I heard that Obama has been making his picks of Hillary Clinton to the State Department, and a center right economic team in order to appease the establishment so that they won't strongly oppose his policies. But is the economic and foreign policy establishment really that powerful in the eyes of the American people? The economic establishment has been discredited through deregulatory policies that has led to the current financial meldown. While the foreign policy establishment has lost legitimacy with the American public by the war in Iraq. However those who want a change in both foreign and economic policies were powerful enough to allow the Democrats regain control of the house in 2006 and control the presidency in 2008. Is Obama overestimating the power of the Washington establishment while ignoring the voting strength of those who want a true change in policies?

What Obama really needs to include in his economic package is a plan for universal healthcare. The lack of universal healthcare is one of the main factors that is weakening America's economy. A large percentage of bankruptsies and foreclosures are due to the fact that people cannot afford to pay the medical bills. I have heard horror stories about people not being able to afford healthcare for ill parents or children. How much money do these middle class people spend on healthcare for their families that could have been used for consumer spending. Also American businesses pay a larger amount of money paying healthcare insurance for their employees that have been best been used for hiring new employess or keeping prices down. It appears to me that the healthcare insurance industry is a vampire sucking the life out of the American economy and the only way to defang it is to have universal healthcare.