THE COLOR OF MONEY COLUMN: Sen. Hillary Clinton on Economy and ‘How to Fix Things’

[journalist3072]

THE COLOR OF MONEY COLUMN: Sen. Hillary Clinton on Economy and ‘How to Fix Things’

Date: Tuesday, January 22, 2008
By: Michelle Singletary

Last week I got a call from Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign asking if I wanted to talk to the Democratic candidate one-on-one about her economic stimulus plan.

Of course I did. In fact, I want to talk to all the leading candidates. I'd love to share with them the massive amount of e-mails I get from folks across the country frustrated by their financial conditions. When I read their stories of foreclosures, lost jobs, choking student loans and strangling credit card and medical debt, I want to weep.

During our conversation, Clinton spoke passionately about finding common-sense solutions that focus on individuals.

"This is not an abstract economic discussion for me," she said. "This is about the real people that I represent in New York and that I meet all over America and the incredible pressures they are feeling in the economy."

-snip-


Clinton said that stabilizing the housing industry isn't the only step necessary to stimulate the economy.

"A lot of people are in over their heads in debt and it's not just mortgage debt," she said. "It's credit card debt. It's consumer debt of all kind. It's college loan debt. It's medical debt. And what we've got to do is provide as much help as possible to give people a chance to work their way out and get their finances in order short of having to go into bankruptcy."

I like Clinton's idea to create a "community support fund" of up to $5 billion to assist hard-hit communities and troubled homeowners. Among other things, the fund would help pay for financial counseling, she said.

The financial-planning portion of that proposal hasn't gotten the attention it deserves. Perhaps that's because it's so straightforward -- and so simple. And yet, financial counseling can do more for individual households and communities than any tax plan.

-snip-

Clinton and I talked about mandatory financial education courses for high school students.

"When I was in junior high and high school we all had to take courses that we used to call home economics," she said. "You were given information about how to manage your home, manage your finances ... pay for your lifestyle."

Entire article at: http://www.blackamericaweb.com/site.aspx/finance/hclinton012208

[Warpy]

1. How utterly worthless

in a nation characterized by wealth concentrated into a few hands and the rest of us existing on substandard wages.

Mrs. Clinton, the problem isn't education. The problem is JOBS that pay LIVING WAGES.

Stop talking tommyrot before it's too late.