CNBC poses the dilemma.
The US government could be entering a bottomless pit of bailouts if it starts propping up failing companies outside the financial sector—including the struggling auto industry, economists say.
Bill Issac poses the question:
“Where do you stop?” says Bill Isaac, former chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp and now managing director at the LECG global consulting firm in Vienna, Va.
How much money HAS the government spent on bailouts so far this year? Earlier in the year the President proposed and signed a $700 Billion bailout package of private industry. Not all that money has been spent yet, but CNBC has compiled for us a list of organizations that have recieved some of that money so far.
The TARP has so far committed the following funding:
AIG $40 billion
JPMorgan $25 billion
Citigroup $25 billion
Wells Fargo $25 billion
Bank of America $15 billion
Merrill Lynch $10 billion
Goldman Sachs $10 billion
Morgan Stanley $10 billion
PNC Financial Services $7.7 billion
Bank of New York Mellon $3 billion
State Street Corp $2 billion
Capital One Financial $3.55 billion
Fifth Third Bancorp $3.45 billion
Regions Financial $3.5 billion
SunTrust Banks $3.5 billion
BB&T Corp $3.1 billion
KeyCorp $2.5 billion
Comerica $2.25 billion
Marshall & Ilsley Corp $1.7 billion
Northern Trust Corp $1.5 billion
Huntington Bancshares $1.4 billion
Zions Bancorp $1.4 billion
First Horizon National $866 million
City National Corp $395 million
Valley National Bancorp $330 million
UCBH Holdings Inc $298 million
Umpqua Holdings Corp $214 million
Washington Federal $200 million
First Niagara Financial $186 million
HF Financial Corp $25 million
Bank of Commerce $17 million
TOTAL: $203.08 billion
Now the bailout money that congress approved was only for banks. So lets remember some of the other groups that have gotten money.
Remember, AIG, on top of getting the $40 Billion if FREE CASH listed above, also recieved $123 Billion in loans from the federal reserve, and they’ve already used most of it.
Also, the federal government seized control of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. God knows how much it costs to operate these entities, but the debt the government incurred was $5 Trillion, more than one and a half times the entire federal budget.
American Express, yes the Credit Card company, is requesting $3.5 Billion in Bailout cash, and since earlier this week the Federal Reserve granted them FULL BANK STATUS, they will probably get it.
The federal reserve gave $25 Billion to GM, Ford, and Crystler in loans, and now those companies are requesting $50 Billion more EACH.
Why?
This government has handed out so much of YOUR money its almost sickening. What benefit could possibly come from it? If youre debt is so big that $25 Billion doesnt cover it, you’ve got bigger problems.
Remember what happened after AIG got their initial $38 Billion? Do we expect any of these other companies to act any differently?
So the question arises, when do we stop? The answer is so simple that there is no way Congress could come up with it.
Now.
We stop now.
Cut off all funding from the taxpayer to any private organization. Part of running a business is balancing a budget and operating within your means, and that includes being prepared for recession. It doesnt matter if your business makes $250 a year, $250,000 a year, or $250 Billion a year; you are not entitled to ANY free money.
Businesses will go under. People will lose their jobs. Industry will fail. Thats how this works. But only after they fail, can they build themselves back up.
Before the refrigerator/freezer was invented, there was a man who walked from house to house delivering ice every morning, like the milk man. After the freezer came around, the ice man lost his job because it was no longer needed. Should the government have bailed out his industry? Should the government have bailed out the VHS industry at the introduction of the DVD player?
Remember the $15 Billion bailout of the Airline industry after 9/11? Those worked well…
But someone has to benefit from all this money. if its not the organizations recieving the bailouts, who could it be?
