Trump International Hotel and Tower slated for completion in mid-2009.

It’s becoming more and more obvious that the problems with the American economy are going to continue for the next several years.  If for no other reason then the knee-jerk reaction that banks and financial institutions are taking to limit their exposure to real estate related investments.  There is no greater example of this then the recent lawsuit filed by Donald Trump against lenders looking to reduce their exposure on the Trump International Hotel and Tower – a 92 story hotel and condominium high-rise architected to be the second-tallest building on United States soil.

Unlike most Trump stories – this isn’t really about Trump or his ego or even about some grandiose plan to expand his empire.  This story is about terminology, bank loans, and whether you believe that the “unprecedented financial crisis in the credit markets” is equivilent to a force majeure equal to an act of war or a natural disaster.  If you believe Trump (or anyone looking at the first page of a foreclosure document), you would consider the financial markets some sort of natural disaster, and that would require an extension and additional funding as provided in the original Trump loan package.

Bernanke Tries to Decide What Next

The stock market volatile – imagine my surprise – but a recently headlined article on Marketwatch.com reminds us that consumers think it’s going to get worse.  Of course consumers think it’s going to get worse – the media keeps telling us it is going to get worse.  Even good news is buffered by some footnote as to why this is an exception to the bad that’s yet to come.  And if the media tells enough people, and talks about it long enough, eventually the American public begins to believe.  After all, if it can work for presidential candidates like John McCain…

So is the economy bad?  Yes, it’s terrible.  This is the worst thing that could have happened to America at the worst time.  It’s caused market upheaval around the world and some analysts think that it would be worse right now if we knew what to look for.  Fortunately, or not, depending on your view, the Wall Street shenanigans are as difficult to unravel as they were successful in their profiteering during the good times.  But, the media is missing something very important – we, as people and as a country, will recover.  And if history serves as a measuring stick, we will recover relatively quickly.