CNN

Yes, he is making it clear that nationalization of banks is an option on the table and this is definitely not good news in the ears of stock brokers.

Hi Jack:

No, I think the problem with Wall Street, is the investor want everything on their own terms. If they don't get it, they, the investors try to cause panic among the mainstream. If Wall Street went broke tomorrow, then dropped off the face of the earth. I would not miss them. I would be the best thing that could happen to this country. Then and only then will THE AMERICAN PEOPLE control the financial future of this country.

Ron San Diego

No. He inherited this mess. This is a reaction to the deregulation during the Bush years and Alan Greenspan's"mistake."

Clearly he has made it worse. His frenzied, almost bullying pace of expensive new programs, shifting tax burdens, threatened realignment of vast sections of the economy such as health care and government contracting has added very substantially to the uncertainty in the market. On top of the financial sector fears, people don't know where to make investments and not have them further whacked by some massively shifting national priority.

He has almost no apparent recognition that people with 401K's and other investments are being crushed and that their uncertainty takes more consumer money out of the economy. These are not mostly "wealthy" people. I don't know if he just doesn't understand, doesn't care, or is too self-absorbed with his own agenda to worry about "little people" details.

Perhaps he's worried that if he takes too long to implement "the change we have been waiting for," that too many will start to understand that this isn't the change we had in mind at all.

yes.. he and the 3 stooges (and company) running the place. every time they open their mouths, the stock market goes down.

You'd blame Bush if he were still President.

Of course Obama's to blame. He's been given everything he has asked for since winning the election. He has met with the other side , but only for photo ops ,not for ideas. He has mortgaged our future, and by summer his supporters will begin to turn on him. Why do you guys think glenn beck is now trouncing CNN in ratings. He speaks what many say around the water cooler.

Jack, everything is his fault!!

If Republicans had their way President Obama would be blamed for the Stock Market drop, Unemployment spike, Winter Weather, and the Ground Hog seeing his shadow.

We did not get into this mess in a month, and we will not get out of it in a month. To deflect blame away from your own Party is not helpful to the People of the US.

Solve the Problem, Fix the Problem, so we don't go through this again.

No I don't think. I think the fall is from years of holding on by a thread the thread has worn thin. I think it was years of abuse of greedy investors. How many years have we read the headlines of this?

I don't believe in wall-street and I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels it's still a crook run operation.

Jack
Are you kidding ? Lets go back to Bill Clinton and NAFTA giving our jobs away. Then lets take a look at Alan Greenspan. After that we can look at Wall Street and the junk bonds, along with the seven figure bonus programs for as long as I can remember. All this should give you a headache. How can you blame the new kid on the block ?

Jack,
No. It's the Conservative Right controlling the financial institutions in this country that are responsible not our President. They are going to show him who is really in charge of America. As soon as they think he gets it, they will loosen up their strangle hold the situation will start to turn around.

Bill in Mercersburg, PA

Jack: President Obama has not been office for 100 days, yet. No, President Obama is not responsible for the stock market fall. Investment and comerical banks are responsible for bundling millions of mortgages together and selling them internationally. When they needed more mortgages to feed the fever of their greed they allowed anyone to have a mortgage regardless of income. The bankers greed has caused 7 and 1/2 trillion dollars loss to 401K's. The bankers are criminals or they are insane, your choice America.

John from Alabama

Of course. He's a major contributor. Example: My parents explained to me, as most parents all over the world do with their children, that you cannot spend your way out of debt. This is a basic principle. TARP was wrong. It came at a time when private businesses were purchasing failing busineses – the private sector was working. TARP's intervention gave money to banks. Banks kept the money. Duh! Now, as part of the stimulis debacle, the feds are getting ready to give money to AIG for the 4th time.

Spend to get back to square one. What kind of economics is that?

By the way Jack, Michelle, looks and walks like a tight end. Smitten or not, you need to take a step back and do some serious comparisons of beautiful women and re-evaluate your position.

If any of us could predict the future of stock prices, let alone influence the rise and fall of global markets, he or she would have a truly godlike ability. As much as I like President Obama, he hasn't risen to that status. Markets will stop falling when people with cash can trust again. Unfortunately, for every one like President Obama who is trying to solve the economic mess we are in, there are too many Madoffs in the world who have been allowed to have fun with other people's money.

The market decline is rooted in past mistakes. Obama might trigger one day up or down but not responsible for any part of the decline.

Only if he gets the credit when it bounces back. He didn't break it, and he's trying like Hell to fix it.

Susan
Tuscaloosa AL

What, is Rush Limbaugh subbing for you today, Jack?

Jack, That one falls into the category of "Are you serious?"
He has about as much blame for the falling stock market that Roosevelt did in creating the stock market crash and the depression of 1929. It's pure flatulence blown by those who believe and say the new deal didn't work. It's done by conservative trumpeters who rarely look outside their blinders. They think they are smelling the roses. Have you noticed with each passing bill, the GOP minority gets smaller?

No way. But you can place the blame squarely on the shoulders of the Republican Party whose creed of no regulation has exposed the myth that corporate big wigs have scruples.

Yes. He is going to take credit when it finally turns around, so he should also get credit for the free fall down. Obviously Wall Street nor Main Street have much confidence in the steps he has taken since taking office.

Dave Koepke
CA

Dear Jack, Of course not. If I remember correctly, good ole John McCain had to fly back to Washington during his failed bid for the presedency to stop the madness. This has been going on well before Bush left office. And what did Bush do in his final days in White House? A Big Fat Nothing. So when Rick Santelli and Jim Cramer blame Obama or we, the unwashed masses, for the pickle were in, we can collectively say,"Shove It!"

Not so much. As the markets stabilize, the President should withdraw from the daily discussion about the markets. I perceive a lot of his discussions about the market are really about negotiating the standards by which he will be evaluated. In that effort he needs to give it a rest. Rather, he should take a little time and red line a few of those earmarks in the latest budget proposal. A promise is a promise, and I hate to see him start to break his already. It is a little disingenius to suggest that this is really President Bush's budget. To sign something is to approve it. Obama needs to step up to the plate and keep his word.

I am sure the Republican party will attempt to do just that, but if you have any common sense, you know that this situation was a long time coming and Obama has just inherited the problems created by his predecessor...argue all you want, but that's just how it is!

No, President Obama is not at fault for the stock market falling. The federal reserve is. They control inflation and deflation. The citizens of this country need to realize that the federal reserve is running this nation and not politicians and when that cartel is eliminated then we all can take control of this great nation and not the special interests of the fed.

Absolutely not. That idiot Bush messed the entire thing up with tax cuts for the wealthy, outlandish spending, and no government oversight.

About as much as he can be blamed for the Iraq war; why not blame FDR vs Herbert Hoover for settingusupfor the Great Depression? I think people have been listening to Rush and Sarah too long, and it has turned their minds to revisonist mush.

jack i like to know when is the stimulus money the 20 billion going to get to the railroad retirement board so they can begin to distribute it

Of course not Jack. According to my fellow repubilicans, this is really all Clinton's fault. We somehow went through a time warp and skipped the 8 years that Bush was President. Or we were ignoring all those warnings from Bush that banking rules put in place by Clinton were going to come back to haunt us.

Jack, Obama should not be the blame for stocks falling. The only reason the stocks are falling is b/c what Obama does in unpredictable unlike the previous administration " the fats cats knew Bush's every move and knew that Bush would have their backs, they are no so sure Obama will which is good. Let them wonder and I hope they go broke in the process.

Jack,
No, not even President Obama is that powerful. Next we will be blaming him for the weather, the crime rate and all things bad in our country. I don't think you can blame any one person for the state we are in today. We all share some blame we just don't like to admit it.

Judie
St. Augustine, Fl

No! The last eight years all we did was live in a pretend world. We voted for a president that would talk stright to us. No matter how much the truth hurts, it`s time to man up and face it.

All past market downturns have eventually corrected, with or without governmental intervention. If Obama wants to take credit for the eventual turnaround that will undoubtedly occur, people like me will hold him accountable for all that happens on his watch, including the current continuing market slide. Responsibility for the good and the bad is part of the territory that goes with being president.

It's his watch, so it's his blame. When you are the captain of the ship you can't just say you inherited the problems.

Jack,

Does it really matter, President Obama will never lay claim to a failing market on his watch. The administration will use the finger pointing at the Bush administration, Rush, and purple aliens from Pluto..

Yahto...Yahto...

President Obama is focused on long-term stability. The stock market only seems to care about day to day gossip and quarter to quarter numbers.

Case in point; Enron looked mighty good there but it was all smoke and mirrors. Let's get this country back on solid ground – the market will eventually follow.

Let’s be serious. Obama’s been in office for just over six weeks and the WSJ is blaming him for this mess … please!!! Our memories are quite short here. I recall days before one of the presidential debate; then President, Bush was running around screaming the sky is falling, proceeded to get a foolish bank bailout passed and then sat on his hands for four months. Can any intelligent mind believe that Obama has had anything to do with the millions of foreclosures or the millions of lost jobs? I find it interesting that my “conservative” friends want to take credit for the good times (Clinton won, because “it’s the economy stupid”), but won’t be held accountable for the bad (Bush turned a budget surplus into a multi trillion dollar deficit and quadrupled the national debt). They want it both ways. It’s absurd.

Seems to me he has the shoulders to take on all the blame you wish to assign, but Obama's responsible for current market conditions to the same extent that Blitzer is responsible for World War One.

To quote Republicans "I inherited this mess". In this case he did inherit this mess. It's going to take a long time and many new ideas to fix this, some will work, some won't. Capitalism and greed got us into this so if this is a "declaration of hostility toward capitalism" then so be it.

We're unequivocally living in a world where no one seeks personal clarity anymore; we wait for editorials (which are often selfishly motivated) to decipher the facts. Well, I need not an editorial to comprehend this: the econonomy doesn't just wake up one morning and crash. This mess was a build-up that was spawned pre-Obama. Period.

Can you imagine, jack, what would be happening, right now if ...nothing was done. there was no attempt to shore up the banking system, no attempt to pump money into the economy.
I would like to see CNN do a story on that, create a model on the 'state of the economy today' if, president Obama did nothing... What would be the dire consequences?

Jack are you taking pointers for Sean Hannity, or Rush? The stock market was losing ground ever since Lehman tanked and it's been on the Black Diamond slope since. The president has been in the hot seat for less than two months and is spending most of that time trying to fix it. The problem is thwt the comnsumer confidence is gone until people know that their jobs are somewhat safe.... rather at least tht they are needed.

Of course. And let's blame Willard Scott for Global Warming and Dr. Kildare for runaway health care costs. And, while we're on a roll, let's blame Einstein for nuclear proliferation. Just as Calvin Coolidge escaped responsibility for The Great Depression, leaving that distinction to long-suffering Herbert Hoover, so will Dub-ya pass on his inattention to a faltering economy to his successor. Blame, people, is useless.

Tom Walsh, Gouldsboro Maine

It behooves the Wall Street Journal, wall street insiders, Bushians and the GOP to blame the near-dead economy on the man who has been president of our country for less than two months. To call them all dishonest is a horrible understatement. They cheated and stole and lied our economy, along with the economy of the entire planet, into this sad, sorry state and they expect us to swallow that insane revisionist hooey.

I just saw the WSJ polls this morning on the public's opinion of the GOP. With only 20% of us drinking the Wall Street kool-aid, I am pretty confident that they don't have too many of us fooled.

The president has done nothing but talk about the failures of the country's economy since he started running for office 2 years ago and he is still at it. He certainly has done nothing to give us confidence that he has a clue about what it will take to turn the economy around.

No! The WSJ isn't an unbiased publication, that would influence anyone's opinion. I'm glad that the American people are willing to give the new President a chance. Marlene in Mich

Everyone loves to blame Bush for the past economic problems, so why should Obama not be treated the same way?

I think the Obama administration is slowing economic recovery instead of speeding it up. All of these new policies punishing big business and forcing certain companies to take government money when they don't want it is creating uncertainty and destroying confidence. The solution to this crisis is not the government, they will only make it worse.

I think there are some serious issues Obama has ignored concerning his campaign promises that have definitely influenced or had a negative effect on the market.
If a person doesn't do everything he says he's going to, how much can you believe the next thing he does won't be different also.
The biggest part of the "MESS" was there before he was. Although if he'd done differently,it wouldn't be as bad as it is.
He should have taken care of the immediate problems, and left the other bull for later. Using your popularity to get what you want never pays off in the long run. And letting pollut osi have her way right off won't get him anywhere either. I'd like to know what her popularity pole is?

Jack,

Come on, Obama has to assume some of the blame if market keeps falling lower and lower he is in control of the ship now. However he should not get 99.9% of the blame for it, right Mr. Bush...

Central Islip, N.Y.

if Obama is to blame for the stock market and Clinton for 9/11. Then I guess you can say Bush and Chenny didn't do anything for 8 years.

Absolutely not! If his favourability rating is at an all time high & the GOP at an all time low, why would such a question even be asked?

He's been in office less than 2 months.
What kind of idiots don't understand that?

"The buck stops here" a President once said. You get the praise or the blame when you're in charge. it's in the job description.David

Shortly put, thats completely insane. No one man is to blame for the stock markets. Whats to blame is that investors are panicking when, if they calmed down, it wouldn't keep falling.

Seriously, why would you even say something so totally insane?

Should the Republicans be blamed? Their poisonous negativity is not the atmosphere in which our good-old American optimism could thrive and help the market and the economy to thrive.

It's absurd to blame Pres. Obama for continuing downturn of the markets.

It didn't happen over night in a vacuum and it will not reverse quickly either. Bush has been sucking us dry for 8 yrs. If we had just the money spent in Iraq over 8 yrs our vision of today and our immediate tomorrows would look very different

Sorry the market is all Obama's doing. Everytime he speaks, it falls. Everytime he implements a new program it falls. You can only blame the "other guy" for so long.....then you just have to admit that you don't know what your are doing and that you are in over your head. When you going to do that, Barry?

Jack, I don't think President Obama should be blamed. Today, the headlines say the economy is actually doing worse than previously thought, and the market indexes have risen 3%. I've given up trying to figure out what makes the DOW fluctuate. I think it's all a racket.

So we're to be surprised that the Wall Street Jounal, a conservative paper owned by Rupert Murdoch (who also owns FOX News), blames Obama for the slowing stock market??

I'm shocked! Shocked!

The stock market reflects what people think will happen in the future, not what has happened in the past. The markets react to events. In that light, Obama is entirely responsible.

It took years to get here, it has only been a few weeks since Obama has taken office; it is entirely too soon to blame the President...

The policies of the Bush administration and the far right got us into this mess. Their approach to the problem was 'do nothing let the market sort itself out'. (Thank you president Hoover). Finally they gave the banks of wall street 350 billion with no strings.

President Obama has had the problem for 2 months and the new polices are just now being implemented.

The WSJ editorial sounds like Rupert Murdock talking, which it is.

Hagerman, Idaho

Hello Jack. No i don't blame the President for wall streets current decline. I personally think that a rather tough message is being sent to all of these wall street companies to start doing business in a responsible way. No more defrauding people with over inflated stock quotes and slushing money from people. I believe that wall street is going to feel the rath of shadey trading practices which will increase tighter regulations and a more stable market when it returns to a balanced strength. the same with the banking system. I know it sounds bad but they are reaping what they have sown. I believe that the President has a great grasp on what it will take to turn the economy into a thriving competitive global machine.

yes he should be blamed. Of course we cant count on cnn to blame obama for anything. I like to think of my self as a smart republican. And as a smart republican i no whats up. Kick back, relax, and get ready for the back lash. sure it's all W's fault that will work for a little bit perhaps a while but 3 million jobs "saved" by 2011 will not work for any politican. I thjink obama makes a big mistake by reading the polls on how popular he is. Backlash is a funny it's seems to happen so fast. it comes out of know where. And once it sets in jack there is no going back to the old. I hope you dems keep that in mind. But they wont and thats why they will fail.

Really we should blame the conservatives for all the socialism and it won't work and how horrible the plan is talk. As much as they whinned about Obama being negative... the only thing that has come out of their mouths has been negativity. and JIM CRAMER's rants don't help one bit.!!!

Aren't these all the same people who said Clinton was to blame for the first Bush recession. It never ceases to amaze me how they seem to think that things they said and agruments they made in the past have no relevance to things going on now. Hypocracy run amock.

No, I would blame Rush Limbaugh...just seems like the thing to do..

Jack, no. He has sent all the proper signals by providing the necessary stimulus money and now it's time for the lending institutions to take responsibility and let people know they are ready to make prudent loans to qualified customers. Obama's overture is a signal for the other major players in the economy to get on the dance floor.

NO he's not Jack. This economic fire-ball started WAY before President Obama even got to Washington.

The market is responding to the "fear" of the times. You have everyone claiming to be an "expert" and they have their own spin on what President Obama should or shouldn't do. I think the market is seriously CONFUSED and rightly so. But everyone needs to back off and just stay focused on the BIGGER picture and stop complaining and start working towards digging ourselves out of this hell hole.

We, of the middle class, had seen this recession coming LONG before it hit. We have been looking for jobs that are no longer available, we have been taking lower paying jobs "just to make ends meet", we have been screaming that this was coming, but instead of listening to us, we were ignored while CNN showed us video of Paris Hilton getting into a car.

This has been coming for a long time. When Bush announced his tax cuts he stated that; "we can't tax the rich, they find ways to get around it", then added that; "the rich will use the tax cuts to create jobs", but they didn't. Instead they pocketed the money and shipped jobs over seas.

The economy is the way that it is because the market had no supervision and the jobs have been eliminated.

Obama is the last person that we should blame
- for now...

Yes, without a doubt. The excessive spending plans now in effect and the projected budget plan is simply out of control. How any rational administration can submit and our congress approve an eleven hundred page stimulus plan without reading the plan is unbelievable. The previous administration and congress was at fault for and should be blamed for the past but the current proposed solutions make that group look like a bunch of pikers. And now , you, the press should, using our presidents own words, call them out at every oppuritunity.

Why should Obama be blamed for something Bush started???

The government has to restore the health of the financial sectors before the market recovers. The greed and fraudulent practices of banks and Wall Street investment firms is what caused the problem in the first place. Everyone is now pointing to deregulation as the culprit of the crisis. Wall Street is such a drama queen, even at its lowest hour it's still trying to manipulate the government!

Why is so much attention paid to an economic measurement that was flying high under the policies that lead up to this economic collapse?

How long are we going to give Obama a free ride and say that "this is just the economy he's inherited? At first, it was, "he's only had 30 days give him time", then it was "50 days", and now its 100. When are we going to say enough is enough and hold him accountable for his actions? He's had time to implement strategies and has not. He seems more interested in campaigning for 2012 than he does on fixing the country.

Jack, blaming is not viable option. Confidence in self is great thing to do at this time. Great job Obama and individual still needs to do his part.

Kuol

Greed and irresponsibility, and now fear, are the reasons for the stock market fiasco–not Bush, not Obama.

I'll hold Obama to blame after 2012.

It's Rush's fault.

Hello??? President Obama has been in office ..what? 43 days? and he is to blame for the mess we're in? That's like blaming a newborn baby for the additional financial pressures a family is experiencing! Give me a break! It hasn't been his doing whatsoever. Look back 8 years and you'll see a surplus. Look back 43 days and you see a horrible mess! President Obama unfortunately will not be able to address everything he wanted to get into motion this term, precisely because his administration has to undo, rectify, and proceed with a new fiscally responsible agenda.

No, Obama isn't responsible for the current market decline.

It is rather rediculous how the finger pointing starts once things go awry. The fact is economies will go through expansions and contractions of varying magnitudes, and nobody is going to stop that - neither Bush nor Obama. So I have an idea...plan for it! Save money during times of expansion, and utilize those savings (if need be) during the contractions (Note: this does involve lowering your standard of living). This is contrary to what most Americans actually do which is spend all of their money plus their future income (via credit cards, etc) during times of expansion, and then sit around befuddled and pointing fingers during times of economic contraction once they realize they're screwed. Honestly, the entire blame game on government is at best secondary...nothing trumps personal responsibility.

It is not Obama's fault the stock market continues to fall. He has not been in office 2 months yet. Give him a break. The blame should go to you Jack for all the dumb questions you ask.

Maurice
Two Rivers, Wisconsin

GWB caused the hemmorrhaging of the stock market and left behind in the oval office a box of band-aids for President Obama.

I think that several people should be blamed for the Stock Market crash; however, I do not think President Obama is one of them. He has not been in the White House long enough to have created the problem. Although USA history has show that it could have started with Jimmy Carter refusing to place a stopping point on inflation, Reaganomics, and the fact that Bill Clinton & George W Bush did little to stop NAFTA. It has taken us along time to get into this economic trouble and it will take more than a few weeks for a new President to stop it.

Come on Jack, don't get hooked by the old political blame game. Lots of people got us here. If everyone blames Obama now, will they hold him accountable for the level of the market in four years?

I didn't vote for this. We told you so!

Well Jack,

In case you didn't notice, they all went up today. I guess you can blame Obama for that too. On a smarter scale, there are thousands of people working the floors of the stock exchanges and millions more working for the companies that represent those stocks being exchanged who are ultimately responsible for the way things go. I don't even blame Bush for the stock market tanking last fall. You can't blame the President for everything.

Jack, Obama's problem is that he wanted to "hit the ground running". What he should have done is taken time to view the situation, determine the best course of action, and determine the impact said action would have. It seems he just wanted to throw a solution out there just so he can appear to be actually doing something.

Anytime you don't do what Wall Street and the fat cats want you to do, they retaliate by pouting and watching the market go nuts. I don't know anyone with money in the stock market, anyway, so I don't care what they do. Besides, it weeds out all of the rift raft and the troublemakers. I say let it fall until we get a real indicator of our economy, not the bloated numbers we've had over the past 8 years.

Jack,

Why did you even bother to ask such stupid question anyway? Isn't it obvious that the President is trying to fix the problems?

Aura

No, the problems is with the fat cats on wall street. They are livid because of the Bear market. The market will adjust. They just want to blame someone besides those who caused this mess. Obama and his cabinet are doing their best to solve the problem. Leave him alone and let him do his work. We voted for this.

What a stupid question. Of course not.

If you think so, than you most likely voted McCain/Palin!

Of course he isn't, but regardless of that, who cares!!! let's just band together and get this situation behind us, or else we will all end up pointing the finger at each other and on the path of a social revolution.

We can't blame Obama...we are still in the blame "Clinton for eveything" mode remember!.

The reasons given to blame this on Obama are ridiculous. Increased taxes? When? Anti-business? How? Increased deficits? The economy needed stimulus – tax cuts for people who aren't paying taxes anyway are not fruitful. What a litany of nonsense. Why not blame Rush, Cramer, Santellit and the other loud-mouths?

Of course he's to blame. My God, he's already been in office what... nearly two months? That's obviously long enough for we short-attention-span Americans to forget the nightmare he walked into.

Oh, and while we're at it, let's make sure we stick the obesity epidemic, Paris Hilton and any random American Idol winner on his ticket, too.

It's only fair.

Oh, wait....

Obama is hardly to blame for the stock market's fall. I think Pres. Obama and his team are extremely brave for challenging the private sector and individual holders of most of America's wealth (thanks Bush) on behalf of the taxpayer.

For most of us hard-working Americans, we deserve SOME type of advocacy in Washington, DC. It's evident most of our representatives have already been bought and sold, and bought and sold, and bought and sold, and...

Hey Jack....Does the Bush/Cheney 5000 point free-fall count?

The stock market was already in decline when Obama took over. It was going to tank regardless due to crumbling consumer confidence. I don't think it is fair to blame Obama for this although I do believe that his economic team are the ones now responsible for boosting this ailing confidence.

No. The Republicans kept insisting that the dropping stock market WAS NOT Bush's fault when he was in office, so obviously the continuing fall CANNOT now be Obama's fault. In point of fact Obama did inherit this nightmare and it's going to take more than 45 days for it to start turning around.

President Obama is facing reality and working on the economy rather than ignoring the problem. If the stock market shakes a bit, then it is because people are waking up. Once awake, maybe someone will think of other answers rather than only criticizing those ideas that have been put forward.

We have a God given right to blame somebody and deflect the criticism. Where were all these people during the Bush administration days? Praying or stealing?
Kirti shah

Are you crazy?

Rome is burning and we spend our time pointing fingers? The reckless government policies of of the last 20 years led to this mess.

Liberal – Conservative; who cares who is at fault.

Just fix the economy!

Obama is absolutely to blame. No ifs, ands or buts about it.

Jack, fair is fair, the Bush administration and the republicans never tried to blame anything on Bill Clinton so why should President Obama get a free ride.

* cough *

Sorry, something got caught in my throat.

No. He's only been in office 6 weeks. I think this problem has been a long time coming.

The question insults our intelligence. As is all too often the case, the WSJ editorial page is willing to suspend all connection to reality to try and justify their prejudices. Obama is NOT responsible for this. The policies of years of dangerous risk have caught up to all of us. And SOME PEOPLE still refuse to take responsibility. I won't point fingers, but most of them are on my RIGHT,

IS THAT A SERIOUS question Jack???? Obama isn't to blame. All he's done so far has been GREAT. The only thing that has been happening is that those BIG FAT BANKERS that will be losing out, as indeed they should, are selling their stocks. You know what... WHO NEEDS THEM? I'm glad the stock market is being cleaned out and that all those greedy, money hording Rush Limbaugh fans are leaving the market. This will return the Stock Market to where it should be. Once all those are out and people stop cowerding down from the flux, then we'll rocket to the top with Bull Market Metality. Its already in the works and is soon to happen.

Are you serious? The thieves have nowhere to hide their stash. Of course they're going to pull their money. Just wait until the investigations begin- watch out Wall Street!

As was said at the very beginning of all of this (for those of us who weren't living under a rock) this situation was not created overnight and it will not be solved overnight.

I am getting sick and tired of people expecting this man to wave some kind of magic wand and automatically make everything just disappear. This problem took over a decade to create and those expecting it to be solved in 30 days are just plain ignorant...as well as those who are floating the idea! Get over yourselves and join the rest of us in the real world!

Very simply....no...The president should not be blamed for the stock market situation. By the way, the answer is no to all the other problems that people want to hang on him that he inherited. We don't even want to give this man time to sleep.

The stock market goes up and down. The Presidents program hasn't even kicked in yet. Plus The Wall Street Journal is owned by Fox News now. We won't know whether it works until late summer.

Jack,
Give me a break Bush and the Republicans are at fault for this economy.
They opened up these markets and let them go wild with no oversight or regulation. It will take sometime for President Obama and his team to put Pandora back into her box!!

Dan in Pa

How can we blame President Obama for all that is happened over the last year or more? He is doing everything within his power without the help from the Republicans to change the circumstances we are under. Its interesting that anyone would be blaming the president for circumstances that have been building way before he took office.

No one with any connecting brain cells or any integrity can possibly blame President Obama for the fall of wall street or any part of this financial mess we're in. The wall street Journal is the same publication that sat idly by while the last administration destroyed our economy. Let's face facts, the people complaining the most are the same ones who benefited the most from the last administrations actions. They profited by ripping off the country, now the're angry that the funds are going to the country instead of them.

Ofcourse it's Obama's fault, who on earth would want to risk making
money only to have it taken away from you to pay for some one elses mortgage. As Margaret Thatcher once said " The problem with socialism is you eventually run out of other peoples money"

Vic from Stony Point NY

No Jack, it took the US government and financial institutions years of rot to get to where we are right now and pining it all on one mans shoulder seems like day dreaming to me.

Absolutely not. It's macroeconomics, plain and simple. And, it's global. If anything, his candor is motivating and realistic. This is a unique opportunity to clean up all the clutter in government spending and flush out the "greed goons" that abused the sysytem to the demise of everyone.

No. The stock market is a loose cannon. It unfortunately too often reflects the failed capitalist mantra of greed without limits.

Coquitlam, British Columbia

Wow. Eight solid years of giving banks, security traders and mortgage lenders free rein to turn the U.S. economy into their own private casino and the Wall Street Journal expects President Obama to reverse that in less than seven weeks.

The Wall Street Journal used to be a respected newspaper. Now it's turned into a mouthpiece for the fat cats who are mad because they're no longer running this country.

Cathy S.
Springtown, TX

What President Obama is responsible for is a newly responsible and reasonable economic policy that recognizes economic forces that look far beyond the narrow focus of wall street investors. I'm sure the stock market would be going up if President Obama declared amnesty for all corporate executives guilty of corporate malfeasance, or instituted no restrictions on corporate executive compensation, or expensive meetings, parties and private jet purchases. Would that be good for the economy? No way! The Wall Street Journal's editors and much of the rest of corporate America will have to get used to the idea that there is a new sheriff in town, and as soon as they stop bellyaching over it and crying about it – they'll belly right back up to investor bar....

its goes up and down all the time do we need to waste our time blaming people for it... seriously?

No, It's Bush Limbaugh's fault and everybody knows it.

I think the editorial writers at the Wall Street Journal also work for the New York Post. They are both owned by Ruperd Murdock and the Post
slams Osama's policy's every day.

Anthony,
NJ

The stock market is not the economy. The market rewards companies for laying off employees and short term thinking. The economy benefits from employment and long term thinking. If the market is upset with Obama, that's probably a good thing.

Wall street wants an escape goat. The fact is the market is afraid of its own shadow. I say buy, buy, buy. In 20 to 30 years from now I will have a nice nest egg. Blame gread on wall street for the problems we face today.

Jack of course he is to blame. If I was filthy rich and had money in the stock market I'd really hate what he has to say. Now Uncle Moneybaggs your option and withholding are taking a hit you blame Obama. Where you when Bush gave a tax cut to the rich in the middle of a war. Or the price of gas strangled the working poor. yeah that really makes me proud to be an American when you call ME a veteran, husband , and father working poor and Oxymoron if I ever heard one.

Yes he is to blame. You can't just start with inauguration day. This became Obama's economy back on election day and in reality even before that as his election became more and more inevitable.

On Jan 20th, when Obama was inaugurated, the Stock market was at 7949.
43 Days in office and the stock market is his fault?
I would think the right wing radio heads are instilling enough fear to make that happen. They need to shut up for 1 month and lets see what happens!

Obama is responsable for the uneasiness of all Americans because of his shakey appointments and irresponsable spending!

President Obama should not be blamed for the downturns in the stock market. It is being caused by the investors themselves. They panicked when they learned of the recession. If they would stop and look at what is really happening they would be able to get a grip. The market is controlled by the republicans anyway so they have to blame someone other than themselves for the deep decline in the markets. By the way Jack where did the stock market money go? Who else is lining their pockets. Boy!!! it only took a month to blame someone new in office.

No, it's not the President's fault. I think you already answered the question. It is political. The Fat Cat's on Wall Street are to blame. They disagree with Presidnent Obama's policies and direction. They want him to fail and they are dragging the market and the country down in an attempt to cause the President to fail. Dennis Monongah, WV

Hey Jack. Are you kidding? How can Obama be responsible for the shameful neglect and money grabing the the republicans presided over the past 8 years? I think wall street is in cahoots with limbaugh in wanting obama to fail. Bottom line. Buy stock now. Obama will succeed.

Jack -

my simple response. How? You would have to be an idiot to think that Obama is responsible for any of this.
Big money hates middle america. Do you remember the movie "The Hudsucker Project" they drove down their own stock on purpose so they could pick up the common stock on the cheap.
Look at what former big bank execs are doing to regroup and take on troubled mortgages.
This has nothing to do with Obama's plans more more accountability and fairness and everything to do with greed and power.

First of all let me say that our President should be addressed as President Obama or Mr. President. Today he's blamed for the stock market. Can't wait to see what you all will attack him with next.

Apparently all the defenders are missing the point that they're blaming him for the "CONTINUING decline in the stock market." I supported Obama long before the primaries even started, but it's not hard to find fault with some of their actions lately.

No one's saying that the entire market collapse is his fault. What they are saying is that some of the plans laid out recently (budget proposal, mortgage cramdowns, occasional comments about nationalization and wiping out shareholders and bondholders) and the rhetoric being floated about the business community is re-inspiring panic in the markets.

Just look at what's happened to the market since the budget proposal came out. It's not hard to see the direct cause and effect nature in the markets if you look at the days & times when things are proposed and the reaction of all major indices. It's one thing for Obama to say that he doesn't concern himself with day to day swings in the market, but it should concern him that there's been little swinging occurring over the past 2-3 weeks, just falling.

No. Blaming Obama for this is like blaming a criminal's parents for their crime! The "kids" on Wall Street need to take a little responsibility here. This is inherited, and this is knee-jerking.

No, I'd blame deceptive business practices and politicians tricked us into believing "free market" was the cure. The only thing that "free maket" gave us was a means to allow businesses to rip off America and not face any consequence. After all if we have a this kind of market, then who's to say what a crime and what's fair. The market is a microcosm of what would happen if America has no laws, "Free market" = fraud.

They tried to blame him during the campaign and now they are trying it again. Of course its not his fault. If he had that much control then he would use it to make things better. People (Wall Street and others) just like to blame everyone else for their problems.

for somebody to be in office 40 some odd days and then to blame him for the downturn is just ridiculous!

if i do recall the tip of the iceburg wasnt even present under mccains knowledge during the debates!

it just really started to worsen during nov, dec, so jan, and feb, and march was suppose to be great and bouncing back? no way

Absolutely. When the drops are clearly in direct response to a budget or policy announcement, how can that be blamed on a prior administration? You know they'd be taking credit for it if the Dow was going up. They would be saying it was a reflection of renewed confidence in the administration. They're correct. It is a reflection, but one of lack of confidence.

Blame Obama for the continuing fall of the stock market and when it rises again, as it will, then give the credit to Bush.

It is amazing that people are so ignorant of the factor of time in governance. I suppose as Americans we are conditioned to the psychology of 'fast' and right now'. In the real world social change and policies take time to come to fruition. We the-people-who- are-aware truly understand the need to consider future generations, and we have to respect a government that looks to the future. We don't buy the'immediacy' idea of a fix for our economy, just as we are aware of the 9 years it took to create this economic condition.
We the people will not deluded, we accept there must be a change! We support our President and, we will wait and we will watch.

Of course he is responsible for the stock market crash. Everybody with a right mind knows that he is taking this country towards comunisim, Of course people who are in love with this guy as you Cafferty are, do not want to admit it. Bush may have left a tremendous debt, but wait until this guy is thrugh. No one will be able to count the trillions of Dollars that he will put this country in debt.

Of course he is Jack. If more people knew how corporations, investments and the stock market worked, it would be clear to them too. Obama is going to tax corporate profits, he going to tax energy, hes going to tax capital gains. People who follow the market know that this isn't good for business. No future profits, no reason to invest, no reason for the stock market to go up. In fact, it says take it out.

Corporate interest's have been running this country for the last 8 if not 28 years. Our President has been in office for what 40 days?

The Journal should recognize that this is is marely a matter of the stock market adjusting itself, as a result of the housing market adjusting itself, amongst other things. This is in no way the fault of President Obama! Folks are to smart for this silly rhetoric. The game the Republican party is playing is really old and transparent.

No not responible and at least he appears to want to stop the freefall.
Unfortunately the power struggle in Washington is more important than the people they are suppose to protect. A republican who is sick of my own party and the damage the party is creating.

You gotta be kidding me... while we are at it lets blame Obama for the war in Iraq, the situation in Israel, the " there is no God" advertisments in Britian and other places. Lets just blame him for everything!! Problem solved!!

I don't care what Wall Street thinks of Obama. This entire mess we're in was brought on to us by filthy rich people on Wall Street who tried to make themselves filthier and richer still. It's time we we stopped using Wall Street as gauge to how well Obama is doing especially since he's busy bailing out these greedy SOBs. Talk about biting the hand that feeds you

No. President Obama is not to blame for the stockmarket fall. The whole problem with the economy starts with us ordinary people. All businesses ultimately get all of their profit and cash flow from the money spent by us. Until we ordinary people start spending money again, the economy will continue to decline. It may be counter intuitive, but the best way to jumpstart the economy/stockmarket is for us to stop saving and start spending.

No, the President is not to blame for the stock market drop. Rather, it is the Wall Street "Power Brokers," those big money speculative investors who have great effect on trading, that are holding back right now. They are free-market purists that are pissed off at Obama for interfering in their exclusive little club. These greedy, power-hungry, malicious monsters think that the stock market is their personal playground. Nothing would make them happier than to destroy the middle class so that they can have absolute control over the populace, who they view as nothing more than slaves to be exploited.

He doesn't even know what a P/E ratio stands for....

Robin C. You responded Absolutely??? How about Absolutely NOT! You must be one of those short sighted, short term investers. Stop your complaining and buy more stocks while you can.

Oh please!!!!! The market has been manipulated by short sellers since last summer and in free fall ever since. The market wogs are invested in whining that their non stop stealing seems to have backfired on the market and little investors such as I are totally steamed that they have not been held at account. Instead they transfer their lies to cnbc acting as "experts" while the rest of us just scream at the TV. CNBC and CNN do not listen to the complaints we send that they are still paid salaries to mislead and lie and steal.

Oh sure, the first child spills the milk but lets blame the second child for walking in and cleaning up the mess. Love the logic. It's time for Wall Street and all the CEO fat cats to grow up and be responsible, they broke it, they own it. Enough said.

Not Obama's fault, its the fault of all Americans because we let it happen.

In response to the question If President Obama is responsible for the failing stock market the answer is :no no no no no,He's no more responsible for the failing enconomy than Rush Limbaugh,but ,I'd place more of the blame on Russ,Continuing to criticize the Presidents Policies.The stock market like wall street dosn't respond well to change.But just like most people in time "THIS TOO SHALL PASS".

I would have to give the most credit to many of our Sr. Execs in Corporate America who aren't creative enough to figure out how to be profitable when times get tough...however they do seem to know how to stay overpaid.

How about if we blame the Media..reporting in all negative tones... I know listening to them.. I would not want to invest. I wake to hearing bad bad bad... then at noon it is worse... by dinner time .. you start wondering if the sun will come up... I have even heard some push for a run on the banks..

Jack – The stock market began its free fall as a result of the financial mess created by them crooks and rogues on Wall Street long before Obama became president. The free fall has never abated as the financial mess has not yet been fixed. So it is an unfathomable outrage for WSJ to blame President Obama's budget or policies for the continuing losses in the stock market.

Joe-T
Detroit, MI