By Justin Raimondo

Forbes magazine President and CEO Steve Forbes called Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson “the worst treasury secretary we’ve had in modern times”, citing, among other things, the government’s handling of the housing crisis.

Even more perplexing is that while Israel is facing the worst crisis facing its existence since its establishment by the United Nations in 1948 it is, nevertheless, celebrating the record number of Jews elected to the US Congress where they now control over 10 percent of a government in a Nation where they comprise only 3 percent of the population and where next week President Bush will meet with Prime Minister Olmert to plan their military attacks upon Iran

The corruption of medical students is deep. Big Pharma practically sets the curriculum at many schools, and there's hardly a med school professor who isn't touched in some way by drug money.

So here we are. One of the economic "experts" who praised the misguided policies that generated the housing bubble now is to be a leading "player" is supposedly getting us out of the current economic crisis.

This another "footprint" telling us where Obama's "journey of discovery" is likely to be taking us.

Ron Paul talks with Russia Today discussing US foreign policy, the G20 summit, future financial regulations, and the possibility of an international central bank.

It is generally considered a courtesy for a newly inaugurated President to overlook any sins of the past incumbent in the interests of 'looking ahead' and in the knowledge that the same good manners will be repeated after his/her own end of term.

The most extreme example of this was Gerald Ford's pardon of Richard Nixon after the latter's ignominious resignation. Arguably necessary for the health of the nation after its 'long nightmare', it was nevertheless handled badly, and Ford paid a price by becoming a one-term President.

In late September, in this column, I criticized Barack Obama for what I called a "pathetic" debate with John McCain, in which Obama got nearly everything about foreign policy wrong:

Disappointment follows disappointment with each ‘new’ face, but there is a sort of silver lining.

Yes, we mustn’t expect too much. We all know it is the establishment that comes first in United States politics. Obama’s presidency could easily be sabotaged by the powers that put him there.

Whenever anyone attempts to build or rebuild anything; the first consideration has to be the ground on which whatever will be built, will eventually stand. In the case of Obama’s new $700 billion plan to rebuild the infrastructure of this nation—this concept is especially applicable.

Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s ineffectiveness became clear the day she became Speaker of the House and immediately announced that there would be no impeachment proceedings against President George W. Bush or Vice President Dick Cheney.

Guided by politics, she said leading investigations into just how much the Bush administration did – and did wrong – would be divisive. What she didn’t express was her worry that too many Democrats faced elimination from the House if they took on the difficult task of proving who knew what, when.

The FDA, you see, is a criminal organization engaged in tactics of intimidation, censorship and oppression that can only be properly called "terrorism." Don't take my word for it, though: The FDA's own top scientists are now on the record saying much the same thing! Their complaint to Congress alleges top FDA managers "ordered, intimidated and coerced FDA experts to modify their scientific reviews, conclusions and recommendations in violation of the law.”

Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman took another step Tuesday toward mending his relationship with Democrats, saying that Barack Obama's actions since winning the presidency have been "just about perfect."

"Everything that President-elect Obama has done since election night has been just about perfect, both in terms of a tone and also in terms of the strength of the names that have either been announced or are being discussed to fill his administration," Lieberman said during a visit to Hartford.

Seeking experience in wartime, President-elect Barack Obama intends to re-enlist Defense Secretary Robert Gates as head of the Pentagon - if only temporarily - and has chosen a retired Marine general to be White House national security adviser, officials said Tuesday.

[In spite of the MSM's efforts to get Obama into power by impressive photos and news reports calling him President-elect, he isn't legally entitled to any power yet. It still looks like a slow takeover in progress -- the Constitution being a useless relic for the present administration and apparently the one planned by Obama/Clinton as well. And wow! We were going to get rid of the Bush/Clinton/CFR /NWO gangsters with Obama. Somebody promised!] ]

Despite Bells and Whistles, 'Office of President-Elect' Holds No Authority

November 20, 2008
Issue 300
Under Barack Obama
Prepare for Oppression, Subterfuge, and Continuing Wars
Keepin It Real with Larry Pinkney

An organization which refers to itself as the American Israel Education Foundation shells out big bucks paying for US congress members trips to Israel. The organization describes itself as a supporting organization of AIPAC, America’s pro-Israel lobby.

See for yourself!

[At this particular time, Obama has no US government political power as he has resigned from the Senate. He is NOT Prez-elect yet. He has no legal authority as President, yet is acting as though he does. A strategic "coup d'etat"?

Obama Invents 'Office of the President-Elect'
http://www.newsmax.com/headlines/obama_president_elect_/2008/11/10/14964... ]

November 25, 2008
Barack Obama steps in to the power vacuum
Tim Reid in Washington

Timothy F. Geithner
Obama Cabinet Position: Treasury Secretary
Political Party: Democrat
Career: Ford Foundation, Kissinger and Associates (Major Lobbying Firm), IMF, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Under Secretary of Treasury under Larry Summers and Robert Rubin.
Member: Bilderberg Group, Council on Foreign Relations, Trilateral Commission
Notable Events: In 2007, he brokered the sale of Bear Stearns to JP Morgan using taxpayer money.

On November 20th, 2008 it was announced that Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bought up shares of Citigroup (NYSE: C) increasing his holdings to 5% of the total outstanding shares. The move seemed quite daring at the time as Citigroup’s shares were in freefall dropping 25% in the previous trading day alone (down over 90% in the past year).

Obama Invents 'Office of the President-Elect'

Monday, November 10, 2008 12:54 PM

By: Jim Meyers

Barack Obama has created a stir by proclaiming that he heads “The Office of President-Elect” — an office that does not officially exist.

At his first news conference on Nov. 7, Obama stood at a podium bearing a sign that read: “Office of the President-Elect. Also, his Web site, Change.gov, bears the words “Office of the President-Elect” at the top of its home page.

Germany declined to comment on on Saturday on reports that three Germans arrested on suspicion of throwing explosives at an EU office in Kosovo were intelligence officers.

Obama wasn't kidding when deferred to FDR as an economic guide. Roosevelt was an unmitigated economic disaster. His economic program of trying to maintain money wages and prices was a formula for mass unemployment. Nevertheless, the brilliant Mr Obama sees it otherwise: hence his dangerous proposal for public works of the Roosevelt kind plus his ridiculous promise to create 2.5 million jobs.

On the campaign trail, Barack Obama promised to get a million plug-in hybrid cars on the road by 2015. His own new presidential limousine will be far from green, however.

The Obamobile being prepared for the president-elect is said to be a monster gas-guzzler made by General Motors, the troubled car giant. It will look like a black Cadillac but is built like a tank. A spy photographer who tracks down future car models for magazines snatched pictures of the heavily disguised first-car-in-waiting when it was being road-tested last summer.

While the liberal intelligentsia was swooning over Barack Obama during his presidential campaign, I counseled “prepare to be disappointed.” His record as a Illinois state and U.S. Senator, together with the many progressive and long overdue courses of action he opposed during his campaign, rendered such a prediction unfortunate but obvious.

"Barring last minute changes, the nominee for Treasury Secretary will be NY Fed President Tim Geithner -- a career Treasury official under both Bob Rubin and Larry Summers -- who actually had worked at the Treasury in three administrations under five Secretaries -- going back to 1988.

Geithner has been a key player in the current economic crisis -- helping Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson and his team, manage the wall street bailout.

Can you feel the change, oh Bama woowoos?

Congressman Paul gives his thoughts on the testimony of Paulson and Bernanke, the failure of the dollar standard, gold and where the global economy could go from here.

Gosh. Poor old George Bush. He's having a rough time, isn't he? He has the worst presidential approval ratings in US history. Under his stalwart leadership, the country has taken an economic, social and emotional nosedive. His own party attempts to distance themselves from him on a daily basis. And to top it all off, can you believe that nobody wants to buy his memoirs? To add insult to injury, publishers are courting his wife with fervour, each clamouring for the opportunity to bid on her memoirs. It has to burn at least a little, right?

While naive, giddy and myopic establishment leftists have been celebrating the great “change” heralded by the election of Barack Obama, the President elect has been busy appointing people to key positions who advocate the same Neo-Con imperialist foreign policy crafted during eight years of the Bush administration.

The New York Times, widely recognized as the voice of the establishment Democratic left, set the tone of what we can expect from an Obama foreign policy in a lead editorial last Sunday entitled, “A military for a dangerous new world.”

The American people are sick and tired of the Bush era, and they are counting the days until Barack Obama is inaugurated. The reasons for this are manifold, of course, but the one that concerns us especially here at Antiwar.com is the vital question of war and peace. American foreign policy had become so relentlessly aggressive, and with such disastrous results, that John McCain's alleged national security credentials were moot. Even if the economy hadn't tanked so spectacularly at a crucial point in the election season, I contend that Obama would've won in a landslide anyway.

Critical Thinking Amid the Elation Monday, 17 November 2008

by Shannon Joyce Prince

Obama has a momentous opportunity to do what he repeatedly promised over the course of his campaign: bring actual change. But the more we learn about who Obama is considering for top positions in his administration, the more his inner circle resembles a staff reunion of President Bill Clinton's White House.

He's a policy guy, not a banker. This is important because Paul wouldn't have any "former associates" in the banking industry to cover for, sympathize with, or protect. Paulson, on the other hand, can't escape the whiff of insider-ism in everything he's doing. Questions like "Why isn't the bailout being used as originally planned?" and "Why can't we get a clear picture of who's getting the money and who's being turned down?" may have a reasonable answer, but the overall tone