editoriaLIES

Double dose from the Times Union on the 26th:

DYSFUNCTION, U.S.A.

...We've seen his early salvos, like his refusal to accept Congress' attempt to block the appointment of a director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. He used presidential power to make out-of-session appointments and installed Richard Cordray while Congress was on break, even though Republicans -- copying a trick employed by Democrats during the Bush administration -- kept gaveling in and out of "session" trying to thwart him.

Which they did, because Bush obeyed the Constitution. The President does NOT have the power to make "recess appointments" when Congress is not IN recess. Saying he has this power is a lie. If Congress "was on break" then how could they have passed the tax rate extension that Obama signed?

Together, they have less than a year to get some serious work done before Americans render their verdict on who's to blame for the way things are -- the one with ideas, or those sitting on their hands.

The not-so-subtle lie is that the GOP, referred to as the "loyal opposition", are "sitting on their hands" when it comes, not just to listening to the latest Obama speechification, but when it comes to working to get the nation moving, versus the "ideas" of Obama. This is lie #2. It is the GOP that has passed a number of economic packages in the House. It is the GOP that has prepared a number of budgets. It is Obama, the man with the "ideas" who hasn't actually put together a serious budget and HIS party of "ideas" that hasn't passed a budget for over 1,000 days in the Senate...who is "sitting on their hands"? Hint: it's not the "loyal opposition".

MR. OBAMA SEES THE CRISIS

...Mr. Obama badly wanted to announce such a deal, worth about $17 billion for homeowners threatened with foreclosure, in his State of the Union speech.

Instead he told the country that more investigation is needed of banks and the improper real estate loans they made.

So there it is, the sort of detail that Mr. Obama's critics often say is missing in the economic remedies he prescribes.

That's one of the easiest lies to spot in years. Lie #3 for this day. He didn't announce anything and said 'hey we need another investigation'...and the Times Union declares that "the sort of detail...in the economic remedies he prescribes". Really? The detail his "critics often say is missing" is 'we need another investigation'? Sorry, that's as far from "detail" as you can get...it's like the polar opposite of "detail". I almost think this was a typo or something it sounds so crazy. 'We kinda thing we oughta do something about some stuff or something.' Yeah, that's the kind of pinpoint accuracy people want to see!

For a president who at last seems committed to taking the difficult political measures that full economic recovery will require, mortgage relief can't be modest.

Just out of curiosity - how will crushing banks lead to "full economic recovery"? Aren't banks going to have to play a part in "full economic recovery"? Won't they need to, like, lend money and stuff to people for "full economy recovery" to take place?

Interesting that they don't bother to mention how Obama's taken more money from the players they mention as needing prosecution than any other president.