Apparently, The Grey Lady got the same email blast from the Barry Camp like I did
Senator Barack Obama this afternoon urged Treasury and Federal Reserve officials to include four conditions that he and other Democrats are seeking in the proposed $700 billion federal bailout for financial firms – though he stopped short of saying he would vote against the bailout if his terms were not met.
Adding some specificity to proposals he has already made, Mr. Obama, the Democratic presidential nominee, called for a payback plan for taxpayers if the bailout succeeds; a bipartisan board to oversee the bailout; limits on any federal money going to compensate Wall Street executives; and aid to homeowners who are struggling to pay their mortgages.
Hmm, why does all that sound suspiciously like what Democrats have been talking about since Friday? But, now it is Barry’s plan? As far as it goes
- Paying back the taxpayers? That will never happen. You know it, I know it, Barry knows it. But, it sounds good. Put it in writing, in clear, easy to understand language, Barry, and I’ll back it
- Bipartisan board? You mean like the 9/11 Commission?
- The money should not go to Wall Street execs, I’ll agree, but, a limit can’t be put on exec pay. Talent should be rewarded. Meanwhile, why don’t you tell your advisor Franklin Raines to give his golden parachute back?
- Why not have Franklin Raines, Jim Johnson, and Tim Howard, all your advisors, Barry, give the money they got from companies they ran into the ground to homeowners, especially considering they were part of the creation of the housing problem.
If those four objectives are not met, Mr. Obama told reporters at a news conference here, he would recommend that federal and Congressional negotiators “go back to the drawing board†to restructure the bailout plan.
Well, thanks Barry. Glad your seniority and excellent attendance record in Congress is being put to good use.
But, what does a financial writer for the Times think?
Imagine, then, what it’s like to be in Congress this week. Most members of Congress have no expertise in the byzantine details of mortgage finance — or even have aides on their staff with such expertise.
“The problem here is none of us has that kind of advice,†Senator Charles Schumer, Democrat of New York, who knows more about Wall Street than most of his colleagues, told me.
The blind leading the stupid. And here comes the shot at Barry’s “plan”
Their best shot at success depends on keeping the debate tightly focused on the questions that matter most. There are really only two: What steps are most likely to solve the immediate crisis? And how can the long-term cost to taxpayers be minimized?
Everything else — reducing executive pay on Wall Street, changing the bankruptcy laws, somehow slowing the descent of home prices — is either a detail or a distraction.
In other words, all the hot air flowing from Barry is not necessary at this time.
Anyhow, the article does do a good job of explaining how it should work, and why people should not get caught up in the price tag, but in the cost of the assets. What percentage of value will they be purchased at, so that they can turn around and sell them.
