January 30, 2016

Bernie Sanders could be the next Ronald Reagan (Dear God, anything but that!)

Anti-Reagan, Please!

http://www.salon.com/2016/01/25/bernie_sanders_could_be_the_next_ronald_reagan/

Whether you love him or hate him, no one can rightly deny that Ronald Reagan was a transformative president. As President Obama put it before he was elected:

“I think Ronald Reagan changed the trajectory of America in a way that, you know, Richard Nixon did not and in a way that Bill Clinton did not.”

The election of Reagan signaled an end to the New Deal era, which had endured for nearly half a century. After the 1980s, American politics shifted steadily to the right of the political spectrum, with Bill Clinton accelerating the Reagan revolution with his bi-partisan neoliberal reforms. This is why Reagan remains such a beloved figure for those on the right. Even though he would be considered a RINO today, he is worshipped by Republicans, while loathed by progressives. (And yet, most progressives would probably choose Reagan over any current GOP presidential candidate.)

After serving almost as many years as Reagan, President Obama recently compared himself to the 40th president, more or less saying that he was the Democrat’s Reagan, while the next Democratic president (i.e. Hillary Clinton) by that logic would be Bush 41. Unfortunately for progressives, however, Obama cannot really be considered the Democrat’s Reagan. He has been much less transformative than supporters once expected him to be, and he has not fundamentally altered America’s trajectory, as Reagan undoubtedly did...

So it is that Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt), who is a hedgehog like Reagan, is the only current presidential candidate who could potentially bring Reagan-style transformation if elected. Like Reagan, Sanders has a central vision, with policy ideas that wouldn’t stand a chance of passing in our current Congress. His goal is to bring forth a “political revolution,” just as Reagan did. When Reagan ran for president, he captured the vote of many former Democrats — namely, Reagan Democrats. Today, Sanders wants to recapture their vote. And, like Reagan, the idea of Sanders becoming president was “inconceivable” to the establishment not too long ago. For many, it still is....

January 30, 2016

Weekend Economists Start Groundhog Day a Little Early, January 29-31, 2016

Okay campers! Rise and Shine! And don't forget your booties, cause it's cooold out there...It's Groundhog Day!

Yup. The next 6 weeks or so, it will be one Groundhog Day after another, until the obvious can no longer be denied....primary season is like that! The political hacks try every possible variation on a theme (except the more extreme suicidal ones that Bill Murray resorted to in the flick, although this year they might break even that boundary), until reality sets in and the situation settles down...

But will it? Will anything settle, this year? The markets are like Jello quivering, the politics are like a sandstorm scouring the life out of the landscape, the cops are still shooting people dead, and the Swarm is still hunting posters to extinction.

Proserpina has returned to her books, and begged a favor. After looking over past Weekends, I must admit, it's a challenge to come up with something new, hence the rerun. Everybody likes Groundhog Day, anyway. It reminds us of a kinder, gentler time, when most of the population wasn't stark raving mad.

So, for a quick review of the week, and a glimpse into a glass darkly for the future...read on! And remember, if you miss something, it will probably reappear in 7 days...