To give him the benefit of the doubt, one could say that things were OK when Summers was still at Harvard and that he might have changed trajectory had he stayed there a bit longer... In my opinion, the guy is an arrogant SOB who only pretends to listen to people. The most common complaint among faculty was that he had no social skills and would not listen to anyone. Some would say that a good executive may need to be that way. However, this weakness eventually led to his resignation. I knew Obama's long term plan for the economy was doomed when he picked Summers.

Anybody with a history of psychopathology should be banned from public influence. The memo that went out over Summers' name at the World Bank arguing that rich countries' toxic pollution should be dumped on poor countries in Africa should have disqualified him from any responsible position. His continued presence in high-status positions just means that our oligarchy does in fact believe that the lives of the poor are inconsequential beside the self-indulgences of the rich. An equally disqualifying resume item is his role in imposing the economic "shock therapy" on east Europe which enriched a few and brought enormous suffering to the many.

Unless you're a member of the oligarchy and a crony of Summers, you don't want that man anywhere near influence over the conditions of your life. And this is the guy Obama likes?