Editor,
I read with dismay Matthew Waters’ letter to the editor published in the Nov. 20 issue of the Daily Lobo. The letter concerned Senator Tom Udall’s support for the Troubled Asset Relief Program. The letter is well-written, but the facts are wrong.
Everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion, but everyone is not entitled to his or her own facts. The TARP bailout was passed on Oct. 3, 2008 during President Bush’s term, not “last spring.” Mr. Waters should recall that the imminent collapse of the international bank credit system led one presidential candidate to postpone his presidential campaign, and that the Republican party was divided between following the lead of President Bush or doing nothing. Britain announced a bank recapitalization program soon after. On Oct. 13, every major European country joined it. On Oct. 14, the United States followed suit by using TARP funds to inject capital into banks, increase deposit insurance (for noninterest-bearing accounts) and guarantee new debt. I do not suggest that the unconditional loans administered during the last months of the Bush administration worked out well, but that is not Mr. Waters’ point.
If Mr. Waters is really complaining about the stimulus package, he should be aware that there were no “screaming economists.” Many wanted more and many wanted less, but there was a widespread recognition that a stimulus was required and that deficits would increase. He may wish to review the Nov. 8, 2008 New York Times opinion piece by Harvard economist Gregory Mankiw, economic adviser to President Bush and candidate Mitt Romney, in which Mankiw acknowledged that a stimulus would be necessary to support flagging demand. Many wanted it larger. The differences were over the speed, targeting and which mix would inspire consumer and market confidence in the short term and two years hence.
Mr. Waters makes harsh and partisan charges. He appears to want solutions without cost, a stimulus without deficit spending, tax cuts without increasing deficits and immediate results for problems decades in the making. Clearly, Mr. Waters is unhappy about the measures under way, but offers no better or
wiser course.
Robert Poyourow
UNM student
