We Need the Smart Dude

H/T RH: This pretty well sums up our choice:

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Installing Wall Street in the Oval Office

I'm no economist, but it seems to me that in its current form, the "700 Billion Dollar Bailout" is the financial equivalent of the Patriot Act and that the same Armageddon mentality that duped lawmakers into supporting that measure may further castrate the legislative and judicial branches of government, upsetting the critical, delicate balance of power in Washington. In the midst of this crisis, the Bush administration is moving to consolidate unprecedented power in the executive branch of government, this time giving one unelected person the authority to spend that $700 billion as they deem appropriate. Here's the language in the bill I find truly frightening:

Decisions by the Secretary pursuant to the authority of this Act are non-reviewable and committed to agency discretion, and may not be reviewed by any court of law or any administrative agency.

This is not about Paulson or whether or not we need to act. We do need to act, but we need to do so responsibly. Lack of oversight helped cause this problem and review is necessary, especially in a crisis.

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