US News
Battle lines drawn over giant US finance rescue (Roundup)
Sep 22, 2008, 0:10 GMT
US Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson speaks at a press conference at the Treasury Department in Washington, DC, USA on 19 September 2008. The federal government announced it is safeguarding assets in money market mutual funds and temporarily banning the short-selling of financial company stocks in a effort to stem the worst financial crisis in years.\'He\'s asking for a huge amount of power,\' Nouriel Roubini, an economist at New York University, was quoted as saying. EPA/MATTHEW CAVANAUGH
Washington - Battle lines were being drawn in Washington on Sunday over the US government's rescue plan for the financial industry as Democrats in Congress sought guarantees for taxpayers, help for people trying to hold on to their homes and limits on pay for executives from firms benefiting from the bailout.
The Bush administration, an ardent advocate of free market economics, is seeking unchecked powers from Congress to buy 700 billion dollars (485.5 billion euros) in bad mortgage debts to head off a disastrous credit freeze that could spell global disaster for the international finance system.
The move would be the largest intervention in capital markets since the Great Depression of 1929. Without intervention, officials have warned there would be a national and worldwide financial catastrophe, a 'global meltdown.' New York Senator Charles Schumer raised the spectre of 'depression' if the US fails to intervene.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson signaled on Sunday the coming fight over the request, saying there were adequate measures in place to help struggling homeowners and that limits on executive salary as well as industry-wide regulations must wait.
'What I'm saying is, we need this to be clean and quick, and we need to get it in place,' Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said on ABC news on Sunday.
Paulson acknowledged the 'frustration' of taxpayers who must watch as financial executives continue making millions while the government bails out their bad decisions.
But he warned that the priority was to stabilize the market.
'We need a lot of reforms, and this is going to be something Congress and the next administration is going to be working on for a long time,' he said. 'But these can't be done, and shouldn't be done, in a matter of days.'
The 700-billion-dollar package compares to the 600 billion dollars already spent on the war in Iraq and even towers over annual budgets for the Pentagon and other departments of government.
Congress would have to raise the debt ceiling to 11.3 trillion dollars, after raising it in July to 10.6 trillion dollars in anticipation of the 200-billion-dollar rescue of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The White House says Congress must act this week, before it starts its recess on Friday to prepare for the November 4 presidential elections.
The three-page document sent to Congress includes few details, and would prevent courts from reviewing actions taken under its authority, Bloomberg financial news agency reported Sunday.
'He's asking for a huge amount of power,' Nouriel Roubini, an economist at New York University, was quoted as saying. 'He's saying, 'Trust me, I'm going to do it right if you give me absolute control.' This is not a monarchy.'
The request comes as US President George W Bush's popularity has fallen into the 30th percentile and as both Democratic nominee Barack Obama and the Republican's own nominee, John McCain, campaign on a platform of radical change from the Bush era.
The government lurched from one crisis to another last week, standing by as Lehman Brothers investment bank declared its 600-billion-dollar bankruptcy and as Merrill Lynch investment bank was swallowed up by Bank of America. It then stepped in to rescue the insurance giant American International Group Inc (AIG) to the tune of 85 billion dollars.
Markets not only in the US but around the world fluctuated wildly but returned to about where they had been at the beginning of the week after news of the rescue package emerged.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi promised that Democrats would work with the administration to ensure a 'swift' response. But the majority party would also seek to reduce mortgage foreclosures, create a 'fast-track authority' for an overhaul of financial regulation and to protect taxpayers.
A spokesman for Representative Barney Frank, chair of the financial services committee, said Democrats will put curbs on executive pay for companies whose assets the government will be buying.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said the 'American people have every right to be outraged that we are at this point' and blamed the Bush administration's 'extreme hands-off policies.'
But he said the consequences of inaction 'could be catastrophic' and cause a 'global financial meltdown' and said he was sure a compromise would be reached.
Reid also called for Bush to be frank with Americans about the severity of consequences if Congress fails to act.
Paulson, on the Sunday morning talk shows, evaded such questions, saying only that huge numbers of jobs, the integrity of retirement accounts and the ability to borrow money were all at risk.
COMMENT
blog comments powered by DisqusLatest Headlines in US
- 1. Mitt Romney Addresses Tea Party Summit Pictures
- 2. Seven injured as US Navy plane crashes into apartments
- 3. At least three injured in US Navy plane crash
- 4. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, others to face death penalty trial
- 5. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, four others to face death penalty trial
Older Talkback
page: 1
and you are eyeball deep in your own fecal matter. go to hell, spammer.
Spammer, get off this site!
so true
that's what people don't get - both parties are in bed with the enemy
or what ever you want to call these greed heads
I guess evil would not be too inappropriate of a description at this point
'go to hell, spammer.'
Not exactly a rebuttal, now was that.
The beautiful no more. America is now dead. It must be divided into 45 independent countries.
Take good notice of following line,borrowed from Paulson in aboce article:
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson signaled on Sunday the coming fight over the request, saying there were adequate measures in place to help struggling homeowners and that limits on executive salary as well as industry-wide regulations must wait
Very significant for the stance the ruling GOP is taking in the crisis:they bail out the bankers whose limitless greed has caused this crisis.The combined income of CEO's of the investment banks reached the staggering amount of 85 billion dollars ,now that is 8.000.000.000 dollars...for 2007 only .Which is more than 10 percent of the amount asked from the US taxpayer to solve the crisis caused by the greed of these men.isn't it an incredible scandal then that the Bush administration is boldly saying that these guys are not to be troubled for their deeds ?
And then there are a few simpletons from the GOP posting here that Obama is a crook because he got campaign contributions from Fanny May ?All candidates benefit from the financial sector;in fact the GOP more than the democrats as has been calculated .
Nevertheless the republican smear campaign is picking up more speed as the deadline of elections is approaching .Throwing more and more absurd accusations ,knowing very well how effective that is .Imagine for a second how your history books would have looked if your founding fathers had used this kind of tactics .It wouldn't look good in your history books .So perhaps time to develop a strong disapproval of all those that use these shameful tactics and elevate the debate by bringing forward real facts .Now let's hear some better arguments ,your future is at stake .Each and every one of you already has a debt of 35.000 dollars due to the catastrophic government of the last eight years.Your international reputation lies in shatters as well as your domestic economical markets .The only thing that has raised over the last 8 years is your military spending .Is any of that stuff useful to the average american household ?
'Very significant for the stance the ruling GOP '
This has to go to congress, which is 'ruled' by the democrats you stupid French monkey.
It doesn't really matter what steps are put in place - america is increasing debt at a relentless pace, the loans to cover it are being bought by China, Russia and Middle East countries and soon the US economy will be entirely in hock to these overseas holders.
The american tax payer will then pay increasingly large taxes to cover the interest on these debts as the whole country slides to oblivion as a footnote in history. Have a nice day (while you can)
Why should the US taxpayer be forced into taking on hundreds of billions of dollars of currently worthless debt????????
You should find this interesting:-
Of the $9.2Trillion in total Federal government debt outstanding at the end of CY 2007, approximately $5.1 Trillion was owed to the public (foreign and domestic) in the form of treasury bonds and T-bills. Of that $5.1 trillion, nearly half, $2.4 Trillion, was owed to foreign interests.
This means each man, woman and child owes $7,973 in federal debt to foreign interests. A family of 4 owes $31,893 in this regard - - 25% of the total is owed to Japanese interests, 20% to China
Thank you - I had overlooked the size of the Japanese holdings. However the situation remains as I stated - a large (oncreasingly so) proportion of the US economy is in the hands of overseas countries who will be collecting interest (ultimately from US taxpayers)
'the loans to cover it are being bought by China, Russia and Middle East countries'
Three foreign languages that English speaking people have difficulty learning. So, do I start learning Mandarin, Russian, or Arabic? I guess Hispanic is no longer as important. You can take over a country by buying them out, populating them out, or mass invading and killing them.
It is a tough world out there.
It's a beautiful world.
Here's a few reasons why I am a republicant-
The republicants just love to spend taxpayers money
on bridges to nowhere and earmark money to favorite corporations.
The republicants love the tax structure they created where approx.
75% of corporations pay no income tax as they make billions in income.
The republicants love to give golden parachutes to their executive buddies while the ordinary shareholder gets robbed.
The republicant Mclame talks of being a reformer, but he has all of GWB's pals around him as campaign advisors.
The republicants don't want any national health care plan.
The repubicants don't want any national transportation plan.
The republicants don't want any national energy plan.
The republicants love to outsource jobs overseas.
The republicants don't want any munincipal employee unions for police, firemen, or teachers, or any employees' unions of any kind.
The repubicants know how to wave big flags in a patriotic gesture.
The republicants don't want to get osama bin laden, so they do everthing they can to avoid going to look in the right places for the terrorist.
The republicants do know how to blame others for their problems, and not take respnsibity for anything.
These are just a few reasons why I am compelled to vote for republicants.
Can someone answer this question?Sep 22nd, 2008 - 11:29:48
Why should the US taxpayer be forced into taking on hundreds of billions of dollars of currently worthless debt????????
SP4 - To prevent a bank run, which would be worse.
This was preventable.Sep 21st, 2008 - 01:59:13
John McCain predicted Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac crises, pushed 2005 legislation to prevent trouble:
The 'FEDERAL HOUSING ENTERPRISE REGULATORY REFORM ACT OF 2005' would have headed this off but it was killed in the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs by Chris Dodd who recieved the most money from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
President Bush sought to rein in Fannie and Freddie in 2003.
The Democratic response to Bush in 2003:
“These two entities — Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — are not facing any kind of financial crisis,” said Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts, the ranking Democrat on the Financial Services Committee. “The more people exaggerate these problems, the more pressure there is on these companies, the less we will see in terms of affordable housing.”
Representative Melvin L. Watt, Democrat of North Carolina, agreed.
“I don’t see much other than a shell game going on here, moving something from one agency to another and in the process weakening the bargaining power of poorer families and their ability to get affordable housing,” Mr. Watt said.
Inform Yourself Tonny.
'SP4 - To prevent a bank run, which would be worse.'
When mentally ill people run up huge debts, destroy their company, their lives, other people's lives, and injure their country then the only option is to not respond and to isolate them.
They have a gambling addiction and they need to hit rock bottom no matter what the consequences. The entire country can not be held hostage to mentally ill addicted people. Those type of people will get money any way they can: Fraud, stealing, lying, cheating, coercion, killing. They will do anything to feed their addiction.
The U.S. is held hostage by credit addicts.
The US IS a credit addict.
sp4
'The US IS a credit addict.'
Ergo, I am not part of the U.S., nor is any other responsible person.
SP4, on the other hand, is probably part of the U.S.
An unfortunate definition for The United States Of America. And an unfortunate legacy.
We've weathered two wworld wars, terrorist attacks, and the Great depression. This will just take time and money. Properly done, we could actually come out on it, but it'd take 20 years.
'We've weathered two wworld wars, terrorist attacks, and the Great depression. This will just take time and money. Properly done, we could actually come out on it, but it'd take 20 years.'
If only every con artist in the U.S. could use the same argument:
No worries, we robbed your bank but you have been through much worse, so just move on.
The criminal justice system, including fraud, is not suppose to work that way.
regarding this:
'go to hell, spammer.'
Not exactly a rebuttal, now was that.
Here's YOUR rebuttal: (_*_)
This will just take time and money.
Ah yes - but the catch 22 is that you may have time but you do not have money. The money is now debt, which is held elsewhere, which you need to get yourself out of debt......
Rusty Shackleford has done extensive research into the efforts to smear Sarah Palin as a member of a secessionist party, when in fact she has been a lifelong Republican. Videos that appeared on YouTube supporting this smear have been tracked — circumstantially, but substantially — to the CEO of a public-relations firm, strongly suggesting that the smear campaign did not arise organically as an outgrowth of Palinmania but had financing, planning, and intent. Who would have had the means for such a campaign? I’ll get back to that in a minute.
Rusty runs down the evidence at hand:
* Evidence suggests that a YouTube video with false claims about Palin was uploaded and promoted by members of a professional PR firm.
* The family that runs the PR firm has extensive ties to the Democratic Party, the netroots, and are staunch Obama supporters.
* Evidence suggests that the firm engaged in a concerted effort to distribute the video in such a way that it would appear to have gone viral on its own. Yet this effort took place on company time.
* Evidence suggests that these distribution efforts included actions by at least one employee of the firm who is unconnected with the family running the company.
* The voice-over artist used in this supposedly amateur video is a professional.
* This same voice-over artist has worked extensively with David Axelrod’s firm, which has a history of engaging in phony grassroots efforts, otherwise known as “astroturfing.”
* David Axelrod is Barack Obama’s chief media strategist.
* The same voice-over artist has worked directly for the Barack Obama campaign.
Rusty tracks this down to Winner & Associates, and to Chuck and Ethan Winner, the family that owns it. If all of this is true and the Obama campaign can be connected to it, it would represent a massive set of FEC violations, as well as the ultimate repudiation of “hope and change” and “New Politics”. In fact, it would be a massive demonstration of Chicago Politics on a national scale.
Could this be true? Normally, one would shrug off such a suggestion by saying that no national campaign would be dumb enough to try this, especially one ahead in the polls. However, consider what Team Obama did to Stanley Kurtz and David Freddoso. They don’t seem hesitant in the least to conduct smear campaigns and character assassination to win elections, and they conducted those two attacks openly. With that kind of track record, it doesn’t seem out of the question for them to have conducted a slimy, unethical attack on a political opponent who threatened to steal all of the oxygen away from their campaign in a way that hid their involvement.
mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/194057.php
What a great opportunity for us consumers.....We can beat these Greedy B- - - a r d s now and forever. They are simply trying to rush us into a deeper poverty than we had a week before AIG was saved. The first greedy bas- - - d s to surface were today's oil speculators (again)! What nerve!!!!!----120 dollars a barrel! when it was @91.00 yesterday!!!!! In our faces!! Our boycott now will finish them off if we take these simple steps:
1. If a / any politician attempts to talk to you about the economy getting better on his/her watch, tell them: 'Sign my petition to legislate ANY and all speculators to be fined 1,000,000 dollars U.S. to be paid every time they SPEAK OR ACT to raise the price of crude beyond last year's cost of living index.
2. Boycott Mobil Exxon on every 'even' day of the month and buy gas from ANY other seller on those days.(Get it? ...get 'even')
3. Never buy gas that derives from the mideast. (or VENEZUELA in particular, until Chavez dies)
4. (Heres the best revenge....)Always buy within your means and NEVER buy TODAY ANYTHING YOU DON'T NEED TODAY!!!!!
It's still simple! We control the marketplace, not the greed merchants. Now, just act on this and see how we can lower energy costs to ourselves, for a start. Don't believe 1/10th of what the media is mongering to you anymore....They, too, are purely profit motivated and really have very, very little to offer us.
from the mideast. (or VENEZUELA in particular....
Your geography is a bit suspect ! Venezuela in the mideast ?
I can answer that
because the corporations benefit from low wage workers and from housing devlopment projects
that is how they make their money
you don't think they pay for it do you?
no, they have us pay for them to make money
essentially they steal from us
they do not care what is happening - jobs exported - low wage workers pouring into the country every day -
we have to subsidize the whole thing and both parties of Congress do the bidding of the corporations
Just goes to show what happens, when you export all the good paying jobs outside the country. Export jobs, you export a tax base. I told everyone before, your standard of living is defined by your credit rating. Its all come to an end, along with the million dollar birthday parties given by Wall-Street CEO's to their wives. We have 2 wars going on that has bankrupped the country. Bankruptcy judges should be given the power to readjust home loans, to keep homes out of foreclosure. Big oil should be taken over by the government, just like many other countries have done in S. America. Gas went form $3 per gallon to 35cents a gallon, their economy took off after the take over. While the CEO's in the US walk away with billions in their pockets..................The bail-out will be an election year issue. Nothing will be approved while Al Bundy Bush is in office. The scare tactics are upon us.
And so it is...............................
Check out 'McCain Song Bird' on the net.
Print more paper money. What a concept!
Is killing America.
Financial system is broken.
A budget deficit, a trade deficit,stock market woes, and real estate market in poo poo. With the airline industry, auto industry, and mortgage loan industry needing federal bailouts due to system that's NO longer working. It is a system has deteriorated to fostering greed, corruption, fraud and outright thievery. Ameruica is indeed broken. Its failing financial system in shatters. What is America to do???????????????????
The week China began to rule the world. The crisis on Wall Street, that shifted in China's favour. The madness in the financial markets has marked the end of developed economies, which the US was the undisputed leader .
The US has now lost control and is forced to go cap in hand and borrow even MORE money from foriegn countries to stay afloat..
They'll give give all the money you want....but the interest rate will be VERY high. Still, you can always sell off your US assets.
...always this frightened?
Each man, woman and child ALREADY owes $7,973 in federal debt to foreign interests. A family of 4 owes $31,893 in this regard - - 25% of the total is owed to Japanese interests, 20% to China
Nomura has just bought out Lehman in Europe and the FBI is investigating a $700 bil fraud against the US taxpayers.
As for Bush, your hero SP4, never has an American President been so ridiculed throughout the World, not just here on M&C, but throughout the entire World. Good riddance when he's gone.Anyone will be an improvement.
monstersandcritics.com/news/business/news/article_1432735.php/Bank_of_Japan _supplies_30_billion_dollars_to_markets__1st_Lead_
The U.S. will soon be owned by China, Japan and countless other countries who are going to buy them out piece by piece - the pieces that haven't already been bought out in the past.....
page: 1
SP4: This was real foresightSep 22nd, 2008 - 01:47:20
This was preventable.Sep 21st, 2008 - 01:59:13
John McCain predicted Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac crises, pushed 2005 legislation to prevent trouble:
The 'FEDERAL HOUSING ENTERPRISE REGULATORY REFORM ACT OF 2005' would have headed this off but it was killed in the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs by Chris Dodd who recieved the most money from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
President Bush sought to rein in Fannie and Freddie in 2003.
The Democratic response to Bush in 2003:
“These two entities — Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — are not facing any kind of financial crisis,” said Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts, the ranking Democrat on the Financial Services Committee. “The more people exaggerate these problems, the more pressure there is on these companies, the less we will see in terms of affordable housing.”
Representative Melvin L. Watt, Democrat of North Carolina, agreed.
“I don’t see much other than a shell game going on here, moving something from one agency to another and in the process weakening the bargaining power of poorer families and their ability to get affordable housing,” Mr. Watt said.
Report this comment