It would seem that the political fate of Barack Obama and the Democrats is pretty much out of their hands. If the economy recovers, it’s all roses; if it doesn’t, there might not be much that the government can do, and the Democrats will take a severe spanking in the 2010 midterm elections. This yesterday in a news analysis piece, from the New York Times, on the economy:
Regardless of whether a second round of stimulus came from higher spending or lower taxes, the added kick to the economy would take months to arrive and would push the deficit even higher. One risk facing policy makers is that bond investors around the world, already jittery about the flood of new Treasury debt being issued, would become even more nervous about future inflation and demand higher interest rates. Higher rates would probably push up the cost of mortgages as well as business borrowing, offsetting any lift that came from an additional stimulus program.
It may be that the economy will simply have to right itself at its own speed. I’m hoping that speed accords with elections and redounds to the Democrats’ favor, but there’s no telling. Republicans, for all their Keystone Kops stepping upon themselves this year, may nevertheless be rewarded in 2010 in spite of themselves.
Prometheus Unbound 