If Phil Gramm can upset both Sen. Obama and John McCain, he must be doing something right.

Seven consecutive years of quarterly economic growth is not a recession;it is an near miracle given the rising cost of commodities and an expensive war in Iraq. Yet for having the audacity to point out something that has been pointed out here in the Chicago Daily Observer numerous times (The United States is not in a recession), Phil Gramm is taunted by the most economically backwards candidate since William Jennings Bryan (Sen. Obama) and chastised by Gramm’s theoretically free-market boss, Sen. McCain.

Yet the media whines daily about economic doom and gloom, and certainly on an individual level, there are always some problems with the economy. However the severity of these problem is minor when compared with the tanking after 9/11 or the downturn in the early 1990’s. Historically low unemployment, low inflation, and economic growth are good signs of a healthy economy, despite the displacement resulting from higher commodity prices.

For all the puffery about welcoming open debate and Sen. Obama’s calls for “frank discussions” on a variety of subject, basic arithmetic is ignored to continue overheated and overly partisan politics.

I applaud Sen. Gramm for having the nerve to introduce facts into politics, and encourage the media to stop their whining and actually do some reporting and analysis of the economy.