The View from Right Field

We Need to Give Ukraine More. Now.

Joe Biden is doing a pretty decent job in Ukraine, but he could be doing better.  In fact, if we want Ukraine to prevail, we need to be doing better.  Americans are still supporting Ukraine – so far.  But how long will that last?  Americans lose interest.  We get tired, our attention lags, and we abandon our commitments.  So those of us who want Ukraine to prevail need to push to get it done now.

This is especially true with Donald Trump lurking in the background.  Who knows what he would do if he were elected again.  Or if some Republican gets nominated who tries to appeal to what he/she sees at the populism/isolationism of the Trumpian base.¹  Not to mention, how long will progressive Democrats support aid to Ukraine if we have a Republican president, instead of a Democrat?

Bank Bailouts: Once Is Precedent; Twice Is Tradition

If “once is precedent, twice is tradition,” then bank bailouts are now tradition – though they might have already been tradition if the 1980s bailout of the savings and loan industry constituted bank bailout number one.  In any case, we are definitely now in “tradition” territory when it comes to bank bailouts.  I know Joe Biden said what was done over the weekend was not a bailout, but President Biden says lots of things.  It may be true that the stockholders of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank will not be bailed out, but:

• Any depositor who deposited more than $250,000 in SVB or Signature will be covered for their whole deposit, not just the first $250,000.  That’s a bailout.
• Anybody who owns stock in a bank whose stock might have tanked or might have even gone belly up but for the government’s actions over the weekend in bailing out depositors at SVB and Signature, is getting a bailout, too.