue to play the charade, but the U.S. is bankrupt." As the markets opened today the Dow is up just over 100 points at 10,912.