NYC Letter: Leave It To The Professionals

Day 946 of CHOPE

Well, let me distinguish between professional politicians and the public at large. The public is not paying close attention to the ins and outs of how a Treasury auction goes. They shouldn’t. They're worrying about their family; they're worrying about their jobs; they're worrying about their neighborhood. They've got a lot of other things on their plate.

We're paid to worry about it.

Mr. Obama,
stooping to dismiss the informed public
PRESS CONFERENCE
WASHINGTON July 11, 2011 (White House)

Let the paid professionals worry about the country's finances. Go back to sleep.

STUDY: 8 IN 10 LAWMAKERS
LACK EDUCATION IN ECONOMICS

August 23, 2011 (Politico) - Almost 80 percent of lawmakers might need to crack open an economics textbook before the congressional recess ends, a new study on Tuesday suggests.

How many members of Congress have an academic background that provided them with a basic understanding how the economy works? The answer, it turns out, is not many.

The vast majority of members lack an academic background in business or economics, according to a study by the Employment Policies Institute, a nonprofit group that takes a conservative stand on fiscal issues. Only 13.7 percent majored in business or accounting, and 8.4 percent have an economics degree.

On the Senate budget committee, five out of 23 members — about 20 percent — have a business/accounting or econ background, EPI research fellow Michael Saltsman told POLITICO. And on the House side, eight out of 37 members, or just over 20 percent, hold academic degrees in business or economics fields.

... The most popular majors among members were government and the humanities, with over half — 55.7 percent — bringing home a degree in those fields. And there are a number of science students in the halls of Congress, with 11.5 percent majoring in science or technology-related fields.

Surprise! Nancy Pelosi (D-CA, 8th), who oversaw Democrat spending bills between 2007 and 2010, holds a B.A. in political science. Hurray! Kent Conrad (D-ND), Senate Committee on the Budget chair, holds an M.B.A. Aw. He's retiring. Who's the move-up committee member? Patty Murray (D-WA) has seniority. She holds a B.A. in physical education. But the Demos may not be running the show after 2012, in which case the ranking Republican is Jeff Sessions (R-AL), who holds a B.A. and a J.D.

CHOPE.

ZZZzzzzz.