Bailout Update - Post Holiday Edition
Been too over the holidays to keep track of the bailout details? Don’t worry, we’ve got the summary here:
From The Houston Chronicle:
Lastweek, the TARP became a truncheon.
The federal bailout program, originally designed to buy troubled assets from struggling financial firms, has become a weapon in the government’s determined effort to save the auto industry from itself.
The story centers on GMAC, the finance company owned by General Motors and Cerberus Capital, the hedge fund that also owns most of Chrysler.
From Reuters UK:
The U.S. Treasury confirmed on Friday it is reviewing its decision to award nearly $400 million in federal bailout funds to California lender City National Corp’s (CYN.N) City National Bank.
“We are looking at the process of selection for City National Bank as a case study. It is not a reflection on the bank or a pre-judgement,” Richard Delmar, counsel to the Treasury’s Office of the Inspector General, told Reuters.
From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
Gov. Jim Doyle joined four other Democratic governors today to call for a $1 trillion federal economic stimulus package that would include $250 billion for education.
Doyle and the others - Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine, New York Gov. David Paterson and Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick - said in a conference call with reporters that federal assistance for education was essential to avoiding deep cuts in cash-strapped states.
Specifically, they wanted a $1 trillion, two-year package to include:
• $350 billion for road and other infrastructure projects that could quickly put thousands of people to work.
• $250 billion to cover education costs - from preschool through college - that are currently covered by states.
• $250 billion for Medicaid, unemployment insurance, welfare and other assistance programs.
• $150 billion - or more - for middle-income tax breaks.
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