Celebrate Gutlessness!
Published: May 28th, 2007
By: Tom Morgan

Celebrate gutlessness!

This Congress is gutless. And this is good for the country.

So goes the thinking of a lot of historians. And of some stock analysts and money managers.

One of the latter is Ken Fisher. He writes for Forbes.

Fisher reckons House Speaker Nancy Pelosi should continue to spend her time travelling. Because “She can get more done outside the Beltway than inside it.”

He feels the Democrats’ majority is too thin to allow them to pass significant legislation. “In that regard they are in the same position as the GOP in 2005-06. The Democratic Congress has scarcely legislated at all. Markets love that. Gutless is great.”

Fisher writes: “In years when Congress is active...demand for stocks and bonds falls.” This is because when Congress is active its new laws change the rules. The rule changes roil business conditions. They make a lot of things unpredictable. Not good for markets.

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But when Congress is more evenly balanced, there are fewer surprises. Fewer big changes.

“For this year and next anything important that Congress passes, and there will be precious little of it, can be vetoed with impunity by our lame-duck President. What a beautiful world. Celebrate gutlessness! If you haven’t already done so, buy stocks.”

He adds “The less that lawmakers can do, the less damage they can do.”

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