Here are the Republican talking points on what to do about an economic crisis:

• Tell everyone that the fundamentals of the economy are sound
• Blame the downturn on pessimists and whiners
• Refuse to acknowledge bad economic statistics
• Advocate more restrictions on immigration
• Demand additional cuts in the capital gains tax

Does this speech sound familiar? “The fundamental business of the country, that is the production and distribution of commodities, is on a sound and prosperous basis.” (President Herbert Hoover, October 25, 1929)

Historian Eric Rauchway writes in The American Prospect:

Hoover worked to get businessmen to respond to the crisis by herding them into conferences and urging them to cooperate. He backed immigration restriction and a cut in the capital-gains tax. He quarreled with the unemployment figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. None of it worked, and yet Hoover insisted on the soundness of fundamentals, blaming the continuing crisis on whiners: “The income of a large part of our people is not reduced by the depression,” he said, “but is affected by unnecessary fears and pessimism.” He urged his fellow countrymen to count on “the magnificent working of the Federal Reserve system and the inherently sound condition of the banks.”

It’s hard to believe. Senator John McCain, President Bush and the Republicans are following the Herbert Hoover economic playbook. McCain alone has repeated the “fundamentals” lie at least 18 times over the past year.

Are you better off now after eight years of the Bush Administration? If so, you are in the top 2% and if not, you know we have serious issues and are afraid. Not the phony scare tactics of the Republican Party but REAL FEARS—- roof over your head- food on the table- a job with a living wage-affordable health care, etc.

UPDATE: In an Olympic-level flip-flop, John McCain suddenly embraces business regulation after championing deregulation for his entire political career. There are currently 83 Wall Street lobbyists on the McCain campaign team.

UPDATE: Over on HuffPo, John Neffinger reminds us that if Bush and McCain had managed to privatize Social Security, the mayhem on Wall Street would be even worse for the country.

UPDATE: Slate’s Daniel Gross explains why the economic fundamentals are not sound right now.

UPDATE: White House Press Secretary Dana Perino departs from the Herbert Hoover talking points, refusing to say that the fundamentals are sound. “We have a mixed picture,” Perino concluded.

UPDATE: Got work? The Bureau of Labor Statistics tells us there are now 5.4 million more job seekers than job openings in this country, meaning that millions of dedicated, productive American workers are experiencing the hardship and insecurity of unemployment with little hope of finding a job.

UPDATE: On Talking Points Memo, former FCC Chairman Reed Hundt wrote a tour-de-force explanation of what’s wrong with the U.S. economy.