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As the debate whether Gov. David Paterson should appoint Caroline Kennedy as the next U.S. Senator heats up, many questions arise about her qualifications.

But to bluntly oversimplify her qualifications of philanthropy and law into one word, it would be her name.

As a Kennedy she would have the ability to raise money and awareness for the issues of New York State.

The fact that Kennedy has not had to pay her “political dues” does not really concern me.

The real questions I would like to know are not about her qualifications, but rather her intentions.

I want to know, why she has decided at this moment to enter politics, what her agenda would focus on as Senator, and how she plans on helping the economically depressed and bleak, upstate New York.
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Many of the country’s state ballot proposal’s have received wide media coverage in the pre and post election analysis. These have included California’s Proposition 8 to constitutionally ban gay marriage and proposals to limit abortion in Colorado and South Dakota.

A proposal that has received far less media coverage was New York State’s Proposal Number 1, which won with an overwhelming majority, to help veterans compete for government jobs. (more…)

Chinese investors felt relieved after the department of treasury announced the takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac last Sunday.

China paid close attention on the government bailout of the two housing mortgage giants, because about 10 percent of China’s gross domestic product is invested in the two troubled companies. If the two companies went into the process of bankruptcy, the 200 billion investment will be gone with the wind.

I went to the Crain’s New York Business Breakfast Forum with Gov. Paterson Tuesday morning, in which he said that it was good news that the government bailed out U.S.’s two biggest home mortgage companies.

New York was severely impaired by the national financial crisis with a possible economic recession and a struggling Wall Street. Gov. Paterson supported the government’s rescue action. He also said his solution to economic slowdown was cutting spending rather than raising taxes.

“We are now just getting into the financial crisis.” Gov. Paterson said in the breakfast forum at Hilton Hotel in midtown New York City, because he believed the public has not been aware of the seriousness of the economic crises.

The U.S. economic downturn increasingly battered Wall Street financial institutions, which contributed 20 percent of the revenue to the New York State government. Gov. Paterson strongly praised the Treasury’s decision, because it will stabilize the financial system and the two big companies, which account for almost half of the U.S.’s $11 trillion home mortgage market.

“The Treasury Department’s actions highlight the need to reassess our nation’s regulatory system to ensure that our financial institutions remain sound and we protect consumers.” Paterson said in a statement released by the State.

Inflation in New York hit a 17-year high annual rate of 4.7% this month, and a monthly job loss of 3500 made life much harder for residents.

To reduce the $5.4 state government deficit, Gov. Paterson insisted on cutting spending, not taking the tax addiction. He talked with teachers unions a few days ago in Albany about cutting the educational budget. On Sept.5, Gov. Paterson directed government agencies to a zero-growing budget plan for the 2009-2010 fiscal year.

Economic difficulties in the U.S. also impacted other places in the world, such as the European economy and also emerging economies like China, India, Argentina and Venezuela. In the speech, Gov. Paterson pointed out some New York companies that have already relocated manufacturing jobs back to the state and other places in the U.S. There are still severe economic problems to address in the future, he said.

Additionally, American people are aware of global economy’s impact on their daily life. They bought made-in-China goods, which leads to China’s trade surplus. Then China invested on the U.S. market via buying treasury bonds, asset-backed securities, which allowed American people to afford the housing mortgage. Nowadays, here comes another problem: when the market comes into trouble, who should take the responsiblity of rescue?

Read more on China’s investment in the ailing U.S.: Will Washington’s big creditor turn away? from SFGate.