"Details are very unclear at this point, but it seems that an agreement on principles between administration officials and Congressional leaders feel apart roughly around the time the two presidential candidates were meeting with president Bush...Treasury secretary Hank Paulson apparently got down on his knees and begged House speaker Nancy Pelosi to move ahead with the bill, despite the fact that House Republicans were turning tail and running as rapidly as their partisan legs would carry them. Anxious to salvage their own political fortunes and those of their presidential candidate, John McCain, the GOP basically gave up on the bill and offered a counter-proposal consisting of '...insurance on mortgage-backed securities and advocating tax cuts and relaxed regulations'...
Markets are spooked, as you might expect, and central banks have been working to keep the situation under control while the bailout debacle plays out. The Federal Reserve, the Bank of England, the European Central Bank, and Swiss National Bank have been injecting massive amounts of capital into money markets, which have nearly screeched to a halt. Libor remains near its highest level since January...Washington Mutual is no more.
Hold on to your hats, readers. This could be a Friday to remember."
http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2008/09/above_the_fold_267.cfm
No comments:
Post a Comment