Harry Kresky: America's Democracy Deficit

S&P DOWNGRADE

• America's Other Deficit (Harry Kresky, Huffington Post) Partisanship is not a psychological illness. It is imbedded in the very structure of our political system. When times are good and the economy is growing, short term compromise (if not long term planning) can be achieved. When they are not, the ability of the political system to navigate tricky waters becomes less and less stable, more and more partisan.
• Mayor Michael Bloomberg: 'We Have to Get Behind the President' (George Stephanopoulos, ABC News/George's Bottom Line) “And there can always be a third party candidate. But in the end if you take a look at what happened in the last election, and when people talk about third party candidates and say ‘Well they don’t have a chance so I got to go and pick the lesser of two evils of the major parties.’”
• Johnston: Michael Bloomberg is a real cure for what ails us (By James Johnston, Milford Daily News - MA) In the 1960s, I was young and idealistic as was most of the rest of my generation. We knew what was going on and changed most of the things we didn't like in our society. Maybe we could not do the whole job of saving our world, but at least we made ourselves heard and did a substantial job of real reform. We ended a war, removed a corrupt president from office and secured civil rights for all of the citizens of this nation against awful opposition from the entrenched forces of the conservative right... Are there no idealistic and practical leaders around today? Yes there is at least one, and as mayor of New York, he is in plain sight...