I saw him on Face the Nation and on CNN and, in both instances, he was trying to re-assure the American people that the banking system was fundamentally strong and on a par with other industrialized countries. But there was something about the way his voice quivered and the way his hands shaked that led me to believe that he didn't believe a word he was saying. They know we are in deep shit.
Like father, like son? It was under the leadership of the first George Bush when the S & L's had to be bailed out. Now, under the second George Bush, we are going to have to bail out the entire banking system. But, consider this: "As real estate loans continue to sour and as rising unemployment and rising prices provoke defaults across an array of other loans, analysts expect up to 150 banks to fail in the next year or so. That, in turn, could force the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to raise more money from surviving banks to replenish its $53 billion reimbursement fund; the IndyMac failure alone could take up to 15 percent of the F.D.I.C.’s fund. The potential need to raise money does not call into question the soundness of that safety net, but it is indicative of the challenges that confront both banks and policy makers."
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/20/opinion/20sun1.html?ref=opinionDo you really want to know what the Secretary of the Treasury, Henry Paulson, knows? His hands were shaking for good reason.
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