Let me know when a republican demands that the government should divest itself of all these companies asap.
“Let me know when a republican demands that the government should divest itself of all these companies asap.”
Taking your comment seriously...IMO that’s the absolute least possible outcome; assuming, of course, that a successful “divestiture” requires a willing and able buyer. Consider the separate cases of the car cos and the banks.
Had there been value in the auto co assets, they would have been snatched with great vigor. Don’t you think? (Or do you?) Unfortunately, the assets (land, bldgs & equipment) have the enormous albatross of the unions around their necks, resulting in a net negative value. Of course, no potential buyer could have ever made such an offer; eg; contingent upon the removal of the unions.
After the government gets down screwing around with the car cos for a few years, they will be for sale for 1/5th of what they’d be worth today just as hard assets. The factories will be decrepit ruins, totally vandalized. Plus it won’t even be possible to manufacture autos in the US at that point, most likely, no matter how they’re built.
The banks are a completely different story. Of course, they got near-infinite bailout funding, far beyond the $10-15-25 billion the auto cos got. The banks, via Treasury and the Fed, arguably have the government captive. We saw Henry Paulson tell the frickin government what to do and they did it. That franchise has near infinite value. Just look at how much money was wantonly thrown at the banks to gauge the relative importance of the two sectors. Whereas the unions are apparently just owed big time. They will receive, it is true, within limits. But they have to beg. That’s a big difference.
{Let me know when a republican demands that the government should divest itself of all these companies asap.}
This is the capitalism they understand.
http://www.maplight.org/map/us/legislator/611
I doubt they would let their version die anytime soon.
Certainly not before the Constitution is reintroduced to oxygen.