John Lounsbury's  Instablog

Dan Eggen writes in the Washington Post that many commission staffers are paid by outside groups from all parts of the political spectrum.  If 14 of the 18 members of the commission have to agree on the final report, as reported in the press, how can a meaningful result be obtained if the commission has conflicted paymasters?

Maybe there will be a commission report that is watered down to nothing and two or three minority reports that propose actions that contradict each other.  Then the reports will go to Congress where the various lobby interests will combat each other until an end result of no meaningful action for economic stability and growth is achieved.

But isn't that just a repeat of what has happened over the recent decades?  Obama, the great compromiser, thinks things can change?  Lounsbury, the cynical realist, questions if that will ever be possible.  After all, how can the regulators control the regulated when the two are the same?


Disclosure: No stocks mentioned.