Reform Begins Right Behind You, John McCain

On the same day Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy and A.I.G. Insurance looked very much like a goner, all because of Wall Street's shenanigans with toxic derivatives, John McCain appeared before a modest crowd in Jacksonville, Florida. He "struggled Monday for a consistent economic message in the face of the weekend's Wall Street meltdown," the Washington Post's daily campaign diary reports.

In what sounds very much like a confession, McCain promised to "clean up Wall Street" and vowed "we will never put America in this position again."

Who do you suppose that "we" is? Before you answer, look who had McCain's back:

Sitting behind McCain was former Gov. Jeb Bush, who was hired a year ago by Lehman Brothers as a financial consultant. As governor, Bush served on the three-member State Board of Administration that agreed to let the state's retirement fund buy a series of questionable mortgage-backed bonds from Lehman Brothers. The subsequent steep drop in value prompted a $9 billion run on the fund last December by local governments who had invested their money in the SBA managed fund.

If this is the "straight talk express" we'd like to get off, now, please.

Dept. of Amplification

Jeb Bush Shagged Florida
12-10-07