Kill TARP, spare the taxpayer

CNN ^ | 6/15/09 | Dave Ellis

[pissant]

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- For some, the slow, steady demise of TARP cannot happen soon enough.

Last week, 10 of the nation's largest financial firms won their release from the Treasury Department's Troubled Asset Relief Program, setting the stage for them to pay back the billions of dollars the government loaned them last fall.

But this news was book-ended by legislation in the House and Senate that aims to end the controversial program sooner rather than later.

Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, whose proposal would effectively shutter TARP by year's end, would prevent the Treasury Department from using any of the TARP money returned by banks to lend back out to other struggling firms.

A much bolder approach unveiled Thursday by Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., would require the government to sell its ownership interests by July 2010. It would also prevent the government from owning a piece of any U.S. company in the future.

[pissant]

This is exactly the type of thing GOPers need to be advocating. Loudly.

[snowrip]

These are the moves the GOP should be making if they ever want to gain ANY credibility with conservatives. Mainstream America still has an understanding of common sense, and they know that any government bailout stinks to high heaven.

[Sarajevo]

I can’t believe that the details weren’t worked out BEFORE Congress voted to spend our money in this matter.

[Man50D]

Spare the taxpayer by replacing the federal income tax code with a national sales tax and ending the IRS via The Fair Tax Act(HR25/S296).

[Redleg Duke]

The details were worked out. The RATS had the votes, so they didn’t care about the details.

[Achilles Heel]

RE: Spare the taxpayer by replacing the federal income tax code with a national sales tax and ending the IRS via The Fair Tax Act(HR25/S296).

I AGREE THE IRS IS NO LONGER THE WAY TO GO. It would eliminate the Earned Income Tax Credits, which are misused.
The states need to look at this scam. Also, a national sales tax only would mean more pay their fair share, and eliminate much of this class envy being pushed.

[jmaroneps37]

http://www.collinsreport.net/2009/02/10/obama%e2%80%99s-tarp-is-actually-a-trap-we-must-to-escape/

[Cboldt]

-- The details were worked out. The RATS had the votes, so they didn't care about the details. --

TARP was proposed by Hank Paulson under the GWB administration, and passed by an overwhelming majority of both chambers of Congress. Republican Senator Gregg was a designated GOP cheerleader, Senator McCain took off from his presidential election campaign to stump for passage, etc.

TARP is hung around the neck of BOTH political parties.

[mbynack]

It seems to me that TARP is really detrimental to the free market system. In a normal state, a slow economy would cause weaker businesses to go out of business. The businesses that were well run and prepared would emerge stronger with a larger market share.

With TARP, we're rewarding the companies that invested poorly and made poor decisions. They get government money and weaken the market share of the better-managed companies. It's like the welfare system that rewards poverty and ends up creating more of it while penalizing wage earners. Only now we're rewarding poorly run companies at the expense of those that are turning a profit (i.e., Ford).