Enterprise and Society Advance Access originally published online on October 1, 2009
Enterprise and Society 2009 10(4):612-650; doi:10.1093/es/khp052
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United States Bank Rescue Politics, 2008–2009: A Business Historian's View*
During 2008–2009, MARK H. ROSE was the president of the Business History Conference
Contact information: Department of History, Florida Atlantic University, 777 Glades Road, Boca Raton, FL 33431-0991. E-mail: mrose{at}fau.edu.
First I describe my background in American historical scholarship. Thereafter, I assess the efforts of Presidents George W. Bush and Barack H. Obama and their senior advisors to stabilize American financial institutions during the period 2008–2009. My fundamental contention is that state actors such as Bush and Obama structured financial industries and markets. Despite the ubiquitous presence of these state actors, however, American business and political leaders maintained the fiction that state and business were, and properly ought to remain, separate entities. In Part III, I return to my scholarly background and to a proposed scaffolding for historical scholarship focused on the political economy of U.S. financial institutions since 1970.
* Presidential Address, Business History Conference, Bocconi University, Milan. The theme for the 2009 meeting was "Fashions: Business Practices in Historical Perspective."
I am pleased to acknowledge valuable ideas and first-rate comments on drafts of this address provided by Mansel Blackford, John C. Burnham, Albert Churella, Colleen A. Dunlavy, Jeffrey R. Fear, David M. P. Freund, Walter A. Friedman, Roger Horowitz, Richard R. John, Pamela Walker Laird, Robert Lockhart, Julia C. Ott, Stephen Mihm, Marsha Lynn Shapiro Rose, Philip Scranton, Richard Sylla, and R. Daniel Wadhwani. I’ve been especially fortunate to have stood with lifelong friends and colleagues in business, political, urban, and social history. Not only did I learn from these good friends, mentors, and colleagues, I enjoyed their support and friendship as I looked for jobs and sought publishing opportunities. Members of the BHC have been especially accessible and encouraging. I hope I’ve returned a portion of their favor. As well, Pam Laird, Roger Horowitz, and I put in place a series of committees that should widen the BHC circle. And finally, I have never doubted that Marsha Lynn is the most important person in my life—Since our marriage in 1967, she has taught me more large and durable ideas than anyone else. I love you Marsha Lynn.