AIG deal a damning verdict on Republican economy: Obama
Democrat Barack Obama said on Wednesday the US bailout of stricken insurance giant AIG was the "final verdict" proving that wholesale economic change is needed in a new White House.
By Agencies |
BURBANK: Democrat Barack Obama said on Wednesday the US bailout of stricken insurance giant AIG was the "final verdict" proving that wholesale economic change is needed in a new White House.
Obama said his Republican rival John McCain, despite "his 11th-hour conversion to the language of reform," had subscribed to an economic philosophy that was now exposed by the crisis on Wall Street as a "colossal failure."
In a statement, the Democratic presidential contender said: "It is time for a new economic strategy, guided by the principle that America prospers when all Americans prosper, where common-sense rules of the road ensure that competition is fair, open, and honest.
"The fact that we have reached a point where the Federal Reserve felt it had to take this unprecedented step with the American Insurance Group is the final verdict on the failed economic philosophy of the last eight years," he said.
AIG's full name is actually American International Group.
"While we do not know all the details of this arrangement, the Fed must ensure that the plan protects the families that count on insurance," Obama added.
Scrambling to try to avert a new global economic shock, the US central bank and Treasury agreed an unprecedented 85-billion-dollar rescue loan for AIG.
The intervention sealed late Tuesday saved AIG from collapse and gave the US government a 79.9 per cent stake in the insurance behemoth.
The deal came after the failure of investment house Lehman Brothers and the fire-sale of Merrill Lynch to Bank of America, as Wall Street and markets beyond reel from a credit crunch linked to the slumping property market.
"It's a philosophy that lets Washington lobbyists shred consumer protections and distort our economy so it works for the special interests instead of working people; a philosophy that says we should give more and more to those with the most and hope that prosperity trickles down to the rest," he said.
Obama said his Republican rival John McCain, despite "his 11th-hour conversion to the language of reform," had subscribed to an economic philosophy that was now exposed by the crisis on Wall Street as a "colossal failure."
In a statement, the Democratic presidential contender said: "It is time for a new economic strategy, guided by the principle that America prospers when all Americans prosper, where common-sense rules of the road ensure that competition is fair, open, and honest.
"The fact that we have reached a point where the Federal Reserve felt it had to take this unprecedented step with the American Insurance Group is the final verdict on the failed economic philosophy of the last eight years," he said.
AIG's full name is actually American International Group.
"While we do not know all the details of this arrangement, the Fed must ensure that the plan protects the families that count on insurance," Obama added.
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"It should bolster our economy's ability to create good-paying jobs and help working Americans pay their bills and save their money. It must not bail out the shareholders or management of AIG."Scrambling to try to avert a new global economic shock, the US central bank and Treasury agreed an unprecedented 85-billion-dollar rescue loan for AIG.
The intervention sealed late Tuesday saved AIG from collapse and gave the US government a 79.9 per cent stake in the insurance behemoth.
The deal came after the failure of investment house Lehman Brothers and the fire-sale of Merrill Lynch to Bank of America, as Wall Street and markets beyond reel from a credit crunch linked to the slumping property market.
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"This crisis serves as a stark reminder of the failures of crony capitalism and an economic philosophy that sees any regulation at all as unwise and unnecessary," Obama said."It's a philosophy that lets Washington lobbyists shred consumer protections and distort our economy so it works for the special interests instead of working people; a philosophy that says we should give more and more to those with the most and hope that prosperity trickles down to the rest," he said.
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"Instead, the pain has trickled up - from the struggles of Main Street all the way up to the crises on Wall Street." Download
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