The $700B Bail-Out Just Became a $2.7Trillion Theft

The $$$700B$$$ bail-out is -

Oops. Make that $$$$2.7 TRILLION$$$$. (Via TMiss)

The Federal Reserve is refusing to identify the recipients of almost $2 trillion of emergency loans from American taxpayers or the troubled assets the central bank is accepting as collateral.

Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said in September they would comply with congressional demands for transparency in a $700 billion bailout of the banking system. Two months later, as the Fed lends far more than that in separate rescue programs that didn't require approval by Congress, Americans have no idea where their money is going or what securities the banks are pledging in return.

``The collateral is not being adequately disclosed, and that's a big problem,'' said Dan Fuss, vice chairman of Boston- based Loomis Sayles & Co., where he co-manages $17 billion in bonds. ``In a liquid market, this wouldn't matter, but we're not. The market is very nervous and very thin.''

Bloomberg is suing under FOIA to force the Bush Administration to disclose who got these so-called "emergency loans" and what collateral has been given. But I beg to differ with Mr Fuss. Even if the market was as liquid as the 80's, this would still matter. It is a de facto stripping of the Treasury in violation of the Constitutional mandate that the power to disperse public funds rests with the Congress, specifically the House, alone. IOW, IT IS THEFT. There's no other word for it.

Some bloggers have been raining on the left-wing parade this week to remind everyone that Bush has months left in office to do much damage. Avedon Carol was particularly memorable.

You haven't won anything yet. Bush is still in the White House on Cheney's leash. The Villagers are all talking National Unity, which would be great if by that they meant doing what everyone except them wants (get out of stupid wars and don't get into new ones; use government to serve the people rather than to help eat the people; universal healthcare and a real economy instead of a "service" economy; taxes on the rich - etc.), but they just mean "Do what conservatives want and don't hold anyone accountable for the last eight years."

Don't you dare pretend that the fight is won. We have so much work to do.

This is a small part of what she meant. Having looted the Treasury, the Bush Cabal is now looting every penny of any potential future revenues that might be used for other things the people want that the elite financial class doesn't need. You know, healthcare, decent roads, decent schools, all the shit conservative low-taxers have been ignoring for 30 years because, after all, bridges that collapse and kill 30 people because they haven't been maintained have nothing to do with people who own private planes and don't use bridges.

Even for the Bushies a theft of this magnitude at this time is breathtaking. To the inevitable query, "What makes them think they can get away with it?" one can only reply "Because they've gotten away with everything they've ever tried and even when they were caught the Democrats made sure THERE WERE NO CONSEQUENCES."

This is what those of us who have been demanding impeachment were afraid might happen. We've said it over and over and I'll say it again. If these people aren't made to pay, they'll JUST KEEP DOING IT because why shouldn't they if they can get away with it? This is not the end. They aren't going to go away. The Donkey contingent of thieves and corporate stooges is already on Obama's ass to give the corporations what they want and corporate boy-toy COS Rahm Emanuel will make damn sure every one of them has access to The Man. And as David Sirota points out in his new OS blog, Bush is setting up a "transition team" to make sure Obama doesn't stop the flow of Treasury money to his rich corporate friends.

Buried in the Washington Post's paean to George Bush's newfound commitment to transparency and bipartisanship, we get this nugget ascribing a more pernicious motive to the niceties:

Likewise, the administration is laying the groundwork for an unusual level of access to the Treasury Department and other agencies involved in attempts to stabilize the foundering economy. White House spokesman Tony Fratto said Friday that Treasury is preparing office space that will allow Obama aides to sit alongside current dministration officials.

Fratto said such efforts are intended to send a signal that Treasury's approach will not change too abruptly when Obama takes office. (emphasis added)

There you have it - in newspaper print, no less. The current administration on record saying the objective of involving Obama's transition team in Treasury decisions is to try to coerce that team into backing off Obama's own promises (to use the Times' own phrasing) to abruptly change Treasury's current approach.

These people recognize nothing but consequences. If they start going to jail in clumps or facing at the very least enormous fines that eat up most of the money they stole, they'll scale back. Otherwise, they will simply get bolder. If you really think embarrassing them in public will stop them from stealing whatever isn't tied down, you're living in a fantasy land.

WE MUST IMPEACH BUSH, CHENEY AND NOW PAULSON FOR HIGH CRIMES AGAINST THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION NOW OR THE THEFT WILL NEVER STOP, THE CRIMES WILL NEVER STOP, AND WHEN THEY CAN STEAL ANOTHER ELECTION THEY'LL PICK UP WHERE THEY LEFT OFF.

Impeach Bush. For gawd's sake - and ours.

Comments

[eRobin]

The Sunday NYT magazine ran a cover story retrospective this week about the unconstitutional behavior of the BushCo regime. I don't know where they were in real time when he was breaking all those laws. As usual for the NYT, they stay out of the way until they can shake their old gray head sadly at the carnage.