Who's to Blame?

In order to avoid taking the ignorant, "I'm Republican/Democrat so I'll vote straight-party" route I have made the effort to look into the policies of our Presidential Candidates. Yet, I find myself lost in the world of hate ads; the commercials that not only point fingers, but aim rifles at the actions of the opposing candidate flood the airways of every channel I flip to. Numbers and figures of pork barreling grants are thrown in every which way along with accusatory claims of not upholding promises, lack of experience, and Bush-likenesses.

The issue that I am most interested in, but I have yet to see covered by the campaigning commercials, is the ECONOMY. What is happening? I'm overwhelmed with the thought of an impending depression. Who can I point my finger at in disapproval? Politicians feel as though they can blame others for the issues facing this country, I would like to as well.

Let's take a look at what role each party has played in the road to a crashing stock market:
The Democratic party leaned mainly in favor of defending Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and using them as, arguably, vehicles for social engineering. Frannie Mae and Freddie Mac were key enablers in the mortgage crises. Basically, the Democrats are generally more in favor for allowing the majority loans and are typically more lenient in this practice. A Frannie Mae and Freddie Mac reform bill was passed by the Senate Banking Committee yet denied due to an overwhelming vote against it by the Democratic party. This bill would have been put in place to regulate the company's power, and would have required the companies to eliminate their investments in risky assets. Obama plans to overhaul the regulatory system, and claims and our economy "is not working" and "that is part of the reason that it lacks confidence." He has stated that "we must have complete transparency and openness in how our financial markets are working."

Although there is a significant amount of evidence that supports the theory that the Democrat party has led to the downfall of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, it doesn't trump the fact that Democratic presidents have consistently higher economic growth and consistently lower unemployment than Republican presidents.
In 2006 Senator McCain stated, "For years I have been concerned about the regulatory structure that governs Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac...The GSE's need to be reformed without delay." This statement does support his, as a Republican, awareness to the potential economy, it does not predict how he will help the economy if elected into office.

Both sides of the argument are compelling; both parties seem to have much to do with the crash. All in all, it comes down to how one will interpret this information when determining who is to blame.

Discuss.