Bush: Hey, who’s up for a few more bailouts?
posted at 4:30 pm on November 24, 2008 by Allahpundit
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As a bailout proponent, I confess, the only statement I’ve heard over the past six weeks asserting that the original $700 billion for TARP has done tangible good came from Paulson himself. Like Megan McArdle, I hoped it would work as a firewall against future bailouts; clearly it didn’t. I justify it to myself on grounds that things could have been disastrously worse if it hadn’t passed, but that’s no different really from WaPo insisting that Obama will save millions of jobs even if he doesn’t actually create any. How do you measure?
The “good news” of the Citigroup bailout, such as it is, is that this one’s guaranteed to do some good only because the consequences of Citi failing are so enormous. The bad news? It won’t end at Citi, as Cramer observes about halfway through the second clip below. In fact, at this point, I’d consider it a moral victory if this bailout ensures that Citi itself doesn’t need further rescuing in the near future. All I want as a taxpayer is the answer to the following question: How much to fix everything versus how much to let everything collapse? I know they can’t give me a definitive answer, but give me some answer with some measure of assurance. If the apocalypse is inevitable, let it come; just stop burning money futilely trying to fend it off. As it is, these bailouts appear to be achieving nothing more than buoying up the Dow for a day or two, followed by another week of precipitous decline.
Exit question: It’s a staple among talking heads that Bush should do more to integrate Obama’s team, follow Obama’s plan, etc. What, precisely, has he neglected to do that’s retarded the transition to Geithner and company? Aside from the auto bailout, which is hung up in Congress, there are no major disagreements between he and The One that I know of. Did I miss the memo about Obama being adamantly opposed to rescuing Citi?
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Is Cramer still telling people to buy Bear Stearns?
Chuck Schick on November 24, 2008 at 4:34 PM
Or, you could also title this post: “How to make Gail Collins crankpot idea look desirable, if not constitutional.”
What a disaster, and it’s the Republican brand name that is getting tarred.
thirteen28 on November 24, 2008 at 4:35 PM
sure why not
they should have the CEOs appear in a fear factor type format with Paulson as the host
joey24007 on November 24, 2008 at 4:37 PM
Bush reserved a seat at the G20 for bambi, who declined to accept. Accepting could have sent a positive signal and increased confidence, but bambi was afraid he would reveal how much of an empty suit he really is.
JustTruth101 on November 24, 2008 at 4:37 PM
I thought the way to “safeguard our financial system in the future”, was to make sure the companies were well run. So before the bailout, shouldn’t you fire the ones who made the bad decisions?
Doesn’t it make sense to fire the people, and replace them with competent leaders so we can “safeguard our financial system in the future”.
Or is that too reasonable…
right2bright on November 24, 2008 at 4:37 PM
When is the left going to hammer Obama for supporting the failed Bush policy of bank nationalization? He’s not even POTUS yet, and all signs indicate we’re in for a third term of George W. Bush. I thought that was change we didn’t need…
Enrique on November 24, 2008 at 4:38 PM
Screw it let them ALL Fail!
upinak on November 24, 2008 at 4:39 PM
When did the US Government become a loan office?
Companies fail. It happens. Let them – and let’s be on with business already.
kybowexar on November 24, 2008 at 4:40 PM
Mr. Bush- Go home to Texas NOW.
portlandon on November 24, 2008 at 4:40 PM
The bailouts will not stop. There is no sense left, at all. The highest priority should have been saving our monetary system, but that doesn’t fly in a country whose majority would vote for a retarded Marxist and who have punished any and all if the whiff of a recession was ever detected.
The neo-Boslheviks are coming and they’re coming fast. Whatever sliver of hope might have been left will go up in smoke as this insane Congress presses anti-growth/anti-competitive bills to “spread the wealth” and kill any remnant of industry left in the US. But, BHO said that he would bankrupt the coal industry and the voters liked it. Now they will find out that the coal industry was the least of it.
I figure we might have about a year, maybe two, if we’re lucky.
progressoverpeace on November 24, 2008 at 4:41 PM
when we let it get screwed up by being greedy…This isn’t a government created mess alone.
Bush is working hard…he sure is aging.
tomas on November 24, 2008 at 4:42 PM
God damnit Bush.
I know you’re aching to get back to Crawford but could you please act a little afraid about what, and who, you’re leaving us to govern.
gippergal1984 on November 24, 2008 at 4:42 PM
When do we, the people, revolt? I’ve got a pitchfork and a torch all ready to go.
AubieJon on November 24, 2008 at 4:43 PM
I think bush has done everything he could to:
1) create a fascist state
2) destroy free enterprise
3) destroy his legacy
4) destroy the republican party
5) totally discredit conservatism
what a mess. our money, and our country will soon be worthless.
heckuva job there Jorge!!
right4life on November 24, 2008 at 4:43 PM
That’s certainly how it feels right now.
I just want to know where it’ll finally stop. I keep hearing where it won’t stop, i.e. with car makers (who will likely get a handout once they’ve done their homework) and now Citi. This is getting sick.
Though so far I can’t complain. Nothing, except for the price of gas, has yet changed for me.
Esthier on November 24, 2008 at 4:46 PM
Good Lord, just let them fail. That way the more creative capitalists will rise to the top of the pack. Instead of these old bears.
Oh, well. It’s just money right? (kidding, kidding)
mjk on November 24, 2008 at 4:46 PM
portlandon:
I will be sorry to see Bush go home myself. I would rather see him doing this now than leave it all to Obama later when he has a near filibuster proof Senate. I myself do not think that there is anything particularly courageous about standing back and watching the financial sector crash and burn for the sake of ideological purity. Especially considering the fact that the long term results would be even more government payouts to more people for longer.
Most of the people who want them all to fail might feel differently if it was their bank and or their job or their pension. And if they can not keep this leaky boat afloat it just might be.
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 4:47 PM
There are numerous large companies that now legitimately need a bailout. The problem is that we can’t bail them all out. It’s coming down. Get out of the way.
indythinker on November 24, 2008 at 4:48 PM
mjk:
Not necessarily. There is nothing creative about a collapse of the financial sector. And if it is to be the desire of people to see double digit unemployment and a depression that last for years and years, then they should run on that. See how many people vote for it, go for it, want it.
I do not like the idea of any bailouts. I understand the desire to just let nature take its course and watch the world economy collapse into depression and chaos…but I am not sure that the strong will survive. In fact it is out of that sort of chaos that the great isms, communism and fascism were born.
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 4:50 PM
oh please, this bailout just makes it much worse. the government caused this mess with CRA and SOX. then it doesn’t fix the problem, instead just covers it up by spending more money.
thanks to this bailout soon our money will be worthless…we’re slouching towards zimbabwe.
its just a repeat of all the failed FDR policies of the 30s…didn’t help, just made the depression longer and worse than it should have been.
we’d have been better off without the bailout.
right4life on November 24, 2008 at 4:52 PM
How many people here have lost a job in the last 2 months?
tomas on November 24, 2008 at 4:55 PM
Are we going to have a competition to name the new currency?
Will it have BHO’s face on it?
progressoverpeace on November 24, 2008 at 4:55 PM
You’re thinking ‘economy’ when the problem is ‘monetary’. I wish this were just an economic problem.
progressoverpeace on November 24, 2008 at 4:56 PM
right4life:
That was one of the most insane and ridiculous comments I have ever read. Bush created a fascist state? Destroyed the Republican party?
I am seriously thinking about just being an Independent and giving up on Republicans. All they do is find fault and complain and stab each other in the back. If I believed half of what I read on righty blogs about other Republicans I would probably never vote for one again.
You know, Bush did not create a situation that is global in scope. The British, the Europeans, even the people of Iceland are dealing with problems as bad or worse.
And if you think this is a fascist state, then you need to go somewhere like Venezuela and say something like that about Hugo Chavez and see what happens to you.
So far the free enterprise system is still here. Nothing Bush has done has changed that. In fact to hear Democrats tell it, it is Bush’s fanatical free market tendencies that got us into this.
As far as the Republican party, I would say that the corrupt Congressmen who did nothing to help the Bush administration reform the credit system even when Bush tried, the Congress who refused to support him when he tried to veto a farm bill or reform social security did a pretty good job of screwing things up without any help from Bush.
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 4:58 PM
How do you restore confidence when you have lost all credibility? Well, you can’t, so stop trying.
Firstly, Bush and Paulson fell for the fear mongering from leftists rumor mongers who were predicting the end of the world. Just like Bush the Elder was provoked into sending the military into Somalia because Sally Struthers was on the nightly news every night with pictures of starving kids pleading for America to ‘do something’.
So the rumor mongers spread fear and panic on Wall Street, after Congressional democrats set up an over leveraged house of mortgage debt.
Since Bush the Younger has no credibility after 8 years of leftist propaganda the best thing for him to do, is nothing. Announce that he will be working closely with the new administration, doing everything needed by the new president to make the transfer of responsibility as smooth as possible, then just leave town.
The leftists have won. The voters cast their vote, and they are going to get what they want, so let them have it.
(Start a garden, you’re going to need it.)
Skandia Recluse on November 24, 2008 at 4:58 PM
So who’s going to bail out my mortgage? (which I am happily paying off on.)
rbj on November 24, 2008 at 4:59 PM
Unless Obama really tosses us a curveball come January, is it me or did we figuratively elect W to a third term? I can’t tell where the Bush ends and the Barrack begins.
LastRick on November 24, 2008 at 5:00 PM
I will too. I really like Bush on Security. He makes no apologies for Americas right to live. But this “Money for all, step right up” crap is just over the top. He is NO fiscal conservative, as the government grew by leaps & bounds during the last 8 years.
I have carried more Water for Bush defending him to friends, family, coworkers & even fellow Bush supporters. It is just getting awful hard when he keep piling on.
portlandon on November 24, 2008 at 5:01 PM
right4life:
No, this is not a repeat of the failed FDR policies. It is not even close to being the same thing.
Maybe you want to go back to the good old days when a collapse like this could lead to widespread panic and unemployment and hunger and a complete collapse overnight of the economic system. There is no way in hell that people today are going to tolerate that kind of loss and chaos. No way. Just look at the history of this country, the kinds of depressions we have dealt with in the past. Today people think they are doing without if they don’t have cable.
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 5:02 PM
In a vacuum it would be difficult to measure, but we don’t live in a vacuum and in the context of history it’s been demonstrated that bailouts and other government interference in the markets don’t work and only prolong and exacerbate these problems.
FloatingRock on November 24, 2008 at 5:03 PM
We’ve heard that one before. In fact, it seems to be a staple. Every company begging for help claims to be indispensable, including the Big 3 carmakers. I’m in favor of tough love.
a capella on November 24, 2008 at 5:03 PM
portlandon:
It is not just about security. Bush is one man, he is a powerful man, but he is just one man. The idea that if he went home or if someone else were in charge that all this would change or go away or not have happened is naive. It is not about Bush.
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 5:03 PM
what do you think these bailouts are doing? we’re entering into a public/private ownership of the entire financial system…just like China…a fascist state.
you think the republican party is doing OK???? uh yeah sure…
I didn’t say he created it…but his reaction to it has been a disaster…he has abandoned all principles, if he ever had any. and this bailout has not worked…the market is on its way to its worst year since the depression…even with your beloved bailout.
chavez is a socialist, not a fascist. but I doubt it would upset him.
really? you think so huh? pretty much the entire financial system is owned wholly or in part, by the government. soon the automakers will be too..where does it stop???
and when did bush ever veto a spending bill? like it or not Bush has been the leader of the party…open borders, bailout loving…big spending…he has to take responsibility, sorry.
right4life on November 24, 2008 at 5:03 PM
Development company I worked for dropped 30% od it’s staff the remainder had to take a 10% pay cut and the company’s partners took 20% cut to stay afloat.
thomasaur on November 24, 2008 at 5:05 PM
od = of
thomasaur on November 24, 2008 at 5:05 PM
You do realize this is money the government doesn’t have, don’t you? Wait till the inflationary spiral hits in a couple of years from all that newly printed stuff.
a capella on November 24, 2008 at 5:06 PM
Obama and Co. are more about perception than reality. Nuances like the Constitution are above most of them, just as they are seemingly below The One.
njcommuter on November 24, 2008 at 5:07 PM
its not?? why not? all thats missing are public works projects which obama will do…and bush has already signed onto one USELESS stimulus…remember those checks in the summer that were gonna save us?? please.
it wouldn’t have happened. this ‘panic’ has been all about the government playing on people’s fears to expand their power. the bailout is BS. it hasn’t worked…BIG SURPRISE!!! right?? please.
so throw away your convictions and throw money at the problem…thats why elect conservatives…right.
Reagan wouldn’t have done this. no conservative would have.
right4life on November 24, 2008 at 5:07 PM
right4life:
You said Bush was creating a fascist state, that is insane. And golly gee you are right Chavez is a socialist not a fascist. I tell you what then, go to Iran and say crappy things about the Ayatollah and see what happens to you. Feel better?
And no, the entire financial system is not owned by the government. My bank is a small community bank and the government does not own it. If the government just lets all these financials fail, who do you think will end up paying the price? Who do you think will go in and clean up the mess? The private sector? My little bank might be solvent, but it can not handle something like this. And besides, if the whole system really does collapse there will be not be a private sector to pick up the pieces.
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 5:08 PM
I essentially did. I’m a freelance writer, and the work dried up. I haven’t had an employment gap in 13 years of freelancing, but now I can’t find more than a dribble of work. I’m going weeks without work, which is unprecedented for me.
aero on November 24, 2008 at 5:09 PM
Amen, Terrye.
MayBee on November 24, 2008 at 5:10 PM
Hey, the Mrs. went out and bought a gun with that return of her tax money from her small business.
thomasaur on November 24, 2008 at 5:11 PM
Maybe you, and a few million people with their heads out of the MSM clouds know this, but right now GWB is the face of Modern Conservatism, and he does us no favors. He is now the poster child for failed conservative governance. This is neither Fair or deserved but is fact.
The sooner he exits stage right, the better.
portlandon on November 24, 2008 at 5:12 PM
right4life:
FDR did things like bring electricity to rural areas via the REMC. He created the WPA system.
This is different and you know it. We have had the Federal Reserve for years. We have had FDIC for years. We have had the SEC for years. These institutions established a connection between government and the financial sector decades ago. Maybe you want to get rid of all that and go back to the good old days when most people did not have bank accounts. But I don’t think most Americans feel that way. And so far your idea, your alternative, is just to let it go to hell in a handbasket in the hopes that in the long run it wall work out okay.
Fine, but my neighbor just lost his job and he is not worried about the long run, he is worried about right now. And so are most people.
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 5:13 PM
I’ve been a Bush supporter through thick and thin, and remain, I guess, part of that stubborn 20-odd percent who believe he’s doing a better job than his former political opponents or the President-elect would or will do when faced with identical or similar challenges. I frankly don’t like large-scale bailouts and view the implementation of government control measures now as a psychological support to allay panic on the markets rather than as any kind of real, substantiative solution. But maybe, just maybe what’s driving this is a fear of the kind of panic that results in a selling frenzy, that fear FDR talked about: the fear of fear itself. Well, if that’s what’s driving all of this, then let them fall, let all of them fall: the auto industry, financial concerns like Citigroup, all of them. It would be a shock to the markets and create a great deal of short-term destabilization in the lives of many millions of people, but we would know then whether all of this is real or whether it’s based on the exaggerated claims of disaster by failing businesses deserving of failure. When cutting off a limb without anesthetic, I say get it over with, and be quick about it.
troyriser_gopftw on November 24, 2008 at 5:13 PM
you can keep saying the same old lies..but prove he isn’t. you cannot. fascism is a government/private enterprise partnership that nazi germany had and china has today. what is different about what we are doing??? hmmmm???
in the scheme of things, your small bank is meaningless.
the people who invested in those failing business…but no, now ALL of us pay the price!!! you need econ 101.
the sky is falling, the sky is falling…no its not. please.
where do you think government is getting this money from???? do they just make it out thin air??? please.
if it would collapse it would be the best thing for the country. they would learn the government can’t save them…like you think it can.
right4life on November 24, 2008 at 5:13 PM
AP,
Your understanding of free market economics could use a little polishing. I recommend starting with Reed’s Great Myths of the Great Depression. Only 16 pages, besides being an excellent concise history, it shows clearly how Hoover/FDR’s policies failed and why. Those same things are being tried today and will fail for the same reasons.
Government bailouts are both immoral and impractical. Learn why.
JDPerren on November 24, 2008 at 5:15 PM
portlandown:
Modern conservatism?? And he does us no favors? Yep, you are right. He should say let them eat cake. That would help.
The truth is conservatives have screwed themselves. They hate everyone. They hate Palin {a cancer doncha know}, they hate Bush, they hate Huckabee, they hate Romney, they hate Rudy, they hate Arnold. You can’t do these people any favors, they can’t stop stabbing each other in the back long enough to do them any favors.
But, Bush will be gone soon and you will have Obama in there making decisions. I think that is really what a lot of conservatives want anyway. A Democrat running things, so the only thing they have to do is complain.
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 5:17 PM
“The
FullLack Of Faith and Laughable Credit” of the US government.It doesn’t roll off the tongue … but that’s how it is.
progressoverpeace on November 24, 2008 at 5:18 PM
right4life:
Prove Bush is not creating a fascist state? Why don’t I just prove I am not an alien from another planet?
Do you even know what a fascist state is? I think not.
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 5:19 PM
Citibank and the big three can go to Washington and basically ask for their debts to be forgiven. If I go to citibank or gmac or chase will my debts be forgiven. How bout a grass roots effort for debt forgivness????? Let’s all start over with a clean slate.
gringo69 on November 24, 2008 at 5:21 PM
And the idea that in the scheme of things my bank is meaningless is absurd. My bank is a community that has been in business for a very long time, it is the kind of bank that people like right4life here should be saying are an example of how banks should do business, but instead he calls it meaningless. It is not meaningless to this community, without it a lot of businesses here in southern Indiana would be in trouble.
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 5:22 PM
It’s nice to see the sheep are still defending the socialist Bush to the death.
lodge on November 24, 2008 at 5:23 PM
You seem to have no sense of scale.
progressoverpeace on November 24, 2008 at 5:24 PM
right4life: enough with the ‘fascist state’ nonsense. The Left has been doing it for years, and I’m altogether sick of hearing about crypto-, psuedo- or any other kind of fascist. Generallisimo Franscisco Franco is dead.
troyriser_gopftw on November 24, 2008 at 5:24 PM
What do you call robbing money from the taxpayers to give to corporations?
lodge on November 24, 2008 at 5:24 PM
gringo:
I don’t think it is that simple, their debt is not just being forgiven.
But if they are allowed to go under, I do think people need to realistic about what that means.
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 5:24 PM
I hope you idiots cheering the bailouts to “save” everyone realise we’re gonna wipe out the currency (these banks have TRILLIONS of worthless assets for us to backstop) and become Zimbabwe. Get reading for hyperinflation, massive unemployment, civil unrest, martial law, price controls, rolling blackouts, shortages and out of control crime.
lodge on November 24, 2008 at 5:26 PM
You are correct. It is not being forgiven. It has been transferred to the federal government (us).
And I don’t think you understand what a total monetary collapse means, especially when it happens to the economic engine of the world and the trade and reserve currency that all international trade depends on.
Gangrene requires amputation.
progressoverpeace on November 24, 2008 at 5:27 PM
It’s nice to see members of the John Birch Society are still batsh*t crazy as ever. And what is it with your fascination with sheep, anyway? The far-far-right invariably uses words like ’sheep’ and ’sheeple’ and so on when referring to people who disagree with your views. I think maybe some of you are spending entirely too much time alone. Get out more. Date human females.
troyriser_gopftw on November 24, 2008 at 5:29 PM
lodge:
Oh please. Firs of all we have Obama out there talking about how the rich do not pay their fair share of taxes, when in fact we do know where most of those taxes from. We know the rich already pays most of the taxes. And if people really do want to just let these businesses go under then they have to realize that a lot of taxes won’t get paid. A lot of jobs will go by the wayside. A lot of businesses who did not have anything to do with any subprime loans will go under and take their employees with them. And those employees are taxpayers.
So fine, just let it all go to hell. But be prepared for what that means. I just do not think that most people are.
As for taking money from taxpayers and giving to corporations being fascists, it happens every day and always has. I don’t have children, but I pay taxes to educate other people’s children. State governments all over the country give tax breaks to businesses everyday to attract new ventures…someone else will pay those taxes. That is not exactly a new thing.
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 5:29 PM
progressoverpeace:
It is not just being funneled to the taxpayer and if they don’t this and this bank goes under the government will get stuck with the costs anyway, only it will be worse. What do you think will happen to all that debt? Do you think it will just disappear?
Terrye on November 24, 2008 at 5:33 PM
Our government is taking out a loan on our behalf then right? I haven’t signed anything so I am sueing for ID theft. I even have life lock. Hope it works against the IRS.
gringo69 on November 24, 2008 at 5:33 PM
I think we need to see the small print on this type of payout. Some of the ‘bail out’ funding has been done with pretty hard commercial terms. I have heard that Citi will have to be nice to its debtors (mortgage holders) rather than foreclose and have a fire sale.
What bothers me is that we are learning precious little about the exact terms. Perhaps that is to curb any panic if the public knows why or how badly Citi and others need the money but I think the public should understand the terms for repayment. If the terms are sound and commercially viable it might actually end up receiving support from the public since there is an upside to many of these firms if they can ride out the current crisis. I would hope that the public will eventually benefit.
I am 100% sure this is better than letting the infrastructure of our economy go to the wall and bring even solvent firms down with it.
lexhamfox on November 24, 2008 at 5:33 PM
Karl Marx would be proud of Bush and the rest of our POS government.
FloatingRock on November 24, 2008 at 5:33 PM
…and some of the commentators here, too. :)
FloatingRock on November 24, 2008 at 5:35 PM
Probably give him at least a C+.
thomasaur on November 24, 2008 at 5:36 PM
Worse than what? There are economic issues and there are monetary issues. The government has put itself (us) on the hook for more money than we have. Bankrupting our government and destroying our currency is never prefereable.
It was private debt that would have been handled in the private sector. Now it’s government debt (effectively) that is charged against “The full faith and credit” of the US, which is all the government has. Without faith, we have no government … not a government that can operate without guns on the street to force back some of that “faith”. Take your pick.
progressoverpeace on November 24, 2008 at 5:40 PM
Yep. Not a perfect score, but still, not bad.
FloatingRock on November 24, 2008 at 5:43 PM
I’m sorry, I don’t buy the “sky is falling” argument that these companies use to justify the bailouts. If anything the government should get the hell out of the process entirely and let recovery happen naturally. The recovery will happen much faster and the bleeding will be less if the government stays out of the situation.
Remember, the depression worsened after FDR got the government involved.
By propping these companies up we just insure that they will not clean out the people and policies that caused the situation. There is a “Darwin Factor” at work in healthy economys. Let nature take it’s course.
conservnut on November 24, 2008 at 5:44 PM
I would add:
It worsened for years and years and years, with no end in sight until WWII forced production. But then, the real part was after WWII, when there were no industrial competitors to the US and we were the only game in town. That is not what we have today … not yet :)
progressoverpeace on November 24, 2008 at 5:48 PM
Karl Marx did have one thing wrong. He thought the monopoly and super-companies were the highest form of capitalism. History has shown that they are generally very inefficient forms of capitalism as shown by AIG and some of the other super big institutions. More recent history highlights this. Unfortunately, we can’t let them all fall at once. The economy can’t restructure that fast. So this is a way of giving them a soft landing and hopefully some of the smaller firms can step up to the plate and take over once the dust settles.
I don’t think the steps they are taking are marxist at all. This is to get us through something that threatens all our markets.
It’s hard to see it that way when looking through the prism of ideology but step back and look at the broader picture. The aim is to keep the whole thing afloat rather than watch it sink and start from scratch (going back to barter and turnips as a cash substitute).
lexhamfox on November 24, 2008 at 5:49 PM
The government does not run anything efficiently including the military. The military operates most efficiently when politicians stay away and let the soldiers do their job.
thomasaur on November 24, 2008 at 5:54 PM
Cramer is still listened to by who???? And why?
Yup. Let’s give Obambi the wheel right now. Bring on the crashing into the tree.
Sugar Land on November 24, 2008 at 5:54 PM
I’m not sure a recovery could even happen naturally with all the taxes and regulations we have. There’s a reason industry has been fleeing the US. We’re pretty much doomed.
lodge on November 24, 2008 at 6:03 PM
The system needs to collapse. Catastrophic collapse is the only thing that will allow the economy to come back. If that means a Great Depression, then so be it. Maybe after the smoke clears people will realize how stupid it was to let home values be engorged by an artificial market driven by the government.
Every single person who was financially irresponsible enough to live off of a home equity line needs to be slapped around so they don’t do it again, it’s the only way human beings learn anything.
I know, that answer sucks, but life isn’t fair, and we’re killing ourselves trying to make it fair.
John_Locke on November 24, 2008 at 6:14 PM
I just explained what it is. you really are a moron. duhhhhhh
right4life on November 24, 2008 at 6:14 PM
ok since your bank doesn’t need a bailout why do all the other banks?? hmmmm??? sigh.
right4life on November 24, 2008 at 6:16 PM
its not nonsense. take a look around its whats happening right now. fascism is a government/private company partnership. first the banks, next the auto companies.
get a clue.
right4life on November 24, 2008 at 6:17 PM
very true…we’re slouching towards zimbabwe…trust me, I’ve been there….
right4life on November 24, 2008 at 6:19 PM
And to think that some thought that the U.S. would turn into a socialist country slowly. Silly them.
First Great Socialist Leap Forward – Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR the First).
Second Great Socialist Leap Forward – George Delano Bush (FDR the Second).
Third Great Socialist Leap Forward -Barack Delano Obama (FDR the Third). Oh wait!!! Doesn’t look like there will be much left for him to do.
MB4 on November 24, 2008 at 6:38 PM
I concur. He would be very pleased. Actually kind of warms my soul too. You know the soul that Clueless George thought I had.
PootyPoot on November 24, 2008 at 6:45 PM
Well you have to consider how it was the government’s decision to let Lehman Brothers collapse that led to this economic meltdown in the first place. Now that’s just Lehman Brothers. Imagine the chaos that would be caused if Citi was to fail.
SoulGlo on November 24, 2008 at 6:53 PM
The consequences of the U.S. Government failing are more enormous. $3TT deficits are not sustainable.
bigbeas on November 24, 2008 at 7:16 PM
Let me get this straight… a private business fails because of their bad decisions and investments. You blame that failure on the Government for “letting it happen.” That’s absurd.
bigbeas on November 24, 2008 at 7:23 PM
The responsibility for my failures rests squarely in my lap. I’m just a little guy who pays my bills, taxes, insurance , repairs,payroll, maintenence, incidentals, whatever else. I didi not know until recently that I should ask someone else to pay some of these things in my stead. I will conform by asking for debt forgiveness and not paying my bills and borrowing huge amounts of money on credit and not pay it back. My new business model, just like Uncle Sam’s. I shall call it the Uncle Sam plan!!!
gringo69 on November 24, 2008 at 8:53 PM
right4life, you get a clue, or at least read a history book. The partnerships between corporate sugar daddies and Mussolini and–later–Hitler did not involve government takeovers of those businesses. IG Farben and the other conglomerates were fearful of communist revolution and the nationalization of their industries, so they supported the staunchest anti-communists out there, not realizing they were allying themselves with rightwing doppelgangers virtually identical in aims to their communist counterparts, at least in Hitler’s case. Mussolini’s relationship with his corporate sponsors is the more accurate model. In any event, fascism is a very specific thing, and what’s going on now in the US auto and financial industries isn’t a Mussolini-like partnership. Throwing out the word ‘fascism’ at every turn muddies the issue and draws a false equivalence.
troyriser_gopftw on November 25, 2008 at 9:21 AM
Mr. President, please sh-t up about bailouts, just sh-t up and let Bambi do any further bailing out. For the love of mike, Bush is taking a great issue away from the GOP by doing Bambi’s dirty work for him.
james23 on November 25, 2008 at 12:59 PM
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