100 DAYS: More Bailouts, More Government Intervention, And Still No Exit Strategy
WASHINGTON,
April 28, 2009 -
| President Obama and Washington Democrats have overpromised and under-delivered during the first 100 days of this administration's watch. Between the Democrats' so-called stimulus, the additional billions in TARP funds, the Fed's ballooning balance sheet, billions more for their housing bailout, and the untold taxpayer risk that will come from their toxic assets plan, they are gambling with trillions of tax dollars. We cannot continue to add to our national debt without evaluating the long-term consequences. Borrowing and spending helped create this mess, and more of it will not solve it. The generational theft must end. The facts are laid out below. |
OBAMA, DEMS PUSHED BILLIONS MORE OUT THE DOOR WITHOUT OVERSIGHT
•· ABC News: "Obama Lobbies for TARP Funds ... President-elect Barack Obama told Democratic senators in a closed lunch today that he needs the second $350 billion authorized by Congress as part of the TARP legislation last year and that he'll veto any move by Congress to cut that funding off. ... Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said today he is "very confident" there are the votes to defeat the resolution and release the $350 billion in TARP funds. Reid said after the meeting with Obama he believed there would ultimately be enough senators to defeat any effort to block the second infusion of TARP money." (1/13/09)
•· NPR: "Obama Team Lobbies For Release Of Bailout Funds ... While most Democrats are on board to approve the funds, many Republicans say the bill lacks transparency and accountability. President-elect Barack Obama's economic team went to Capitol Hill Wednesday to try to win them over." (1/15/09)
•· Time: "Obama Urges Congress Not to Block the Bailout ... And so Senate Democratic leaders are struggling to prevent their members from passing a Resolution of Disapproval of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP, which would prevent the second half of the emergency fund from flowing to the Treasury Department in the next two weeks. ... The President-elect, however, can be a very persuasive politician ..." (1/14/09)
$750 BILLION IN ADDITIONAL BAILOUT FUNDS IN THE PRESIDENT'S BUDGET THAT BORROWS, SPENDS AND TAXES TOO MUCH
•· Reuters: "Banks could get $750 billion more under Obama budget ... President Barack Obama could funnel up to $750 billion in fresh government aid to the battered banks, more than doubling a financial bailout approved last year, his proposed budget revealed on Thursday." (2/26/09)
•· CNN: "Budget leaves open possibility of $750 billion more in bailout funds ... The budget blueprint President Obama will present to Congress on Thursday leaves open the possibility that he will need an additional $750 billion in bailout money, according to senior administration officials familiar with the plan." (2/26/09)
GEITHNER'S TOXIC ASSET ‘PLAN' THROWS MARKETS INTO TAILSPIN, LIGHTS FIRE OF UNCERTAINTY
•· CNN: "Geithner's plan falls flat ... The Treasury Secretary's financial stability plan is underfunded and woefully short on details, experts said. ... But observers said the Obama administration's plan is neither well-funded enough to recapitalize troubled banks, nor detailed enough to assure investors that the government can solve the toxic asset problem plaguing banks. That, in part, is why stocks fell so sharply after the plan was unveiled, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and other major indexes plunging more than 4% in mid-afternoon trading." (2/10/09)
•· Wall Street Journal: "Geithner at the Improv ... Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's opening act as Rescuer in Chief yesterday was a bomb. What everyone saw was Geithner at the Improv, a routine with a few good lines but a lot of material that needs more, well, practice." (Editorial, 2/11/09)
•· New York Times: "The Bailout's Next Chapter ... Someone should have told...Geithner that the one thing to avoid at a time of uncertainty is raising more questions. ... His speech invited, at best, healthy skepticism from the markets, the public and lawmakers - and at worst, more mistrust." (Editorial, 2/11/09)
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