If anyone thinks that this Nationalization kick the government is on will wind down in the next 48 months. I have some prime real estate in downtown Detroit for them to buy. ================ Obama Wants to Control the Banks There's a reason he refuses to accept repayment of TARP money. By STUART VARNEY I must be naive. I really thought the administration would welcome the return of bank bailout money. Some $340 million in TARP cash flowed back this week from four small banks in Louisiana, New York, Indiana and California. This isn't much when we routinely talk in trillions, but clearly that money has not been wasted or otherwise sunk down Wall Street's black hole. So why no cheering as the cash comes back? My answer: The government wants to control the banks, just as it now controls GM and Chrysler, and will surely control the health industry in the not-too-distant future. Keeping them TARP-stuffed is the key to control. And for this intensely political president, mere influence is not enough. The White House wants to tell 'em what to do. Control. Direct. Command. It is not for nothing that rage has been turned on those wicked financiers. The banks are at the core of the administration's thrust: By managing the money, government can steer the whole economy even more firmly down the left fork in the road. If the banks are forced to keep TARP cash -- which was often forced on them in the first place -- the Obama team can work its will on the financial system to unprecedented degree. That's what's happening right now. Here's a true story first reported by my Fox News colleague Andrew Napolitano (with the names and some details obscured to prevent retaliation). Under the Bush team a prominent and profitable bank, under threat of a damaging public audit, was forced to accept less than $1 billion of TARP money. The government insisted on buying a new class of preferred stock which gave it a tiny, minority position. The money flowed to the bank. Arguably, back then, the Bush administration was acting for purely economic reasons. It wanted to recapitalize the banks to halt a financial panic. Fast forward to today, and that same bank is begging to give the money back. The chairman offers to write a check, now, with interest. He's been sitting on the cash for months and has felt the dead hand of government threatening to run his business and dictate pay scales. He sees the writing on the wall and he wants out. But the Obama team says no, since unlike the smaller banks that gave their TARP money back, this bank is far more prominent. The bank has also been threatened with "adverse" consequences if its chairman persists. That's politics talking, not economics. Think about it: If Rick Wagoner can be fired and compact cars can be mandated, why can't a bank with a vault full of TARP money be told where to lend? And since politics drives this administration, why can't special loans and terms be offered to favored constituents, favored industries, or even favored regions? Our prosperity has never been based on the political allocation of credit -- until now. Which brings me to the Pay for Performance Act, just passed by the House. This is an outstanding example of class warfare. I'm an Englishman. We invented class warfare, and I know it when I see it. This legislation allows the administration to dictate pay for anyone working in any company that takes a dime of TARP money. This is a whip with which to thrash the unpopular bankers, a tool to advance the Obama administration's goal of controlling the financial system. After 35 years in America, I never thought I would see this. I still can't quite believe we will sit by as this crisis is used to hand control of our economy over to government. But here we are, on the brink. Clearly, I have been naive. Mr. Varney is a host on the Fox Business Channel. Please add your comments to the Opinion Journal forum. Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page A9 Copyright 2008 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com
Nice--we'll give you TARP money, then we'll decide how you manage your business (after the fact). But no give-backs. Let's hope some sanity returns to congress. I understand the need to give in to populism for many pols, but where's the logic in some of the same reps who voted for Tarp, in essence to keep some of these companies alive, and then pass a bill that will tie their hands in managing those same companies? At least be consistent. I must be missing something.
Not being a smartA$$, but I"m not missing much of what our "elected leaders" are up to. Due to fate, I was in daily contact for years with an avowed Marxist.(Not by choice, believe me.) I've heard the $250,00.00 a year salary # touted for at least 25 years as the definition of "RICH". Heard that # lately? You betcha. Anyone that makes that much $$ is evil, and will suffer the consequences under this administration. And that's just for starters. One way "they" will gain even more power than you can imagine is thru Health Care. "Concern for our HEALTH" is going to be the scary brother to "Green" when it comes to invasive techniques to gain damn near total mastery of our day to day lives. I know exactly what these people are up to, and it's going to get really, really bad. Best of luck to all. Before you dismiss me as some paranoid whacko, remember this. A scant 2 yrs ago, anyone that said one day a Dem Pres and Congress will pass a $750 Billion dollar spending pkg, and take control of GM as well as our large banks, would surely have been dismissed as certifiably nutz.