The $700 Giveaway Begins – Companies Lining Up For Handouts
Posted on November 16, 2008
Filed Under Bailout Mistake | Leave a Comment
Let the party begin! Companies line up for bailout money.
Now that the federal government is eager to pass out $700 billion of Americans’ hard-earned money, a long line of companies are in fierce competition for their share… unfortunately it’s not just the banking industry that wants a handout.
The congress approved bailout fiasco gave Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson a broad range of lattitude in where the money goes and the terms by which companies can request it leaving lobbyists and special interest groups scurrying into action. According to a New York Times article entitled “Insurers are getting in line for piece of Federal bailout,” the Financial Services Roundtable has already jumped in. This lobbying group in the financial service industry on October 24 asked the treasury to broaden the $700 billion windfall to insurance companies, auto companies, broker-dealers and even foreign-owned financial institutions.
Even Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has weighed in on the action with his support of the auto industry requests. Despite a recent Congress approved $25 billion loan to automakers downward trend in the economy has caused a drastic reduction in new car sales. Despite blaming this on economic factors, the US auto makers have been losing out to foreign companies due to a failed business model. Faced with exhorbitant labor, benefits and ‘legacy’ costs these companies need to be left go into bankruptcy and reorganized in an efficient manner. But that’s a subject for another article.
Back to the bailout – bankers are claiming that bailout money is being used to pressure them into mergers and takeovers that will re-shape the entire financial sector. National City realized that it was not on the receiving end of any bailout money and so accepted an offer from PNC Financial who used most of it’s 7.7 billion dollars of your and my money for the purchase. Similar to that was the Wells Fargo takeover of Wachovia.
Thus begins our governmental encroachment into the private sector and a dangerous step toward socialism.
What are your thoughts? Any chance that common sense will prevail?
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