Thread:

Bailout Money - Where the F did it go?

Does anyone else feel ripped off or is it just me. I as a small businessperson along with tens of thousands of others struggle through an economic downturn caused imo by government and the financial industry. At the same time these same financial institutions that contributed to this mess and the government that gave them the dough will not be held accountable for the way they spent OUR TAX DOLLARS. Where is the rage? Where is even the concern among everyday US citizens? I just don't focking get it. I'm pissed they even got the money in the first place cause I think it's a bandaid and not a fix and the ultimate problem will be much worse. I'm more pissed they are keeping it a secret. This is the financial equivalent to a police state. Where does it stop? Wtf does it take to get people fired up and see the light here? Pockets are getting packed and no one seems to even care.

And at the same time as the above, Congress has been arguing about 15-35 billion with the automakers when they just focking threw 700 billion (or more) at the banks without a second thought or any means of accounting for how it's spent. This is the most asinine thing I think I've ever witnessed our government doing financially and it just reeks of corruption. I think it will go down in history as one of the biggest missteps ever by our government and probably the most scandalous by the worst Congress this nation has ever seen.

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By MATT APUZZO, Associated Press Writer Matt Apuzzo, Associated Press Writer – 57 mins ago AP – Elizabeth Warren, who chairs an oversight committee set up by Congress to oversee the bailout, is interviewed …

WASHINGTON – It's something any bank would demand to know before handing out a loan: Where's the money going? But after receiving billions in aid from U.S. taxpayers, the nation's largest banks say they can't track exactly how they're spending the money or they simply refuse to discuss it.

"We've lent some of it. We've not lent some of it. We've not given any accounting of, 'Here's how we're doing it,'" said Thomas Kelly, a spokesman for JPMorgan Chase, which received $25 billion in emergency bailout money. "We have not disclosed that to the public. We're declining to."

The Associated Press contacted 21 banks that received at least $1 billion in government money and asked four questions: How much has been spent? What was it spent on? How much is being held in savings, and what's the plan for the rest?

None of the banks provided specific answers.

"We're not providing dollar-in, dollar-out tracking," said Barry Koling, a spokesman for Atlanta, Ga.-based SunTrust Banks Inc., which got $3.5 billion in taxpayer dollars.

Some banks said they simply didn't know where the money was going.

"We manage our capital in its aggregate," said Regions Financial Corp. spokesman Tim Deighton, who said the Birmingham, Ala.-based company is not tracking how it is spending the $3.5 billion it received as part of the financial bailout.

The answers highlight the secrecy surrounding the Troubled Assets Relief Program, which earmarked $700 billion — about the size of the Netherlands' economy — to help rescue the financial industry. The Treasury Department has been using the money to buy stock in U.S. banks, hoping that the sudden inflow of cash will get banks to start lending money.

There has been no accounting of how banks spend that money. Lawmakers summoned bank executives to Capitol Hill last month and implored them to lend the money — not to hoard it or spend it on corporate bonuses, junkets or to buy other banks. But there is no process in place to make sure that's happening and there are no consequences for banks who don't comply.

"It is entirely appropriate for the American people to know how their taxpayer dollars are being spent in private industry," said Elizabeth Warren, the top congressional watchdog overseeing the financial bailout.

But, at least for now, there's no way for taxpayers to find that out.

Pressured by the Bush administration to approve the money quickly, Congress attached nearly no strings on the $700 billion bailout in October. And the Treasury Department, which doles out the money, never asked banks how it would be spent.

"Those are legitimate questions that should have been asked on Day One," said Rep. Scott Garrett, R-N.J., a House Financial Services Committee member who opposed the bailout as it was rushed through Congress. "Where is the money going to go to? How is it going to be spent? When are we going to get a record on it?"

Nearly every bank AP questioned — including Citibank and Bank of America, two of the largest recipients of bailout money — responded with generic public relations statements explaining that the money was being used to strengthen balance sheets and continue making loans to ease the credit crisis.

A few banks described company-specific programs, such as JPMorgan Chase's plan to lend $5 billion to nonprofit and health care companies next year. Richard Becker, senior vice president of Wisconsin-based Marshall & Ilsley Corp., said the $1.75 billion in bailout money allowed the bank to temporarily stop foreclosing on homes.

But no bank provided even the most basic accounting for the federal money.

"We're choosing not to disclose that," said Kevin Heine, spokesman for Bank of New York Mellon, which received about $3 billion.

Others said the money couldn't be tracked. Bob Denham, a spokesman for North Carolina-based BB&T Corp., said the bailout money "doesn't have its own bucket." But he said taxpayer money wasn't used in the bank's recent purchase of a Florida insurance company. Asked how he could be sure, since the money wasn't being tracked, Denham said the bank would have made that deal regardless.

Others, such as Morgan Stanley spokeswoman Carissa Ramirez, offered to discuss the matter with reporters on condition of anonymity. When AP refused, Ramirez sent an e-mail saying: "We are going to decline to comment on your story."

Most banks wouldn't say why they were keeping the details secret.

"We're not sharing any other details. We're just not at this time," said Wendy Walker, a spokeswoman for Dallas-based Comerica Inc., which received $2.25 billion from the government.

Heine, the New York Mellon Corp. spokesman who said he wouldn't share spending specifics, added: "I just would prefer if you wouldn't say that we're not going to discuss those details."

The banks which came closest to answering the questions were those, such as U.S. Bancorp and Huntington Bancshares Inc., that only recently received the money and have yet to spend it. But neither provided anything more than a generic summary of how the money would be spent.

Lawmakers say they want to tighten restrictions on the remaining, yet-to-be-released $350 billion block of bailout money before more cash is handed out. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said the department is trying to step up its monitoring of bank spending.

"What we've been doing here is moving, I think, with lightning speed to put necessary programs in place, to develop them, implement them, and then we need to monitor them while we're doing this," Paulson said at a recent forum in New York. "So we're building this organization as we're going."

Warren, the congressional watchdog appointed by Democrats, said her oversight panel will try to force the banks to say where they've spent the money.

"It would take a lot of nerve not to give answers," she said.

But Warren said she's surprised she even has to ask.

"If the appropriate restrictions were put on the money to begin with, if the appropriate transparency was in place, then we wouldn't be in a position where you're trying to call every recipient and get the basic information that should already be in public documents," she said.

Garrett, the New Jersey congressman, said the nation might never get a clear answer on where hundreds of billions of dollars went.

"A year or two ago, when we talked about spending $100 million for a bridge to nowhere, that was considered a scandal," he said.

___

Associated Press writers Stevenson Jacobs in New York and Christopher S. Rugaber and Daniel Wagner in Washington contributed to this report.

Business as usual, from the looks of it.
"Give us the money and shut the f*ck up!"

There's plenty of folks fuming, they just don't know whom to fume at effectively. The way the bailout was handled and the way it was rushed through are what I can't understand. They acted like the whole financial structure would melt down if the money wasn't made available immediately. No thought was given to how the government would track the money and all responisiblity was given to 2 men, neither an elected official and both of which were mentioned as Times Person of the Year like they are some sort of heroes. WTF????? Who the hell are these guys and how in the hell have they been assigned such power??????

Not only is there no open investigation of how the financial institutions reached the point of meltdown or finding how government failed in oversight duties, we now have no record of where $700+ Billion went!!!!!!!

To top it off we have a lame duck Pres. that seems to be suffering dementia and an incoming "Savior" that has plans to throw out another Trillion or so in a socalled "stimulous" package!!!!!!!

If there was ever a time for complete removal of all govenment officials and a startover, this is it.
No answers from me Rex, just lots of questions and I'm damned sure PO'd over what I consider the most irresponsible chain of events I've seen pulled off by Fed Gov in my lifetime or any I've heard of in the history of the USA.

I'm sitting here in the District of Congressman, Ron Paul, whom has stated the bailouts are wrong, whom has been deemed the "blacksheep" that should be elected Pres and change DC, yet he's done nothing as far as I can tell while he shouild be shouting from the rooftops calling for disclousure and explanation!!!!!! If Ron Paul isn't going to do anything, we are surely in trouble as the rest appear to be hunkered down in hiding even worse.

This was the very reason I was/am against any hand outs.

I just heard these same financial institutions will be giving out MULTI MILLION DOLLAR bonuses to there top dogs!!!!!!!!!! Seems the bonuses are part of their initial contracts. Maybe I'm out of the loop, but shouldn't bonuses be based on successes? Seems as though these ass#@&%s should be required to pay back a large part of their yearly salary based on their dismal failure to do their jobs........We're being lead to the slaughter, we know it, and we still haven't started the revolution..........Thanks dimocraps. Your congressional leadership/control is beyond intelligent comprehension..........Ray

2 questions:

Where are we going again?
and why am I in this handbasket?

I can tell you where SOME of the billons of $$$ that Bank Of America received is going to pay dividends to shareholders (they did lower their dividends but are still paying out).

How can a company that is getting a multi BILLION dollar payout pay a dividend?

Aren't dividends in a round about way, after expenses, (ebita) based on earning per share? If the company has earnings that put them in the black and allows paying dividends HOW can they get a bailout?

I found this interesting...

We also know that major shareholders are the board members, the board determines the $$$ reporting and sets the dividends that will be distributed...

Something smells like fish...

Originally Posted by 2manymustangs

Something smells like fish...

Fish? Not yet. The fishing industry hasn't ask for any "bailout" money yet. I say yet because after the greenies get done with their new commercial fishing "guidelines" the fishing industry will be in the toilet, like most of the other industries in this PC/MMGW/NIMBY/GIRLYMEN country..........Makes me sick. Do the lefties really want to destroy this country from within?........

Some of it gone here Rex .The article talks about last year's bonuses , but it's a no brainer > http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081221/...utive_bailouts



http://www.dailynews.com/ci_11285511

here's the response that both RocketJ and myself received in regards to our letters to BB about wanting to know where our money is being spent-

Dear Mr. :
Thank you for contacting me regarding the current financial crisis. I appreciate hearing from you on this critical issue.

As you know, Congress recently approved a massive financial rescue package (P.L. 110-343). I disapproved of the toxic assets purchase plan, as I do not feel that this is the most effective way to alleviate the ongoing credit crisis, and I worry about ever recovering taxpayer funds from these assets. Thankfully, the Administration is now working to invest funds directly into banks, providing liquidity and giving American taxpayers an equity share in these institutions.

As we provide carefully targeted assistance to financial institutions, we must also take steps to get the fundamentals of our economy back on track, since we are in a recession and I want to ensure it is not a deep one.

We need to get to work on a second economic stimulus package that provides emergency financial assistance to the states, addresses the housing crisis, creates jobs through infrastructure investments, and extends unemployment benefits.

Furthermore, I strongly believe that Congress needs to exercise its oversight responsibilities, and I am pleased to report that this work has begun. Committees in both the House and Senate are holding hearings to examine what went wrong and who needs to be held accountable and what laws were not enforced. In addition, we must determine if new laws are needed. It is critical that good people be placed in regulatory positions.

Be assured that I will continue to speak out forcefully about the failures that led to this crisis and keep working with my colleagues to strengthen confidence in our markets while protecting the American taxpayers.

Again, thank you for writing to me. Please feel free to contact me again about any issue of importance to you.

Barbara Boxer
United States Senator

Barbara Boxer has no clue!!!!!!!!

Empty Rhetoric like all the others. I'd really like to see what their "oversight" review will consist of.......

I wouldn't trust these people to chaperone a Jr. High dance.

Originally Posted by Old Texan

Barbara Boxer has no clue!!!!!!!!

Empty Rhetoric like all the others. I'd really like to see what their "oversight" review will consist of.......

I wouldn't trust these people to chaperone a Jr. High dance.

can't agree with you more!

Here's what I sent in to BB, not sure what RocketJ sent-

(insert your Senator's name here),
I find it appalling that you and the rest of our so called elected officials have accepted Mr. Bernanke's excuses as to where he loaned out that $2 trillion. As a tax payer, I demand to know where that money went as should you as my representative.

Sincerely,
(your name here)