Posted on 07/01/2016 8:34:12 AM PDT by Nachum
Today President Obama signed the PROMESA (Puerto Rico Bailout) bill created by representative Paul Ryan, and with it the immediate suspension of the Fifth Amendment which was supported by a Senate vote yesterday.
The Fifth Amendment protects U.S. Citizens from federal seizure of property without compensation.
It applies in this instance to Puerto Rico via the general obligation bonds (property) purchased by municipal bond holders (investing citizens), which were supposed to be repaid, and which congress has now determined can be frozen.
In addition, PROMESA suspends legal redress, by blocking bond holders (property owners) from suing the debtor (PR) to recover their property. In essence the Fifth Amendment is suspended, and the rights of those whose property has been confiscated to use the courts has been preemptively denied.
(Excerpt) Read more at theconservativetreehouse.com ...
GM bond holders redux?
Take your haircut and like it.
F’em.
5.56mm
...The Fifth Amendment protects U.S. Citizens from federal seizure of property without compensation....(for public use)
The Fifth Amendment is the Eminent Domain clause. This is a Fourth Amendment issue involving taking of property without due process of law.
Puerto Rico couldn’t file for bankruptcy by using the bankruptcy law (due process), so they just took the bonds and the worth of the bonds without due process.
Any one wishing to propose an alternative? Without this bill, PR would be unable to provide basic services. Bill also provides for a Presidential Commission to oversee PR finances. Basically, PR has declared bankruptcy and will restructure debt. So, who has a better alternative?
Vote SI - Banana Republica
Ryan is rino uniparty. His end is at hand.
Good Luck with that. Calling Janet Yellen.
It’s not illegal to wish.
YET ! ! !
I don't see it that way at all. This isn't like the Chrysler deal.
Anybody who bought PR bonds in the last five years was counting on a bailout of some sort. The PR finances were too dodgy, bankruptcy was over the horizon, and an investor's hope was that PR's paper would get made good, just like Fannie and Freddie's were.
Well... oops.
There is no mechanism for States to declare bankruptcy. There is a detailed mechanism in the Bankruptcy Code for municipalities, Chapter 9. Well, Puerto Rico is a Territory, so it's neither, and nobody knew what to do.
My understanding is that this Bill is acting like an extension of Chapter 9, and no taxpayer money is being injected. So it's supervision, but not a bailout. Restructuring means the investors will get less than the initial contract, because the assets aren't there to cover them. That was the risk they took.
What form will restructuring take? It really doesn't matter, but it will probably be extension of payment times combined with lower interest rates.
As to why I don't think this is like the GM and Chrysler bailouts, it has to do with the difference between companies and government entities. GM/Chrysler had bondholders, and less senior debtors, particularly the Union Pension funds. Obama strongarmed the bondholders into giving up their priority in payments, and letting the loss they took go to the Union pension funds.
I don't see anybody getting favored in the PR situation. The bondholders are getting stiffed, but the money owed them isn't going to anyone else, either. It's a cleanup job in the finance aisle.
Any bond holder has standing and should fight this unconstitutional crap.
As it is a US territory that issued the bonds, it is not subject to bankruptcy court liquidation. This was actually listed in the risks prospectus for the bonds. So no, they’re just holding paper that PR can, solely at its own will, pay or not pay as it chooses. Investors had zero power to compel liquidation of any assets.
Does anyone where can I go to find how my “representatives” voted on this travesty?
BTW, I was taught in high school that the 5th Amendment was part of The Bill of RIGHTS, or has this administration changed that to The Bill of Maybes?
>> Any one wishing to propose an alternative? <<
Don’t try to change the subject. The purpose of this thread is to bash Obama and Ryan, not to analyze any “alternatives” — constructive or otherwise. You need to get with the program.
It has started with the running of DJT.
Will not be enough. jmo
But it is a good start.
Hawthorn wrote: “Don’t try to change the subject. The purpose of this thread is to bash Obama and Ryan, not to analyze any “alternatives” — constructive or otherwise. You need to get with the program.”
Silly me. I’ll try to do better.
This is not Unconstitutional it’s an exercise of Congresses power to regulate bankruptcy.
This!
Just making more use of the nonexistent “Noble Cause” clause of the Constitution - nothing to see here.
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