The U.S. government and the Federal Reserve have spent, lent or committed $12.8 trillion, an amount that approaches the value of everything produced in the country last year, to stem the longest recession since the 1930s.
New pledges from the Fed, the Treasury Department and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. include $1 trillion for the Public-Private Investment Program, designed to help investors buy distressed loans and other assets from U.S. banks. The money works out to $42,105 for every man, woman and child in the U.S. and 14 times the $899.8 billion of currency in circulation. The nation’s gross domestic product was $14.2 trillion in 2008.
According to the Congressional Research Service (a non-partisan group that Senator and now President Barack Obama doesn’t even know exists), the war in Iraq cost about $500billion over 6years.
Allegedly, the Bush tax cuts cost about $400billion over 10years.
President Obama’s first 2 1/2 months cost as much as:
7 wars in Iraq
25 Bush tax cuts
or
1 full year of every American’s productivity
(1 year of our Gross Domestic Product)
They’ve been spending money and giving it away for almost half a year now.
I think it’s time to say it’s not working.
Author of “Reparations and America’s 2nd Civil War
Reparations and America’s 2nd Civil War: Malensek, Scott: 9798864028674: Amazon.com: Books
But, this is what a large over reaching government does. They just keep throwing money at the problem, even though it does not work. This is why we need to vote for “change.” Oh…wait…we did that already…
I guess the people of the United States do not agree with you…
Bushes approval rating 29% November, 2008
http://www.gallup.com/poll/102577/Half-Strongly-Disapprove-Bush-Job-Performance.aspx
At one month 63% approve the job Obama is doing.
http://beltwayblips.dailyradar.com/article/gallup_poll_obama_approval_at_63/
As of March 30, 2009 – 64% approve of the job Obama is doing.
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2009/03/64841747/1
So did they find a new gold mine or are they just printing money like crazy now?
“No results??” Don’t be silly. Hussein is creating the Marxist dictatorship he has envisioned since his first talk with George Soros! Panic will follow, rioting and the surefire declaration of martial law. A neat little plan for the end of our constitutional republic.
Oh RAP, gimme a break. What was Bush’s approval at the one month mark? Really, you’re comparing Bush’s approval at the END with Obama’s approval at the START? How that’s not apples/oranges I dunno. Perhaps a better comparison (by the same standard) would be Bush’s post-911 approval vs Obama’s post-Great Recession approval? Nah, in the end, you’re just trying to distract and mislead while the math remains UNDENIABLE:
Obama and Democrats’ Congress spent $13 TRILLION dollars over 5months (min), and economy is getting WORSE (per job numbers out today and revised numbers from last month).
That math is what matters. I submit that it matters far more to people today than what a former President’s s approval was 5 months ago.
742,000 people lost their jobs, and you wanna rave about Bush’s approval 5months ago?
@OLDPUPPYMAX:
Ya beat me to it.
And, hopefully, if it comes to establishing martial law, enough of the troops will know the difference between a dictatorship and a free country and will take sides appropriately. That’s not in the bag though, and I would very much prefer not to have it come to that point.
What follows is more maddening news on Tim Geithner’s PPIP (Public-Private Investment Program). You might want to make sure you are sitting down before you read any further:
(Michael Hudson’s article titled “The Free Market, Financial Style” and subtitled “How the Scam Works” in the March 27-29, 2009 Weekend Edition at Counterpunch.org):
http://www.counterpunch.org/hudson03272009.html
Hudson describes how two of the biggest banks involved in the “toxic asset” debacle are gaming the system again (and why not? Geithner’s recovery plan seems to have been tailor-made for these crooks.)
According to Hudson, Citibank and Bank of America have been bidding up each other’s toxic assets in order to artificially inflate their book value. Since the Treasury was so nice as to allow taxpayer funds to guarantee these funds against catastrophic default devaluation, the banks stand to lose NOTHING: they use bailout (taxpayer) funds to purchase the assets, and get taxpayer-funded protection against loss. Heads they win (and we lose), tails they win (and we lose).
This is an absolutely appalling way for the banks to avoid any loss, and amounts to nothing other than government-assisted theft. If the Treasury allows these shill banks to pump-and-dump like this, guess who will be rewarding themselves with performance bonuses, and guess who will pay the price?
If the MSM, Geithner, Obama, and Congress allow the PPIP to operate like this, EVERY tax-paying citizen should raise holy hell with as many of the involved hucksters as possible. The PPIP was an abomination (and Obamanation?) to begin with, but this really rubs salt into the taxpayers’ wounds!!
THIS *MUST* BE STOPPED!!
I’ve reached my limit, and can tolerate no more!
Jeff V
RAP:
And as of March 31, 2009, The Raw Story reports that 57 percent of American citizens believe the country is moving in the wrong direction, so could a person then reasonably conclude that the majority of Americans approve of Obama’s actions in moving the country in the wrong direction?
In case you couldn’t tell, I was being facetious. IF one was to trust that these polls are even moderately revealing, about the only conclusionI can make is that although a majority of people thing that the Obama Administration is taking the right steps, only a minority believe that these steps are being effective in moving the country in the right direction. The discrepancy might be due to any number of several factors, such as:
– Obama’s actions haven’t had time to work,
– Obama’s actions aren’t effective they were too little and too late,
– Obama’s actions are stifling the economy’s own rebounding,
– Obama’s actions are working, but something else is interfering,
– …
I tend to agree with a large body of economists who think that Obama’s action are helping the wrong people – the ones who caused the problem, instead of shoring up protections for individuals.
I also agree with many of the same economists who say that “we ain’t seen nothing yet,” reflecting the idea that there are several other sections of the economy that are in crisis, and that the U.S. financial system and the global financial system won’t be able to absorb these further shocks if Obama keeps trying to spend the country out of trouble. I’m particularly enraged at the actions of the biggest contributors to the toxic asset mess; read my post #7 above (if you haven’t already done so.) Taxpayers and other citizens of our once-great nation are being pillaged by the government in collusion with the corrupt bankers, and citizens from all regions of the political spectrum need to speak in a unified voice to tell the government that we are sick of being abused by government and its kleptocratic elite business counterparts, and the time for real change (not rhetoric) is all we will accept. Anything else will be met with MASSIVE protests and, if necessary, civil disobedience.
We need to get the thieves out of positions of control before we can enjoy the luxury of debating what the new “people’s” government is going to look like. Let’s put out the fire FIRST, and leave the rearrangement of the furniture for later.
Jeff V
@ruaqtpi2:
Mata! Help!
Jeff, she just went through this with me this morning. I can’t explain it, hopefully she spots this.
As I understand it – that figure is not from the last 2.5 months BUT the last 20 months. Dems may have won power in 06 but who was presiding over the majority of those 20 months?
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=armOzfkwtCA4&refer=home
Gaffa, you can’t be serious… you can’t subtract 20 months from Mar 2009 and still figure out that’s post Jan 2007, and the assumption of power by the majority Dem Congress?? Tell me that was just a brain fart….
Scott, you actually addressed CRAP’s dipsheeeeet comeback to the Bloomberg article? Dang, you must be feeling benevolent. It’s sheer desperation to suggest a complex economic plan of massive spending is working because a 1000 or so Joe Blow citizens answer a phone one night and answer a pollster’s questions.
One could only hope the pollster qualified the responder by asking them if they knew who the Veep was first.
@MataHarley:
Speaking of “feeling benevolent,” you are WAY too easy on the Gaffer.
And, speaking of enablers…
@MataHarley
If, as I’m reading it, the $12.8 trillion has been committed over the last 20 months then subtracting 20 months from the current date takes it to mid 2007 which is post Jan 2007.
Are you saying, as Scott seems to be claiming, that the $12.8 trillion has been committed only since Obama has been in power from late Jan 2009????!
Gaffa, using your own quote from the relevant post, you said: As I understand it – that figure is not from the last 2.5 months BUT the last 20 months. Dems may have won power in 06 but who was presiding over the majority of those 20 months?”
To answer one part of your statement, the Democrats were in charge of US fund appropriation (which only they are empowered to do, with the POTUS consent via non-veto) that entire time.
To answer another part of your statement begs another question. Are you fool enough to just “average” the spending bill from Bush’s spending part of those trillions? Obama… in mere months… has surpassed the damage to the national debt what Bush has done on the culmination of both his terms.
Do try to get a grip on the $ figure, how much was incurred and in what timeframe. All is relevant.
@MataHarley
I wasn’t using any average was I? I was just saying that the $12.8 trillion as calculated by Bloomberg was over 20 months. Something Scott conveniently forgot to mention.
In fact that makes his below statement
At best inaccurate at worst a lie. Don’t you agree?
As for average check this out…
“The combined commitment has increased by 73 percent since November, when Bloomberg first estimated the funding, loans and guarantees at $7.4 trillion”
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=armOzfkwtCA4&refer=home
So according to Bloomberg the majority of the $12.8 trillion was spent, lent or committed was during Bush’s presidency. And note the figure of $7.4 trillion was from November – that still leaves two months of Bush’s presidency.
Gaffa, “spent, lent or committed,” of the $850 committed in the remaining months of the Bush presidency, only $257 billion of that was spent, the rest of that sum was requested by Obama on January 12, prior to his Inauguration to have ready for his “day one.”
That, and other committments are credited to Obama’s and the Dem Congress in bills that have passed, SCHIP, Stimulus, 09 budget, etc. In addition, the 2010 budget only covers five years instead of the normal 10 year spread, that boosts the figures the present administration and Congress are “committed” to and responsible for significantly.
I’m in the filter again. sigh.
But Missy – do you agree that
1) The $12.8 trillion Bloomberg refering to is over the last 20 months
2) President Obama’s first 2 1/2 months hasn’t cost as much as: