Looming Gridlock

[Reub]

If the November elections turn the Senate over to the R's as appears likely it might be a great time for the stock market and corporations.  I seem to recall that these are usually great times for stocks. Personally I'm hoping for a little more of a correction and that might be the perfect time to back up the truck. Does anyone have any stats on previous times when the Congress and the Prez were in total gridlock?

[Benko]

It would be great if we really had gridlock, but how do you know that congressional gridlock will not simply mean a long string of more actions by you know who, and how will that change your planning?

[Reub]

I really don't know that. However, I think that having Congress united against you know who's agenda might help to keep him in line, which would be a good thing for this country and possibly for the markets. They could really put him on the spot with legislation and budgeting on border defense, strong military, cowtowing to our enemies including Iran, wasteful spending, Obamacare, and possible impeachment if he goes further away from the Constitution.

Leon Panetta, recent Secretary of Defense and CIA Chief and a life-long Democrat has shown just how dangerous/incompetent you know who really is. The look on Panetta's face in his recent interviews shows just how worried he is about you know who's policies or lack there-of.

[TripleB]

I sincerely hope we get a Republican controlled Congress and keep a Democrat president. Our best possibility is when government removes government. Since that will never happen regardless of who is in charge, the second best situation is when government does nothing. Gridlock in government is good.

I'd actually prefer a Republican president and Democratic Congress as the ideal gridlock situation because our Democrat president likes to piss on the second amendment through executive orders. Congress has no such capability.

[PP4me2]

If the November elections turn the Senate over to the R's as appears likely it might be a great time for the stock market and corporations.  I seem to recall that these are usually great times for stocks. Personally I'm hoping for a little more of a correction and that might be the perfect time to back up the truck. Does anyone have any stats on previous times when the Congress and the Prez were in total gridlock?

I seem to recall seeing charts that seemed to prove there was absolutely no difference whether R's or D's controlled the government and I don't doubt that is true.

Other charts showed that R's had the highest budged deficits, at least until Obama.

If we have to look to R's for salvation I think we really are screwed. Even if they do something to make the economy better which is a big IF, I tend to think that will be totally offset by being the "War Party" as Pat Buchanan likes to say.

[Reub]

If the November elections turn the Senate over to the R's as appears likely it might be a great time for the stock market and corporations.  I seem to recall that these are usually great times for stocks. Personally I'm hoping for a little more of a correction and that might be the perfect time to back up the truck. Does anyone have any stats on previous times when the Congress and the Prez were in total gridlock?

I seem to recall seeing charts that seemed to prove there was absolutely no difference whether R's or D's controlled the government and I don't doubt that is true.

Other charts showed that R's had the highest budged deficits, at least until Obama.

If we have to look to R's for salvation I think we really are screwed. Even if they do something to make the economy better which is a big IF, I tend to think that will be totally offset by being the "War Party" as Pat Buchanan likes to say.

I am referring specifically to split government and gridlock, my man. Not whether one party is in charge or the other.

[Reub]

I was simply stating that I think that gridlock might be good because it has been good in the past. I believe that  Obama will try to do a lot more damage in his lame duck years but a counterforce in the Senate and House would mitigate some of it.

[Mountaineer]

I have not thought a lot about this, but my observation is that Congress seems to act like a bunch of disgruntled children much of the time (not to mention the president's behavior  ).  So, I'm becoming more aligned with the view we really just have one big disfunctional political party and it does not matter much whether the elephants or the asses are in charge of the stable.  The financial markets do not seem to correlate very well to company worth, fiat paper, or world events - they too seem like an out of control child. 

But, I'm old and have seen way too many unintended consequences by ill thought through actions of both well meaning and corrupt individuals, and both R and D political parties.  Not much surprises me anymore about human nature; perhaps that is why my faith is so strong - Scriptural wisdom and promises seem to play out over and over - same song, different verse.  Humans just can't seem to get their act together in any sort of sustained way; the more we "progress", the closer the downfall becomes, just like a comet in an eliptical orbit around the sun that is controlled by unseen forces - the faster the comet travels, the closer it is in time and space to the source of its ultimate distruction.

... Mountaineer

[Reub]

I haven't changed. Obama bad. A Republican Congress as a counterweight good. That's fairly consistent.
As a follower of the PP I believe that the future is unpredictable but it is still fun to try out different theories once in a while.
Have a problem with that Mr. Moderator?

[Reub]

I probably miss MediumTex. That's all.