The markets started off jittery yesterday and throughout the morning they just kept dropping. Later in the afternoon President Obama made an attempt to reassure Americans. During a statement at the White House he said, “Markets will rise and fall, but this is the United States of America. No matter what some agency may say, we’ve always been and always be a triple A country.” It’s unclear how most Americans reacted to Obama’s five minute speech. But investors did not seem impressed. The Dow ended up closing 634 points lower and the S & P index lost 6.6 percent.
Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania, says it’s no accident that President Obama quoted directly from Warren Buffet. Much of his speech sounds remarkably similar to rhetoric employed by billionaire Warren Buffett.
At The World, we believe strongly that human-centered journalism is at the heart of an informed public and a strong democracy. We see democracy and journalism as two sides of the same coin. If you care about one, it is imperative to care about the other.
Every day, our nonprofit newsroom seeks to inform and empower listeners and hold the powerful accountable. Neither would be possible without the support of listeners like you. If you believe in our work, will you give today? We need your help now more than ever!