Fixing The Economy Is Our Most Important National Security Issue, Period

Checking the comments here at lunch, Paul W. asked what we could do about improving the economy in lieu of a new Public Works Administration-style program that won't get through Congress.  One of the things we must do now is serious financial reform in this country.  It's a matter of national security.

The Associated Press reports that the FBI has issued an intelligence  note warning  police that an anti-government group’s call to remove dozens of  sitting governors may encourage others to act out violently. The group, “Guardians  of the Free Republics,” wants to “restore America” by dismantling  parts of the government, according to its web site. Governors receiving  the threat include Bobby Jindal (R-LA), Jim Doyle (D-WI), Chet Culver  (D-IA), Jim Gibbons (R-NV), among others.

While much of the rhetoric  from the group resembles the style of patriot  extremist organizations, their concerns seem to stem directly from  economic anxiety. The group’s broadcasting affiliate, Republic Broadcasting Network,  advertises survival kits, gold buying guides, and other hallmarks of a  movement in America which believes that the country is heading towards  economic collapse. The website also promotes tea party protests,  calls for revolution, videos from Glenn Beck, and  sympathetic articles about recent right-wing domestic terrorist  activities, like the suicide  attack on an IRS building in Austin earlier this year.

Guardians of the Free Republics’ call to dismantle the government has  gained traction on right-wing tea party websites. The groups’  proclamation is posted on ResistNet,  the popular tea party forum, as well as Tree  of Liberty, a tea part forum known to have been frequented  by users which supported Hutaree, the Christian militia recently arrested  in Michigan. 

Yes, domestic terrorism is a clear and present danger right now in America.  It's being made worse by the economy.

A Department of Homeland Security report,  ridiculed  by Republican lawmakers last year, details that extended economic  downturn with real estate foreclosures, unemployment and an inability to  obtain credit could foster an environment for extremists to recruit new  members who may not have been supportive of these causes in the past.  Indeed, the New York Times reported  last weekend that many of the tea party and other anti-government  protesters have been “jolted into action by economic distress” and are  themselves unemployed or facing underwater mortgages. 

As another famous Democratic President once said, "It's the economy, stupid."  And right now the economy is acting as a force multiplier for domestic terror threats in the United States.  Which brings us to Paul's question:  what can Obama and the Dems do to fix the economy?

Passing a real financial reform bill with teeth has to be priority one now.  The problem is we have to have a financial reform bill that passes our Republican overlords.

Treasury  Secretary Timothy Geithner said Friday he believed the Senate was "very  close" to a financial reform bill that protects consumers and limits  financial company risk taking that will win Republican supporters.

"We're very close on the substance,"  Geithner told Bloomberg Television in a live interview.

"I think that if you listen carefully,  you'll see Republicans moving our way on this because it's very hard,  given the damage caused by this crisis, for anyone to stand up and say,  'We don't need strong protections for consumers and we don't need to  limit risk taking in the financial sector,'" Geithner said.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman  Christopher Dodd has said he hopes to bring his reform bill to the  Senate floor shortly after Congress returns from its Easter recess on  April 12. The bill had no Republican votes in the committee, but Dodd  hopes to win the backing of a handful of Republicans for Senate passage.

But the Republicans just won't vote for a real reform bill, period.  None of them will.  That might actually help fix the economy.  We've already established that they're willing to see the country burn just to get Obama out of office.  BooMan suggests that it will take the GOP blocking financial reform to break them in 2010.

One way to combat this national mood is to time some very popular  legislation for the fall that is crafted in such a way that it will  guarantee a Republican filibuster.  What we want is for the public to  have the perception that the Republicans are standing in the way of  needed reforms and that the last thing we need is to give them even more  power to block legislation.  To do this, the Democrats need a  sacrificial lamb...something they don't mind seeing go down to a  filibuster.  That's the problem with using the most obvious bill...the  financial services bill.  Do we really want to fail to address the  too-big-to-fail problem?  This is especially hard to contemplate  because, crafted more to the GOP's liking, the financial sector reforms  could become a major bipartisan victory of the type Obama has been  seeking since he came into office.  On the other hand, a bill that is to  the GOP's liking is not going to truly fix the problem.  Decisions,  decisions...

That could be a fatally risky plan.  Without real financial reform, the economy will almost certainly collapse again in the next few years. On the other hand, far worse things could happen if the GOP regains control of Congress again.  Financial reform, real reform, is something we have to have.  But it is the most obvious sacrifice to feed to the GOP's Party of No Machine, and doing so may be necessary to prevent a far worse fate.