Global markets swooned this week in reaction to photos showing that President-elect Barack Obama had lost his shirt.

The pictures depicting a shirtless Mr. Obama wandering about on a deserted stretch of beach stoked fears that the United States’ financial woes were deeper than previously reported.

“We have had a steady drumbeat of bad news about the U.S. economy for weeks now,” said Tracy Klugian, global asset analyst for HSBC. “Learning that the president-elect no longer has a shirt to his name was the last thing these markets needed.”

In an attempt to calm investors, Obama press secretary Robert Gibbs said that the president-elect still owned a shirt and denied rumors that Obama had invested funds with Bernie Madoff.

Award-winning humorist, television personality and film actor Andy Borowitz is author of the book “The Republican Playbook.”

© 2008 Creators Syndicate

Your support matters…

Independent journalism is under threat and overshadowed by heavily funded mainstream media.

You can help level the playing field. Become a member.

Your tax-deductible contribution keeps us digging beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that unearths what's really happening- without compromise.

Give today to support our courageous, independent journalists.

SUPPORT TRUTHDIG