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October 31, 2008 at 07:48:47
Promoted to Headline (H2) on 10/31/08: by Richard Clark Page 1 of 1 page(s) 
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Turns out (surprise, surprise) that the big banks had not the slightest intention of increasing their lending after receiving the huge federal handout for that ostensible purpose. Tsar Paulson simply scammed the ever-gullible citizens of the US into handing the biggest and most avaricious institutions in the country a little less than $2,300 per every man, woman, child and infant in the US -- so that they could resume business as usual: namely, letting the strong banks buy out the less-strong banks, by that means reducing the competition, thereby enabling the strong banks to have even more leverage over the ever-gullible citizens of the US who inadvertently empower them. Here are details, courtesy of Alan Nasser, professor emeritus of political economy and philosophy at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, writing in the pages of the Canadian site, Centre for Research on Globalisation. His report comes from Joe Nocera, economics reporter for the New York Times: Nocera reported in Saturday's New York Times that he was able to gain access to a recording of an employee-only October 17 conference call by a top (unnamed) executive of JPMorgan Chase, the beneficiary of $25 billion of federal largesse. At one point in the conference call, one participant asked whether the $25 billion will "change our strategic lending policy." One executive then proceeded to spill the beans: "What we do think is that this will help us to be a little bit more 'active' on the acquisition (leveraged buyouts) side as regards the (vulnerable) banks that are still struggling." (Translation: "Say what? Lend to folks up to their ears in debt already?! Do we look like morons?? You know as well as I that breakneck financial consolidation has been the name of the game since the early nineties. So have leveraged buyouts. The latter are normally accomplished with private money. But now we get to leverage our bank acquisitions with public money! Is this a sweet deal or is this a sweet deal?")
The executive assures his questioner that JPMorganChase's voracious appetite for gobbling up debt hawkers was not sated by its recent government-backed digestion of two major competitors. To wit: "I would not assume that we are done on the acquisition side just because of the Washington Mutual and Bear Stearns mergers. I think there are going to be some great opportunities for us to grow in this environment, and I think we have an opportunity to use that $25 billion in that way. And obviously, depending on whether recession turns into depression, we have that as a backstop." Moments later the exec speaks openly about Morgan's intentions regarding loans: "We would think that loan volume will continue to go down as we continue to tighten credit to fully reflect the high cost of pricing on the loan side."
Was all this taking place behind Paulson's back? Not at all. In fact, we have good evidence that Paulson's stated rationale for the bailout was sheer mendacity. There was virtually no mention in the mainstream press of Paulson's move earlier this month to promote the further concentration of bank wealth. He enacted a new multi-billion-dollar tax break allowing an acquiring bank to immediately deduct any losses on the books of the acquired bank!
The message was not lost on the Times's Nocera: "It is starting to appear as if Treasury wants banks to acquire each other and is using its power to inject capital to force a new and wrenching round of bank consolidation."
Though they won't admit it publicly, most political decision makers are fully aware of the real and underlying purpose of the bailout. Otherwise, wouldn't they have imposed lending requirements on the banks?
More:
http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=10724
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ever gullible citizens
I think if those citizens has been asked what they wanted to do, the bailout would have been bailed. The American citizens weren't duped; nor were their representatives. The reps just sold the citizens down the river - and there's a hole in the boat. by Angelo (6 articles, 0 quicklinks, 7 diaries, 209 comments [1 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 31, 2008 at 11:12:28 AM  (0+)
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Are US tax payers being scammed by Hank Paulson, the US Cong
Yes. Article to follow. by Flak Stopper (2 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 55 comments [6 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 31, 2008 at 11:29:19 AM (0+)
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85 % were NOT scammed, they were RAILROADED.
85 % of the people, AT LEAST, were NOT fooled by this SCAM by Bush/Cheney/Paulson/Bernanke. Calls to congress against it were 100, 200, 300 and more, to 1 AGAINST it. Some, in Congress, voted FOR it ONLY because of Bush's threat that he would announce a "National Emergency, implement martial law and suspend the election, power he gave himself with the help of his Republican hacks in congress. Some voted AGAINST it IN SPITE of the threat. But THE 85 % of the PEOPLE had NO SAY WHATSOEVER in the THROW away of more than a TRILLION DOLLARS, before all is said and done, OR in the non-oversight to come. So the CEOs will STILL get their millions in bonuses. The STOCK HOLDERS will STILL get their dividends, INCLUDING THE CEOs holding Millions in stocks, and the rest of us will be SWIMMING IN A SEA OF RED INK for the rest of OUR lives, our CHILDREN'S lives and our GRANDCHILDREN'S lives. And let us not forget that most, if not all, of those in congress who voted FOR this abomination, are, also, heavily invested in the stock market. Don't blame this on the PEOPLE. by weslen1 (2 articles, 0 quicklinks, 3 diaries, 64 comments [8 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 31, 2008 at 11:44:41 AM (0+)
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A new way of public management
Accepting the notion that the financial meltdown was a surprise and not part of a larger agenda, requires the same mindset that permits belief that the 911 attacks were unanticipated. Or that Iraq was about WMDs or freedom. Or that the "alarm" about Iran is about alleged nuclear ambitions. It's the new and improved 21st century style of public management. And the herd - remarkably - continues to wander aimlessly about - absolutely clueless. It's Alice in Wonderland - in real life - on the grandest of scales - with unprecedented disaster looming. Expect more. Bigger, unexpected catastrophes that shape America to the liking of the men that firmly grip the real levers of power. Times, they are a changin'. A new president means nothing. And we ain't seen nothin' yet. by Michael McCoy (7 articles, 1 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 488 comments [28 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 31, 2008 at 11:54:54 AM (0+)
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Requiem for the Bailout
Requiem for the Bailout Storyline, by Norman Solomon It's mid-October, and the Wall Street bailout that was supposed to save the economy from collapse is a flop. But the media storyline for justifying the Wall Street bailout was great while it lasted. And it lasted long enough to stampede Congress into approving a massive jolt of taxpayer money to redistribute wealth upwards in the United States. www.commondreams.org/ Report from The Daily Mail in the U.K.: by Richard Clark (30 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 101 comments [2 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 31, 2008 at 12:27:33 PM (0+)
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Yet another "surprise"?
Certainly there must be at least one more "surprise" waiting in the wings! Can't Bush/Cheney/Paulson/Bernanke pull off another one to help their buddies in the oil industry in the next 90 days? I suppose an indirect route is the bailout of the car companies. I believe they have already gotten at least 25 billion but with the mess they are in, surely more is coming. Will this all cease after inauguration day? Don't bet on it! by Tom Dawson (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 17 comments [6 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 31, 2008 at 1:07:29 PM (0+)
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Bailout bonuses
I did not know what to think when I heard congress approved an 850 billion bailout package so I asked Joe the plumber and Joe told me this. The CEOs who get large bonuses due to their companies receiving big bailout checks will have to pay an incredible amount of income tax and I feel that is just plain unfair. This left me somewhat confused so I called up Greg the garbage man and He told me don't worry about those rich bastards paying too much income tax because their incomes were way more than they deserved and generated by a variety of corrupt or unethical methods. Maybe Greg the garbage man should run for office. by Gary Denson (2 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 283 comments) on Friday, Oct 31, 2008 at 6:03:33 PM (0+)
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Is the Pope Catholic? Do fish swim? Does a bear ...
Been trying to tell people. It's the financial elite at work. The monetary system is their rigged game for controlling Government and the people of this country. Doesn't matter how obvious it is, people have been taught their whole lives to believe in fairy tales. Woe unto him that speaks ill of fairy tales. by Paul Rye (7 articles, 2 quicklinks, 22 diaries, 500 comments [44 recommended, 1 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 31, 2008 at 6:09:56 PM (0+)
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DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS ASLEEP AT THE HELM...
CONGRESS IS FULL OF LAWYERS, SO WHY DID THEY ALL FORGET TO INCLUDE SOME CRITICAL FINE PRINT IN THE BAILOUT PACKAGE? More abuse of the taxpayer is coming. http://pacificgatepost.blogspot.com/2008/10/what-they-didnt-tell-us-about-bailout.html Congress didn't do its job, ... again. by James Raider (41 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 106 comments [2 recommended, 1 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 31, 2008 at 8:02:23 PM (0+)
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Pure and simple - YES! as usual
While we citizens are being sold down the river again by big business with Congress doing their bidding as usual, we, the people, declare bankruptcy and lose our houses and everything we have worked for all of our lives! I saw a sign held by somebody on Wall st. which said, "Jump, Fuckers!" I think that about describes our feelings. The greed that was allowed by the government to run rampant, charging rediculous interest rates and allowing the banks to raise the rates without notice and offer such high limits that become unmanageable - all these things have led to the situation that has become untenable for so many people. How are we ever going to recover from this terrible situation? For those of us who have had medical problems and had to survive on our credit cards , this is a downward spiral that seems to have no end and the change in the bankruptcy laws, which, by the way, Joe Biden voted for, has made it nearly impossible to even do that. So, what do we do? The papers are full of news stories of older people in this kind of bad trouble commiting suicide. Well, that is not my style. There must be some way to fight back and make sure that our representatives do our bidding or lose their jobs, once and for all. Traitor Pelosi, that means you with your "off the table" for impeachment! I wish I lived in California so I could vote for Cindy Sheehan. I hope she wins her fight. We need more real people in Congress, people who are not professional politicians. Yes, brilliant people, not people who take bribes from lobbyists and other criminals. How do we get back to what the framers of the Constitution had in mind? We either need another revolution or another crack at the Constitution to fix whatever allows these criminals to run rampant over the rights of the people. Maybe just returning the Constitution to what it was before Shrub got his nasty hands on it would work. by Caronome (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 327 comments [15 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Saturday, Nov 1, 2008 at 1:27:24 AM (0+)
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Reply: WHEN WILL ANYONE DIG INTO THE CORRUPTION?
UNFORTUNATELY, the list of those in Congress who enjoyed Fannie's and Freddie's beneficence includes Democrats and Republicans, and is deep and wide, although, Dems received the vast majority of the amount received. TOP RECEIVERS of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Campaign Contributions:
Dodd, Christopher - Dem. $165,400
Obama, Barack - Dem $126,349
Kerry, John - Dem $111,000 by James Raider (41 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 106 comments [2 recommended, 1 rejected]) on Saturday, Nov 1, 2008 at 2:34:38 AM (0+)
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How is that even a question?
The bailout and rescue packages are handouts for the financial elite. They don't care about any of you or rescuing the approx. $70 billion mortgage debacle which has somehow morphed into a $1 trillion free-for-all of the already filthy rich. I can't believe the level of non-reality in the US Congress and the corporate media - they only care about cashing out, and preferably before most of them are vopted out for their greed and incompetence. Look at how banks are using the money that Hank Paulson claimed was for credit markets, employer payrolls etc etc -- guess what, they are using them to "pretty up" their balance sheets and attempt hits on the remaining playersm causing massive stock market volatility. Hank Paulson, one creator of this problem at Goldman Sachs, is lying through his teeth and most of the world knows it - it is clear that Wall Street is run by crooks and CIA masters. by Christian de Coninck (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 9 comments [1 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Saturday, Nov 1, 2008 at 5:22:14 AM (0+)
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