I’m rather looking forward to having Pelosi leading the Democrats…
WSJ. Economists predict consumer spending this quarter will be the lowest in a decade. Things aren’t looking that good. We are close to a tipping point.
Personal consumption is expected to grow just 1.1% — slower than at any time during last year’s recession, when the overall economy shrank for three consecutive quarters. It would be the slowest rate since 1993.
Sorry to the folks that like Pelosi for the post made below. She probably is a great person. I am just very sad to see the only viable opposition party retreat into bad habits. Her politics aren’t nationally viable by a long shot. This is important given that the country is sliding towards an economic morass.
With Bush for all intents and purposes unopposed, we have a recipe for disaster. Instead of financial stimulus for the average consumer we are going to see tax cuts (the repeal of the estate tax) aimed at people that don’t need it and will not spend it (which will serve to push up the deficit and thereby raise long term rates — adding further downward pressure on the economy). Instead of psychological reassurance that we can return to our economic lives without fear of disruption, we are getting more talk of disruption from an unnecessary war. Instead of confidence building measures dealing with the clean-up of corporate management practices, we are getting a whitewash of the issue. The list goes on… [John Robb’s Radio Weblog]