Washington's "Political Discord" Turns Off Investors?

by JASmius



Methinks that "investors" don't understand the political system the Founding Fathers bequeathed us.  Which goes a long way to explain why they, and we, have thrown it away:

Political discord in Washington is hurting investor confidence the most of nine issues presented in a survey by Wells Fargo/Gallup.

Eighty-eight percent of the 1,011 investors polled August 15th-24th said the federal government's paralysis is hurting the investment climate.

88%.  More than "events in the Middle East" (82%), the Obama Depression (80%), "income inequality" (which is a function of the Obama Depression, which respondents also clearly do not understand -  78%), the Russian invasion of Ukraine (74%), Obama's Border Crisis (70%), Europe's self-inflicted economic depression (65%), and the Federal Reserve's dollar debasement (or perhaps they fear that she'll stop - addicts don't like withdrawal, after all - 51%).  More than any other real, legitimate crisis at home or abroad, Wall Street investors fear....an inefficient federal government.

There's just one thing that they're not "getting": That's the way the Framers designed the federal government to work.  Our system isn't supposed to be "efficient".  Why?  Because that way beckons the tyranny they had so recently escaped via the Revolutionary War and were adamant about preventing from ever arising in the Constitutional federal republic they were creating.  It is the reason why they divided power up, down, forward, back, sideways, and so many ways from Sunday that only the Tesseract could decipher it.  Three (NOT "co-equal") branches of government, all checking each other.  Two houses of Congress checking each other, one representing the States (the Senate), one representing the people (the House of Representatives).  No central repository in which for tyranny to incubate.  Frustrating those who would wish to inflict drastic (ahem) "fundamental transformations" that could endanger liberty and destabilize the country.

Obamerikastan is divided.  Has been for decades. To the degree that the nation is still quasi-republican (though increasingly democratic/oligarchical - note the small "r" and "d"), its government reflects that.  The result is "political discord," which everybody claims to abhor all the way up until they turn the keys to the proverbial kingdom over to one party or the other, not long after which "divided government" starts looking awfully attractive again.

I really wish they could make up their minds, but not before educating themselves on the U.S. Constitution so as to know what they're doing and not make matters exponentially worse.  Kind of like they did in 2008 and 2012, and will continue to do.

Now you know why I left the market three years ago, and have no plans to return any time soon.