President Obama's speech

President Obama's speech last night was a fascinating event. Regardless of one's political position, it is impossible to deny that there has not been such a charged Congressional gathering in many years. Except for the lemon sucking scowls always on the faces of Senators McConnell and Shelby, all participants seemed engaged in their own way. Obama's delivery did not disappoint and his aspirational plans were challenging if not daunting. Many members of Congress must have been dazed by his litany of goals for the year. Even the laziest and most self satisfied members will find it almost impossible to avoid doing some work this year and at least trying to grasp a vague understanding of the issues. Handicaps will go up and boondoggles will go down.

The President's outline of goals was comprehensive and he has the right ones. The likelihood of dealing with them all in short order is not realistic of course, but getting them on the table is a refreshing start. The main sour note from this perspective was his explanation of the reduction in credit availability. It was just wrong. He must know that making banks the only culprit fails to recognize the role of government requirements, policy and regulation over the last 20 years, and even today. His suggestion that credit can return to any level of "normalcy" is naive, especially given the fact that current government initiatives on many fronts make the return of vibrant securitization markets any time soon impossible. He must be aware of that as well, but I guess an explanation that gives near term hope is the order of the day.