Stim-U-Later

My time on Fox was brutal last week. Not when we were discussing the gyrating markets—that was fine, but when the talk turned to the stimulus package---look out! Everyone was out for blood, denouncing the plan as unfair (“how can it be a rebate when some of the recipients didn’t pay taxes?”) and encouraging bad behavior (“these people (the recipients) will just spend the money---compounding their problems!”) Woe was the lone voice who did not want to sink to the level of a politician, but that’s where I was.

On Wednesday, a guest of “Your World with Neil Cavuto” nearly took my head, because I couldn’t see his point about fairness. Here is my take on the issue: the term “tax rebate” is a misnomer; it should be called what it is: an Uncle Sam gift card. I noted that even I, a middle-of-the-road, left leaning gal, could see that it is not a "rebate" when someone has not paid in. That being said, this is a STIMULUS plan, which is putting the US economy ahead of any one group. The goal is to inject some life into the system, which whether it works or not, at least does provide a psychological boost to many.

On “Cavuto on Business”, the talk turned to money and politics again. The question was: Do National Front-Runners (Clinton & McCain) Have Wall Street Running Scared? The introduction to the story queried: Should investors be worried since neither would be a tax-cutting, pro-free-market president? Is Wall Street worried no candidate would be a true tax-cutting, pro-free-market president? Could this be contributing to the stock market's uncertainty and selloff?

My take on this one is that Wall Street is more worried about events unfolding right now (depth of a potential US recession/credit crisis spreading) than focusing on these candidates, whose status as frontrunner could change in a matter of moments; therefore, NO, I do not think it has anything to do with the sell-off of the past month. Are you going to dump your stocks based on who you think might get into office and what he or she could do? I have said over and over that a President’s impact on the economy is far smaller than the Chairman of the Federal Reserve.

I must confess that I received a bunch of nasty e-mails after my appearances from people who really hate anyone who does not see the joy in political jousting and certainly believe that “left” is a four-lettered word. One person asked, “If you repeat "William Jefferson Clinton" in your mind, does the Looney Tunes theme song also bounce around in your head?” The answer that I did not write—do these people expect me to hit reply when they send such rude messages?—is the following: all I hear when I repeat that name is an eight-year economic expansion and a rising stock market.