I haven't been following Howard Gleckman as much as Ezra has, but this post offering the ridiculous idea that Douglas Holtz-Eakin should be Obama's OMB director also includes this:
Second, Holtz-Eakin would enjoy fiscal credibility in the financial markets. The bond vigilantes have not cared about deficits for years, but they tend to get interested when Democrats run the government. Just ask Bill Clinton. Today, they see Obama as little more than a big-government liberal with a good speech. This might show them he is more complex than that.
Jeez. Is this really how financial professionals work? I mean, the Bush administration is posting record deficits and has increased spending more than Carter or Clinton -- the largest increase, in fact, since LBJ. But none of this worries people because a conservative is doing it. And John McCain, who is planning on cutting taxes by $300 billion, doesn't concern them since his commitment to continuing to stay in Iraq and not making clear where he would cut spending is the epitome of fiscal discipline. But, if a liberal were elected, he would need a conservative hack in his administration to prevent people from worrying about the deficit. That's credibility!
--Tim Fernholz
