Month: December 2008

The news that Florida Republican Senator Mel Martinez will not run for re-election in 2010 and might even resign earlier and allow Governor Charlie Crist to give an edge to a successor who would be appointed before the 2010 election stirs speculation as to the possible return of former Governor Jeb Bush to political office, making him the third Bush to serve in Washington, DC.

Other Republicans who might be interested in the Senate seat have made it clear that they would stand aside if Jeb Bush chose to run for the Senate, and Bush himself has made it clear that he is seriously considering it as an option.  Were he to run or even be appointed ahead of time, he would be a prohibitive favorite to gain or retain the seat, considering his high public opinion rating when he left the Florida governorship in 2006.  It would be very difficult for any Democrat, including several South Florida congressmen, to take him on and win that seat.

Of course, the possible return of Jeb Bush to elected office makes one wonder if this would be the opening round of a THIRD Bush campaign to run for the Presidency, either in 2012 or 2016.  It is hard to imagine the country being attracted to another President Bush, but one must recall that it was Jeb who originally was supposed to be a Presidential candidate, had he won the Florida governorship on the first try in 1994.  The fact that Jeb lost the governorship race to Governor Lawton Chiles by the small margin of 60,000 votes (blamed on the condo Jewish vote in South Florida) and that brother George W won over Ann Richards in Texas the same year placed George W on the road to the White House.  One would like to believe that had Jeb been the candidate for President and won in 2000, that he would have done a better job in the office than his brother, who is about to leave the Presidency with a negative image and record that few Presidents in the past can match.  Jeb was always seen as the smarter, more capable son and the favorite of his parents, and this is well portrayed in the movie "W" produced by Oliver Stone.

In any case, imagine if Jeb Bush were to win the Presidency to follow Barack Obama, either by defeating him in 2012 or just following him in 2016.  That would mean a Presidential succession that would read as follows:  Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush, Obama, Bush! :)  Are we ready to accept that?  I hope NOT!  And imagine in the future the confusion among students who would wonder in some cases if the name Bush showing up three distinct times was the SAME Bush each time !  :)  LOL

Former Governor Mitt Romney of Massachusetts has declared that the government should let the domestic auto industry–General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler–go bankrupt because of bad management and their failure to adapt to the changing nature of the industry with the competition from Toyota, Honda and other foreign auto companies.  He sees a bailout as rewarding bad behavior and promoting awards for incompetence.

Certainly, there is much to condemn in the direction the domestic auto industry has taken in the past twenty years.  It is not an issue, however, that should determine the future of our economy, and Governor Romney, whose own dad, Governor George Romney of Michigan, was involved in the auto industry, is totally wrong in his assessment of what should be done.  How can a past presidential candidate, who shows ambition to try again for the GOP nomination in 2012, call for such a policy which would totally devastate the Midwest, and particularly his home state of Michigan, and cause the loss over a short period of time of more than three million jobs, not only directly in auto production, but also in auto sales, auto parts, and other related industries?  It would increase the unemployment rate by two and a half percent, putting us close to double digit unemployment, and would trigger the loss of millions of other jobs because the economy would be so detrimentally affected, and it would lead the nation into another Great Depression.

If we are willing to bail out banks and financial institutions which have been horribly irresponsible in their policies, then we owe the auto industry and its workers the same consideration.  If we fail to come to their aid with what is really a loan, not a giveaway, we will pay a far greater price over the long haul.  One must remember that the Carter Administration granted loans to Chrysler in the late 1970s, and it was paid back with interest within a few years and the company survived and prospered for a long time after this difficult moment of crisis.  Also, Herbert Hoover, in the height of the Great Depression, initiated the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, which provided low interest loans to help companies in trouble.  The only problem  is Hoover’s action was too little, too late.  We could be facing the same situation today if no action is taken very soon!

One thing is certain in my mind.  Mitt Romney has forfeited any legitimacy he has to compete for the Republican presidential nomination, and he should not be given any serious consideration for the Presidency.  He has already alienated his fellow Republican competitors of 2008–including Rudy Guiliani, John McCain, and Mike Huckabee–by what they correctly perceived as his phony conservatism, after a clearly liberal stint as the Governor of Massachusetts from 2002-2006.  Governor Romney, you have lost all credibility and the best thing you could do is stay out of suggesting economic policy as you have failed the test of leadership!

As we enter the month of December, the Obama Cabinet is taking shape, and the signs are good for the future.

President-Elect Obama has demonstrated vision, competence and steadiness, as well as a centrist, pragmatic approach in his selections.  He has shown willingness to have a cabinet which will challenge him, rather than just be "yes men".  He has shown elements of Abraham Lincoln and Franklin D Roosevelt who both had outspoken advisers, and he also has stated as Harry Truman said:  "The buck stops here!", that he would take full responsibility for decisions made.

It is a very impressive group that has been gathered together, including Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State, Robert Gates staying on as Secretary of Defense, Timothy Geithner as Secretary of the Treasury, Larry Summers as chief Economic Adviser, General James Jones as National Security Adviser, Susan Rice as United Nations Ambassador, Bill Richardson as Secretary of Commerce, Eric Holder as Attorney General, Janet Napolitano as Secretary of Homeland Security, and Tom Daschle as Secetary of Health and Human Services.

The appointment of Hillary Clinton is particularly inspiring and one can have confidence that she will do an excellent job in the State Department and could still have a political future if she performs as well as many political observers believe she will demonstrate.  It has been since before the Civil War that a Secretary of State has been elected President, but that does not mean it cannot happen in the future.  Overall, the promise of future accomplishments by President Obama and his exceptional group of advisers is something we can look forward to as a likely scenario.