Friday September 18, 2009, 8:11 am
Obama made a tragic mistake in augmenting the Bush bank bailout. The needs of the people upon whom the banking systems has preyed for decades should have be addressed first. Thank you Cal, for this story. I hate the fact that it proves our new president is very short-sighted.

Friday September 18, 2009, 9:07 am
EWWWW

This is a tricky one, even after reading the article.

Personally wish we would go back to the "President Jefferson" days and put these banks under control, they just have way to much power, and now all of the smaller ones are getting gobbled up by Chase, Bank of America, YIPES, all the time, they are changing the rules on credit cards, loans to homes, YIPES!!!!

They need to have an over-seer, on top of an over-seeier!!

Friday September 18, 2009, 9:07 am
By the Way Betsy...totally agreed with your last line!!!

Friday September 18, 2009, 5:06 pm
Thanks Cal--excellent article!

Betsy Reiss

1 Obama is working within the confines of a system which does not like regulation of anything much.e.g. Alexander Hamilton wanted the USA to have a central bank; Andrew Jackson dismantled it; Woodrow Wilson brought in the Federal Reserve System in 1913.

2 Obama is not necessarily shortsighted, he simply does not understand the virtues and vices of economic proposals put to him. Why else would he approve of measures in restraint of trade e.g. tariffs on Chinese tires, when increased trade is an important way of recovering from the economic recession?

3 Obama has yet to realise that beginning at the top, e.g. the bailout, making large institutions larger, but not necessarily safer, does not fix the grass roots problem--too much debt.

4 Obama has yet to appreciate the urgency of integrating the reformed US financial system with both the international one, and the real economy.

5 Fiscal stimulus was necessry to tide the planet through the financial meltdown; the debt created plus the existing debt needs to be repaid systematically before the next one hits.

6 Whatever reforms are forthcoming there will always be smarties who find a way around them, so we can reduce risk but not eliminate it.

Marilyn S

The overseer of the overseer is the American people.

Everybody

Too much regulation can be worse than none; appropriate regulation adhered to by all participants is the way to go. Regulating the types of business done, not institutions, and rewarding efficient operation of those businesses from profits already made and banked, works well. e.g. "sub prime mortgage loans" are dud loans whoever makes them; they need to be written off; new regulation should make them more difficult to make.

Friday September 18, 2009, 5:13 pm
Is it true that $350 BILLION of the bail-out $ that went to banks is lost? I saw an official discussing it on a Jay Leno video on YouTube, but folks were laughing, so perhaps it was a joke. I don't think anyone would believe such a "loss" is funny, especially with Calif. having to close down its state parks.

Friday September 18, 2009, 5:28 pm
No, that $350 BILLION was reported lost in Nov. 08.

http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/13/hedge-funds-lost-350-billion-in-2008-report-says/

Hedge funds lost $350 billion worldwide in 2008, the most on record, as the global financial crisis crippled returns and caused investors to pull money out, according to an industry report.

Friday September 18, 2009, 6:00 pm
I am so sick and tired of people and their blame game crap. If you want to blame somebody blame the big banks...they fleeced taxpayers and those that qualified for insane loan programs that the lenders OFFERED. President Obama is not short sighted he has a very fulll plate and is doing what he can to get us out. What are your solutions, what solutions are the Reps and Independent parties coming up with? Stop being part of the problem by whinning and become part of the solution. I say the government should have put the money in our hands (and not no damn $600) as the petition on this very website suggested. straight across the board divy the trillions by TAXPAYER status, certain percentages dedicated to mortgage, paying down, or purchasing a home or just playing catch up for those that are now unemployed, auto purchasing or paying off and the remainder to pay off outstanding credit debt. It can be done and probably cheaper than what was spent. WE would re-stimulate the economy. We put the fox back in charge of the hen house. Wake up big business has screwed us all over and will continue to do so as long as we keep turning a blind eye to the crust of the problem..Greed...not Obama. We sheeple are being sucker punched by the media with this insepid hype hingeing on every little word that comes out of President Obama's mouth steering you away from looking beneath the surface of why we are here. We were fleeced like so many sheep by thieves with no honor or shame. I work in the industry...how could a loan program continue when all that was required of the borrower was to have a 700 or better fico score? Employment was not properly verified.... this is insane, but it was done. The media would have you believe it was folks with bad credit ANOTHER LIE, it was investors with 700 + ficos buying multiple investment properties and when the bottom fell out they bailed. Put the blame where it belongs and lets look for solutions.

Friday September 18, 2009, 10:21 pm
If any of you think health care reform was a power play, maybe it was for children under the age of three. Health care related campaign money topped out at about 200 million for the 2008 election cycle mostly Republicans and closet 'Blue Dog' Republicans, Finance related campaign money topped out at ONE BILLION with Democrats getting very slightly more; for the 2010 election cycle those who are opposing health care reform are getting 51% more than those for it,those alresdy in opposition to finance regulation are getting 65% more than those for regulation and that is regardless of party. And remember a good share of the 2008 and even more of the 2010 finance money was American tax payer money! There will be little or none of the public play and 'discussion' of the health care reform, there will be lots of behind closed doors committee meetings and dealing , finance reps and lobbyists will know exactly what is going on but you can bet the voting public will be kept as much in the dark as, legally or illegally, possible. This will be the one issue that shows just how much of our elected representative government is paid employees of the finance industry working to protect and enhance finance profits and how little is composed of elected public servants actually working for the common good of the Americans that voted them in to office. Personally I have no expectations that the vote has any where near the dollar value needed to be heard over the paying of a billion in campaign bills; after all it only took about 3 million in health care money to get Baccus to come up with a bill that as Wendell Potter the whistle blowing former Cigna exec said, 'was far beyond anything the health industry lawyers or lobbyists would have considered possible' calling it 'the health insurance profit protection and enhancement act'.

Saturday September 19, 2009, 1:52 pm
OBOMA'S THINKING ON ALLOWING BIG BANKS TO GET BIGGER IS WRONG AS MOST ADVOCATES OF BANK REFORMS AGREE....SMALLER BANKS IS ONE THING THAT WILL STOP ANOTHER DEEP RECESSION OR DEPRESSION!!!!
HAVING WORKED IN THE HEALTH CARE FIELD FOR ABOUT 30 YEARS ...PRIOR TO MEDICARE...WE DO NOT NEED A MAJOR HEALTH CARE REFORM....WE DO NEED TO TINCKER WITH MEDICARE BREAK DOWNS AT FAR LESS COST INCREASES, LESS CONFLECT, LESS DISRUPTION IN SERVICE, QUICKER TO INSTALL, HAPPIER TAXPAYERS AND NEARLY NOT INCREASE RISK IN N A T I O N A L D E B T!!! TO SUGGEST ONLY A COUPLE OF THE WAY...THEY: 1ST. TORT REFOM....2ND. CUTING THE PAPER WORK CASING EXTREEMLY HIGHT ADMINISTRATIVE OVERHEAD,...AND A FEW MORE EASY CHANGES ...ALL OF WHICH WILL NOT COST THE PROGRAMS OF IINS. ANY NEED FOR INCREASED COST ESPECIALLY IF ILLEGALS IN THE COUNTRY MUST PROVE THEY ARE HERE LEGALLY...

Saturday September 19, 2009, 1:57 pm
"I hate the fact that it proves our new president is very short-sighted."

1000% agree...

noted and thank you Cal.

Saturday September 19, 2009, 9:05 pm
Since hedge funds came up, just thought I'd mention that they are not required to register and if they do not choose to register, they are currently exempt. This means that the only regulation that applies to hedge funds that choose not to register, is that they must have a business license! Mike Capuano, democrat representative, of Massachusetts is one of several in congress who have drafted legislation to address this.

Incidentally, hedge funds were not deregulated by Bush, Clinton, HW Bush, Reagan, Carter, etc. They were made exempt under the Investment Advisors Act of, drumroll please, 1940! They have never been regulated, except for a very brief four month period in 2006 before the US District Court of Appeals overturned the SEC's decision to subject hedge funds to regulation. Oh, in my humble opinion, the impact of hedge funds on the market in general and the recession has not been truly reported. Of course, when nobody is able to look at their books and records, it is a bit of a problem...

Monday September 21, 2009, 3:47 am
Thannx for this excellent article...perhaps Obama should take a trip to his optician and get his galsses re focused... banking on the banks these days could be a little like playing Russian Roulette

Wednesday September 30, 2009, 8:38 am
Noted thanks Cal.