It is still true that the banking-sector policies that were undertaken were good – or at least better than doing nothing. But the certainty that matters would have been much worse under a hands-off approach to the financial sector, à la Republican Treasury Secretary Andrew Mellon in 1930-1931, is not concrete enough to alter public perceptions.
然而如今，美国政府却不能以此作为借口：政府官员不能说一场全球性的危机得以化解；也不能说他们拯救自己的银行 —— 贝尔斯登和雷曼兄弟除外 —— 他们迫使冒险者破产；更不能说政府在交易中赚到了钱。