Below is Glenn Greenwald on Democracy Now:
http://www.democracynow.org/2010/2/25/glenn_greenwald_dems_hiding_behind_filibuster
It rundowns the various political maneuvers the WH and Democrats have used to create the health care reform farce. It also covers some of the games played over not restoring civil liberties, NSC spying, and so forth. As I watched Greenwald I was amazed at how bad the Obama administration has turned out to be. If Obama is in office, it is entirely due to the fact he was not George Bush. Why follow the same policies?
The only answer must be delusional belief in neoliberal ideology, the trickle down theory, belief that the rich and the market will do the right thing. This is ridiculous. The economy that produces goods and services is dying, basically starved to death by neoliberal policies that privilege the elite financial parasites.
I watched the Obama/Congressional summit today. It's here in full:
http://www.c-span.org/Topics/Health-Care-Insurance-Reform-Legislation-Town-Hall.aspx
Click on as much as you can stand. I would urge people to struggle through some of it.
The only interest deliberately excluded were the two most impacted groups: service delivery providers (medical and allied providers) and the people who would benefit or be harmed by changes to medical and health care. It's no accident these are the very groups who have pushed for single payer. So today's WH meeting is pretty much the Copenhagen syndrome.
Below is a link to Elizabeth Warren's Congressional Oversight Panel listening to people from Treasury, GM, GMAC, a banking expert and an auto business expert. Each of the three panels is composed of two people. While its long at 2:40+/hrs/mins it provides more insight into what is going than just about anything I've seen so far (except LBO Newsletter of course).
http://www.c-span.org/Watch/Media/2010/02/25/HP/A/30042/Congressional +Oversight+Panel+Hearing+on+TARP+Assistance+for+GMAC.aspx
The most interesting part of this is subtle. What it shows is a view of the integrated economic system of government, manufacturer, distribution-dealer, and customer sections and the in-house financial system to grease the neoliberal way. It shows who was helped, hindered, and saved. What was saved was GMAC the finance part. What wasn't saved were the workers in manufacturing as they took lay-offs, pay and benefit cuts and other pain, and of course the tax payers who will probably never get the money back, or get affordable, more eco-friendly cars. (If there is such a thing.)
So then this is a little model of what has been saved with the whole neoliberal system, as well as how the neoliberal system works. What got GMAC into trouble? Was it finance of car sales and its finance of dealer orders and inventories? No. During the 90s GMAC got on the bandwagon of home loans and selling these as mortgage backed securities---to Lehman Brothers and some other company that failed.
The last panel was the best. Listen to Mr. Whalen in particular. He is a bank evaluator for investors. He is his own S&Ps. He rates GMAC F and negative buy. He is, I am not sure what. Cold hearted asshole comes to mind. But at least he was an informative and blunt panelist.
CG