By this time it’s no longer breaking news. America chose four more years of Obama.
Yet that may not be the most consequential part of the election. What may matter most – in hindsight – is what happened to Congress. Or what didn’t – vote by vote and district by district, America kept a split Congress.
While the players have changed (somewhat), it’s this split Congress that paralyzed American politics for the last two years. It was this split Congress that could not come to terms on the debt ceiling and made the fiscal cliff bigger. It’s this split Congress that made predicting what comes next out of Washington – and what happens in the markets as a result – so difficult.
Bad news.
With no big changing of the guard in Washington, we may see more uncertainty. More gridlock. More wrangling. One commentator said that the next election cycle starts today. He may be right – and that’s unsettling news for our economy.
We’ve said it before: we can’t afford partisan bickering and kicking the can for another election cycle. Enough is enough. We have to take serious action to address our deficits, or we may be seeing Reinhart and Rogoff’s “Bang Moment” faster than any of us expect.
And yet, there may be a glimmer of hope.
An article today in the Financial Times quotes John Boehner, Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives. He said:
“With this vote, the American people have also made clear that there is no mandate for raising tax rates… If there is a mandate, it is a mandate for both parties to find common ground.”
Inside sources are confirming this. In fact, on our upcoming event, The Post-Election Economy, we’ve added interviews with the Chiefs of Staff for Democrat Harry Reid (Senate Majority Leader) and Republican Rob Portman (one of the true GOP experts on the budget). You can register for the event here.
What they’re telling us is that with a second term for Obama, Congress may actually be able to use this lame-duck session to get to work immediately addressing the fiscal cliff. And that the Obama administration and the Democratic Senate are coming ready for compromise, unlike when the election was on the line.
Congress will be in session next week, and we should start to get a clear picture quickly as to how true this all is. Reid and Portman’s Chiefs of Staff will be able to give an inside take on what’s really happening for our event The Post-Election Economy on November 20 (along with our panel of A-list guests you can see here).
What happens next will be critical for you – and your money. This isn’t about trying to play the post-election market moves; it’s about being in the right place to minimize risks and take advantage of new opportunities that are sure to arise in the coming months and years. It’s about being informed and taking the necessary action to come out ahead in our new post-election economy.
It starts when you reserve your spot now to join us for The Post-Election Economy
This appears courtesy of Mauldin Economics. John Mauldin, Chairman of Mauldin Economics, is a renowned financial expert and best-selling author. On November 20, Mauldin Economics is bringing together an A-list panel of political, economic, and investing experts to discuss what to expect in the post-election economy. Learn more and reserve your spot for the event by visiting: postelectioneconomy.com
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