I've been listening to Obama's comments and suggestions about the financial crisis - and I'm left with the question ---"Huh?"

Every question asked is answered with a long rambling "maybe this" or "maybe that" and "we need to analyze" and "we need to look at" and "we need to examine". He criticized McCain last week when McCain said he would assemble a group of economic experts to develop new oversight regulations - yet now Obama mentions several times "having committees of experts to analyze this".

Obama also put forth the opinion that we should look at buying mortgages of homeowners who are facing foreclosure to keep them in their homes (what about the thousands who have already lost homes? what about those people who bought stupidly?)

....and that we might need to provide another few billion to make sure CAR loans don't go into default, and to help people pay student loans borrowed for their education.

Oh - Obama also said we might need to bail out people who are going under financially due to credit card debt. Sure - let's pay off credit cards, too.

Is he nuts?

Where is he coming from with this? Pure socialism - a huge welfare system paid for by working taxpayers to cover anyone who doesn't make payments on anything they bought?

What he keeps saying is "there are many ways to do this" - but did not give one specific way to get out of the mess or to recover from it.

I think this guy will be in trouble on debates - he can't answer a question without a full speech of "if this" and "if that". I listened to all he said - and I have no idea what his point was. I heard no concrete suggestions or plan of action. He tried to blame some of the problem on McCain - but that seems a stretch as McCain has pointed out a developing financial crisis in home lending for over three years.

I seldom have agreed with Newt Gingrich over the years but I listened to an interview with him yesterday on a news station - and he gave more real information and pros/cons of this massive bailout in 10 minutes than Obama did in 30.

McCain hasn't gotten the press on this that Obama has but in 2005 it was Christopher Dodd, current ally of Obama, who kept McCain's bill to regulate risky financing in the housing/lending market from going to the floor for a vote. McCain wanted to put the brakes on lenders and have some oversight on the practices of sub-prime, etc - democrats said that would interfere with the "free market". Isn't so free now, is it?

As for blame - the buck stops at Congress. It was easier to brag about the great housing market than to look at the house of cards that market was sitting on - so Congress refused to look at it. The blame crosses party lines - and the solution should, too.

The problem has grown through both Republican and Democratic administrations and Congresses. Warnings were ignored by both parties.
The candidates and the politicians in Congress need to drop the partisan crap and get to work to solve the problem.

My feeling now is that we're in deep poop territory here.

kay