Well, I hear that there were a few elections held...I suspect there's something to be had in that.
And there's the Fed actions, and a relatively good jobs report (note: still no liberal hack economists to tell us that the economy is now booming because of the brilliant policies from Barack Obama).
So I guess one could dig through the big news for some good tidbits (redistricting? State props? Iowa judges?), or find the items that were buried by the bigger stuff.
You know what I think mattered: the Giants won the World Series!
Oh, and speaking of sports, I have no idea whether she'll win today, but whether she does or not, Zenyatta has been amazing. There aren't enough adjectives. And if she actually can win back-to-back Classics and retire 20 for 20....well, I can't think of any similar achievement in any sport over the last forty years. I know practically none of you are interested in horse racing, but if you want to see a really special horse, you might want to flip over to ESPN this afternoon.
At any rate: what do you think mattered this week?
QE2. More important than the midterms. Now we get to see if it actually does anything. Fingers crossed!
ReplyDeleteGotta say it's the elephant in the room: the midterms.
ReplyDeleteThe inmates are in charge of the asylum.
(They also gave me a little paper idea, so that matters to me and my career)
It's the real elephant in the room: KEITH OLBERMANN. This will be remembered as the Fort Sumter of the battle between new and old journalism.
ReplyDeleteThere's a case to be made that the election result might end up helping Obama, and not because of anything that happens in Washington.
ReplyDeletePeople in the investor class mostly regard the election result as good news, right in there along with QE2 and the jobs report, and in the short term it might help loosen their pocketbooks and jump start the economy.
A bit convoluted, but delicious irony.
Let's see. What mattered? Obviously, the 800 pound gorilla was the midterm election and all the different ways it will matter who controls the House.
ReplyDeleteI think the Cali election mattered a lot. That the voters were finally willing to pass a budget on a majority vote was the most significant result of the California election. Plus an all but Dem sweep of the good State. Still less than two-thirds in the leg houses, though. Too bad.
And, it's turning out that Rahmbo's exit matters. Read this little gem by journo extraordinaire Peter Baker on the internal changes in the WH these days. Haven't you noticed a change in tenor and tone emanating from the White House lately?
And, of course, what really, really matters is when your team wins. At long long last.
Besides the midterms and QE2, which everyone has correctly noted...
ReplyDelete-The California elections, specifically the initiatives. New budget rules and new redistricting rules (shared with Florida). The state may finally become functional, and create a lot more sensible congressional seats. I didn't hear what happened with the climate change initiative, but it has huge implications, too, owing mostly to CA's size.
-White House staff turnover. I actually don't think a lot of this matters (Plouffe-for-Axelrod may create a different tone for the WH, but does that really matter?) except in terms of using executive power. However, it seems like Goolsbee, Bernstein, and the political advisors may have a greater say in that now, and they seem like they're more interested in that kind of action.
Well, we all clearly agree that the midterms represent some sort of creature from Africa, whether it be a gorilla or an elephant.
ReplyDelete