Should it surprise the reader that Mr. Luce begins his essay with a small quote from Timothy Geithner? ‘“plan beats no plan”
What might the reader make of this demonstration of Mr. Geithner experience with ‘plan’?
WASHINGTON — Treasury secretary nominee Timothy Geithner on Wednesday said he made “careless mistakes” when he did not pay all of his taxes while working at the International Monetary Fund and apologized to senators for adding to their burden when the economy is in the midst of a severe recession.
“These were careless mistakes,” Geithner told members of the Senate Finance Committee during his nearly four-hour confirmation hearing. “They were avoidable mistakes, but they were unintentional. I should have been more careful. I take full responsibility.”…
In total, Geithner paid $34,023 in back taxes and $8,679 in interest.
What must Mr. Luce think of his readers political memory?
Reading further Luce paraphrases the Biden Campaign:
It seems like a good moment to enter the 21st century with the “largest mobilisation of public investments” since the second world war, as the Biden campaign puts it.
That campaign is careful to avoid any mention of The New Deal, as Neo-Liberals are its ardent opponents, in the political present. Its was once dubbed, by Republicans, as ‘New Deal Nostalgia’ in a effort to ‘cancel’ the Reform Wing of the New Democratic party. But look at the number of wins, for reformist Democrats, in recent elections. Or are all those ‘wins’ a collection of anomalies? Biden is an ardent opponent of ‘Medicare for All’
In order of appearance comes :
the ungrateful Left and its would be champion Elizabeth Warren, who stayed in contests, in which she could not even place, as an impediment to Sanders wins
The ‘Left’ should be grateful according to the Luce’s Speculative History Warren and Sanders will draft legislation
Luce then explores 1932 and then offers better analogies
America’s left should picture a Biden presidency:
A Biden administration would be their best opportunity of rewriting America’s social contract in more than half a century. The left’s instincts to go for the perfect over the good could still get in the way.
https://www.ft.com/content/27b43b9c-1996-4f42-80e0-9e6c8a2a6178
Mr. Luce’s essay continues to wander, in the territory of political speculations, on our possible present, and possible future. This essays loses what force, it may have had, as an unofficial Press Release from the Biden/Harris campaign.
Old Socialist
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Do read Mr. Luce’s column from July 24 , 2016 :
Headline: The fight of Hillary Clinton’s life
Sub-headline: If she opts for politics as usual against the headline-grabbing Trump, prepare for a tense election
‘First things first. Donald Trump could beat Hillary Clinton. To many Americans, mere talk of it is preposterous. They should get used to it. At some point, Mr Trump is likely to take a lead in the polls. It might last for two days or persist for weeks. Liberal Americans should steel themselves. As author Nancy Isenberg put it: “When you turn an election into a three-ring circus, there’s always a chance the dancing bear will win.”
Mrs Clinton, moreover, is capable of squandering her inbuilt advantage. Whatever happens at the Democratic convention in Philadelphia this week, the next three months will be the battle of her life.
What should most concern the anti-Trump forces? Mrs Clinton’s biggest hurdle is the depth of hatred for her across large parts of America. Personally, I have always found Hillaryphobia hard to fathom. As first lady in the 1990s, she was hated for being a creature of the left — her supposed radical feminism and her push to enact leftwing healthcare reform. Nowadays she is reviled for the opposite reasons.
The Hillary Clinton of 2016 personifies Wall Street values and an entitled global elite. The common thread between these two phases, briefly suspended when she was Barack Obama’s secretary of state, is the view that every move she makes is for political gain. Nothing is authentic. Even Mrs Clinton’s gender is a kind of calculated ruse.…
https://www.ft.com/content/44088ede-5027-11e6-8172-e39ecd3b86fc
Comparing this 2016 column, to today’s column, it almost makes Mr. Luce of 2016 look positively prescient!
StephenKMackSD
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