In Paulson We Trust?

If you follow the statements Hank Paulson has made over the course of the last year and a half, you can only come to one of two conclusions. He is either incompetent or he is a boldface liar. Neither traits make me confident in the wisdom of a bailout directed by this man, nor the fact that it includes a virtual blank check to buy and do anything he damn well pleases. Here is a history of Hanky Panky and his version of rockin' the economy 21st century style. Consider this in the context of plenty of intelligent people who not only saw this coming, but could tell you exactly why it happened and have been for years.

In March of 2007, after the first shock waves of the housing meltdown had already hit, the Associated Press reported Mr. Paulson's view that the credit difficulties linked to the housing slump would be limited.

In August of last year, after the second round of financial shock waves disrupted markets worldwide, Paulson commented, "We have the strongest global economy I’ve seen in my business lifetime."

Just last March he warmly endorsed a reduction in the capital requirements for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, saying "additional capital [invested in mortgages by Fannie and Freddie] will enable the companies to help more homeowners and will strengthen the underlying fundamentals of the mortgage market."

At every point along the way, Secretary Paulson has failed to see the extent of the crisis resulting from the collapse of the housing bubble. This raises serious questions about his judgement. Reporters should be discussing Paulson't track record in the context of this bailout proposal....