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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:24:39 GMT -5
fiscan Message #1509 - 07/20/10 12:25 AM
He's out in the Bay area cruising for broads in his red Corvette!
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:25:33 GMT -5
Murphy Martin Message #1510 - 07/20/10 06:05 AM
Hmmm... I'm surprised this thread is still around. It asked a year ago if we'd be prepared for the crisis that would come in fall 2009. I replied at least a few times that I didn't believe there would be such a crisis as the OP described during fall 2009.
But now... I'm DEFINITELY afraid I won't be ready for fall 2009 when the bottom falls out.
Or maybe we should just give up on the crisis of fall 2009?
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:26:40 GMT -5
cedaredge Message #1511 - 07/20/10 09:56 AMA year or two late and a buck short.........................................
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:27:09 GMT -5
Stay Put Message #1512 - 07/22/10 12:22 PM
I'm a little curious. If we are truly in an economic recovery, and the companies are all hiring again, as the Dems keep touting, why are the Dems forcing 99 weeks of unemployment benefits through?
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:32:12 GMT -5
Stay Put Message #1513 - 07/22/10 12:48 PM
I'm surprised that you are still around. This has already been proven, but you (and some others) must have missed the memo.
Unless you have no memory; selective memory, totally ignorant, or are so blinded by party loyalty that you refuse to even look at the facts, you will see that I was PROVEN right. So, for the umpteenth time, let me state the fact again.
Last fall, uncle Ben Bernanke came out and called for yet another emergency "Bail Out". He stated out of his own mouth, that without a new bailout, the whole economy would in fact collapse and it would be ten times worse than the Great Depression of the 1930's. All of the bailouts, have been the only thing that has put the total melt down of our economy on "Lay-A_Way". It cannot be stopped. It has only been delayed. Uncle Ben's admission PROVED ME RIGHT.
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:41:29 GMT -5
ReformedDayTrade Message #1514 - 07/22/10 02:47 PM Ben Bernanke Says U.S. Economy On Cusp Of Recovery JEANNINE AVERSA | 08/21/09 04:40 PM | Read More: Banks, Ben Bernanke, Bernanke, Economic Recovery, Economic Stimulus Package, Economy, Fdic, Federal Reserve, Finance, Financial Crisis, Jackson Hole, Obama, Recession, Stimulus, Wyoming, Business News JACKSON, Wyo. — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Friday offered his most optimistic outlook since the financial crisis struck, saying the economy is on the verge of growing again. Speaking at an annual Fed conference, Bernanke acknowledged no missteps by the central bank in managing the worst crisis since the Great Depression. But he conceded that consumers and businesses are still having trouble getting loans, even though the financial system is gradually stabilizing. Economic activity in both the U.S. and around the world seems to be leveling out, and the economy is likely to start growing again soon, Bernanke said in a speech at an annual Fed conference in Jackson. The mood here was decidedly more hopeful than it was last summer, when a sense of foreboding hung over the forum just before the financial crisis erupted. Bernanke's hopeful remarks on the economy contributed to a rally on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average surged about 155 points, or 1.7 percent, and broader stock averages also gained sharply. Despite his upbeat tone, Bernanke cautioned that the recovery is likely to be "relatively slow at first." Unemployment, now at 9.4 percent, is widely expected to hit double digits later this year and to remain high for many months. The financial markets have stabilized, and some businesses and consumers have found it easier to get loans. Still, the banking system has yet to return to normal, Bernanke said. Financial institutions face further losses on soured investments. And many businesses and households still can't get the credit they need to fuel the economy, he said. www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/08/21/ben-bernanke-says-us-econ_n_265183.html
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:44:11 GMT -5
ReformedDayTrade Message #1515 - 07/22/10 02:56 PMAlthough we have avoided the worst, difficult challenges still lie ahead," Bernanke told the gathering of fellow bankers, academics and economists. "We must work together to build on the gains already made to secure a sustained economic recovery." Reviewing the past year's crisis*, Bernanke outlined the many emergency measures the Fed and other regulators took to help ward off a global financial meltdown. He declined to acknowledge critics' arguments that regulators failed to detect signs of the crisis before it occurred – or that Wall Street bailouts sent a message that big companies that make reckless bets would be rescued with taxpayer money. A $700 billion taxpayer-funded bailout program to prop up financial institutions incensed many Americans. So did the repeated bailouts of AIG, which paid hefty bonuses to employees who worked in the division that brought down the firm. Some analysts said Bernanke appeared to be angling to keep his job for another term. "The lack of any **** culpa suggests the Fed chairman wants to be reappointed," said Richard Yamarone, economist at Argus Research. "When you go on an interview, you never speak of your shortcomings." President Barack Obama will have to decide in coming months whether to reappoint or replace Bernanke, whose term expires early next year. Ken Mayland, president of ClearView Economics, said Bernanke was engaging in a "bit of cheerleading to inspire confidence," especially among consumers whose caution could restrain the recovery. Elsewhere at the conference, European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet responded to a research paper on the origins and the nature of the financial crisis by saying he was a "little bit uneasy" about talk of a return to normalcy. "We have an enormous amount of work to do, and we should be as active as possible," Trichet said. The bulk of Bernanke's speech chronicled the extraordinary events of the past year.Financial markets took a dizzying plunge starting in September and into October, nearly shutting down the flow of credit. The crisis felled storied Wall Street firms. The government took over mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, as well as insurance titan American International Group Inc. *(2008)In economics, the term recession generally describes the reduction of a country's gross domestic product (GDP) for at least 2 quarters. The usual dictionary definition is "a period of reduced economic activity", a business cycle contraction. The United States housing market correction (a consequence of United States housing bubble) and subprime mortgage crisis has significantly contributed to a recession. U.S. employers shed 63,000 jobs in February 2008, the most in five years. Former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan said on April 6, 2008 that "There is more than a 50 percent chance the United States could go into recession.". On October 1st, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that an additional 156,000 jobs had been lost in September. On April 29, 2008, nine US states were declared by Moody’s to be in a recession. Although the US Economy grew in the first quarter by 1%, by June 2008 some analysts stated that due to a protracted credit crisis and "rampant inflation in commodities such as oil, food and steel", the country was nonetheless in a recession.[38] The third quarter of 2008 brought on a GDP retraction of 0.5% the biggest decline since 2001. The 6.4% decline in spending during Q3 on non-durable goods, like clothing and food, was the largest since 1950
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:44:43 GMT -5
Stay Put Message #1516 - 07/22/10 07:41 PM
Uh, yeah. Even I could pull out just "1" of the countless reports or televised announcements that dear old uncle Ben has given, but it was at one of his press conferences, just prior to his officially going to congress begging for more tax payer bailout money for the plunge protection team.
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:45:24 GMT -5
handy-man Message #1517 - 07/22/10 08:01 PM
In the rural mountain area where I was born we had a spring, garden, canned foods and smoked meats and fresh milk, cheese, butter and corn bread. We had no money but living was simple before the depression and we had food to eat, no soup lines. Our life style never changed because of the economy.
Now that I am retired and live in the country and have the same potential as far as surviving. I do have a tractor instead of a mule to plow with.
Enough money stashed to by essentials for a goodly time and enough guns and ammo to start my own little army. Although I doubt I will have to worry about marauders.
The ones who would be hard pressed will be the city dwellers. Unlike the last depression there would be more violence like Haiti if a sudden collapse happened in the economy.
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:47:38 GMT -5
fiscan Message #1518 - 07/22/10 10:04 PM
Handy-man, now he is a classic collapse survivor. Guns and ammo is your greatest asset. You can't grow it!
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:48:07 GMT -5
Goober Steve Message #1519 - 07/23/10 12:22 AM
Hey RDT did you catch AAPL and AMZN? I did. One long and one short........ ;D Investing is dead, but trading any direction surely isn't.
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:49:21 GMT -5
Murphy Martin Message #1520 - 07/23/10 06:53 AM
As a Republican I wouldn't begin to claim to speak for the Dem administration, but I'm pretty sure the Dem administration is NOT denying that unemployment exists.
I'm also pretty sure no one in a position of responsibility has claimed "the companies are all hiring again".
As for "forcing... through", well, I'm the first to admit they won the last election. It stinks that this means they get to do stuff, but yeah, that's what it means.
As to you're other point: The US is certainly in a recovery: the recession ended about a year ago in a strictly technical sense. I.e., the economy IS growing at the moment, and when there's economic growth it's not a recession. Kind of like if you beat someone mercilessly but he's not actually dead, you won't be charged with "murder". Because you can't commit a "murder" unless someone actually becomes DEAD-- and you can't have a recession unless the economy shrinks. Words do, in fact, have definitions-- although I get it that liberals want to make up new definitions instead of going with conventional meanings! But I digress: the point is, for those of us who are still conservative, we think that words have meanings. And if there's "economic growth" it's NOT, simply NOT a recession.
Sorry... I just get miffed when people change the meaning of words to suit their own political purposes.
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:50:04 GMT -5
Murphy Martin Message #1521 - 07/23/10 06:55 AM
If "investing is dead", does that mean it's wrong of me to keep collecting dividends?
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:51:03 GMT -5
Stay Put Message #1522 - 07/23/10 03:58 PM
The problem with your whole assertion, is that manipulation is NOT, simply NOT growth. When companies have and are laying off record numbers of employees (with no end in sight) the salaries, wages, and taxes that the companies no longer have to pay those former employees are not actual profits, as the Democrats keep touting. All of the numbers that the DNC have/are using to promote their lie of "Recovery", fall under this category of total manipulation.
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:51:38 GMT -5
Goober Steve Message #1523 - 07/24/10 10:27 PM
MM - No, not as long as you can. There are a few pockets in sectors that are still good to go, but the old paradigm of buy and hold for the public is gone, probably forever. You may well be ahead of the curve, but most aren't. Undeniable my friend, just the way it is! ;D That does not preclude the coming election pump that will delude many into thinking everything is solved and quite fine!
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:52:02 GMT -5
traelin0 Message #1524 - 07/24/10 10:56 PM
Keep in mind that MM cleared out of the US a long time ago. He has a very different perspective than CONUS citizens, plus a lot more options.
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:52:46 GMT -5
Murphy Martin Message #1525 - 07/25/10 09:48 AM
And yet I am still collecting dividends from American companies, too. McDonalds, for example, raised its dividend by 10% last year. And if the US$ goes down against other currencies, then McDonalds' overseas earnings go up vs. the US$. (That's just one example of several).
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:54:38 GMT -5
Stay Put Message #1526 - 07/27/10 12:05 AM
Being an ex-patriot, means that your information is completely filtered/skewed. Not being here, you are not aware of all of the lies, and total manipulations coming out of the entire DNC. First, they have been trying to sell their snake oil (Recovery). They use the word like a mantra, as if by simply saying it enough times it will some how make it actually happen. In fact, Europe has just recently told Obama what he can do with his print money and spending to oblivion plan.
Out of one side of their mouth, the whole DNC "reluctantly" (only when pressed for an answer) will state a skewed % of America that is out of work. God forbid that they give the actual numbers. Please note that Obama admitted himself that these jobs are not coming back. Hmm. I have asked this question before. Where will the tens of millions of unemployed Americans find work, if the jobs are not coming back? Small businesses are being forced to close their doors, all across this entire country. Banks are failing each month. States are on the literal verge of total insolvency. Almost a half a million people are losing their jobs every single month, and the Dems are using their slight of hand to try to get America to focus on the differences between the months. "We lost 16,000 fewer jobs this past month compared to last month or than we did the same month last year." This is an attempt to take the focus off of the fact that under Obama. Pelosi, Reid, and the DNC, we are still losing nearly half a million jobs each and every single month with no end in sight.
Let's not forget the $13 Trillion in debt; $109 Trillion in unfunded liabilities, printing presses running 24/7, and the Dems spending with literally no end in sight. Recovery? I think not.
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:55:48 GMT -5
Murphy Martin Message #1527 - 07/27/10 08:14 AM
Perhaps you're not aware that I get the same Internet you do? It's not the "Topeka-wide web" after all; it's the "world wide web".
Anyway, I get the Economist, Financial Times, and Independent on my Kindle, same as you rich non-emigrant Americans do.
And I'm NOT an "ex patriot". I'm certainly as much of a patriot as you'll ever be. I pay more than $5000 in taxes PER DAY that I spend in the USA, supporting my fellow Americans who aren't able to come up with that kind of money, and anyone who doesn't at least match that is-- by MY standard at least-- a deadbeat who doesn't love his/ her country enough to kick in. (Okay, I'm exaggerating for effect-- but then my tax bill entitles me to do so).
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:57:20 GMT -5
Murphy Martin Message #1528 - 07/27/10 08:18 AM
You've obviously been sucked into the Dems' narrative.
If "unemployed Americans" want jobs, they should start their own businesses. They should "go west, young man go west". They should emigrate. All of these things absolutely ARE the American Dream as it's traditionally been understood. My own ancestors moved thousands of miles from home to live in America-- I bet yours did, too. (Or, if they didn't, they were conquered by those who did, right?). The American Dream IS NOT to sit around waiting for a Democratic administration to make technologically obsolete jobs come back by government fiat.
Or do you disagree? Really?
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:58:11 GMT -5
010011101002101010 Message #1529 - 07/27/10 09:33 AM
Of course they disagree Murphy, they want their hotdogs and apple pie handed to them on a silver platter by uncle sam while they sit on their fat @$$3$ in front of their stories told to them every night by the top rated media outlet, so they 'kan lern all abowt America and wut it is.' These people who expect they are so entitled want no personal responsibility to their government, but want full representation by their government. Sounds like the folks having the Tea party should be the government. Well, give up your responsibility, and no one will give it back. BTW, there is no way to take it back by force either, the world is too small. They need to get involved, but that dent in the couch is just too difficult to get out of.
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 21:59:54 GMT -5
fiscan Message #1530 - 07/27/10 09:34 AM
ha aha ha hah ah ah ah ah ah ah h ah ah ah ah ah h ah ah ah ah ah ah a ha h
Oh yeah, everybody is going to go "west" to the great state of California and start a business where high taxes, fees, levies, regulations are just waiting for them! Wake up Murph, the Democrat way is good for the burgeoning bottom but no good for actual producers. The denying will cease when this unsustainable framework.... well...... COLLAPSES!!! ha aah h a ahh ah ah ah a hah ah hah a ha ha ha ha ha h ah
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 22:00:42 GMT -5
yes man 259 Message #1531 - 07/27/10 09:40 AM
Things are so bad, just heard some public restrooms, are quitting supplying toilet paper, and paper towels. Deperate people are stealing the paper. If you go to NJ, and use a public restroom, best to have toilet paper in your pocket, just in case. ;D
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 22:01:42 GMT -5
fiscan Message #1532 - 07/27/10 09:45 AM
Are you retarded? What are you talking about, who thinks they are entitled to what? The proponents of this thread are calling for smaller government, lower taxes, less regulations... you know, the stuff that creates opportunity and wealth. They want to be able to work hard to earn a nice living or even harder to earn a prestigious living without government confiscating nearly half of it. You think what I'm talking about is at the expense of the poor souls who cannot participate for whatever reason. That is your fatal flaw.
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 22:02:37 GMT -5
fiscan Message #1533 - 07/27/10 09:51 AM
That cesspool is practically a war zone. I know a guy (from Canada) with the Devils organization and he walks around on eggshells down there. Unless I had a loaded pistol at all times I wouldn't bother going there for anything.
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 22:04:42 GMT -5
ReformedDayTrade Message #1534 - 07/27/10 10:37 AMNews flash...... Congress passed the economic stimulus 16 months ago ($787 billion) and Bernanke didn't request another stimulus last fall. Obama was trying to make the case not all of the $787 Billion had been spent yet....so there was no economic collapse in 2009, nor was there a second stimulus last fall to the one passed in early 2009 or 16 months ago.. You can argue that may have prevented an economic collapse last fall but that may not be quite accurate. I think most would argue that the stimulus did more to help the financial industry than it did for the average consumers during the economic crisis nor did it restore consumer confidence. Once again this is an example why it is wrong to trust anything posted on this thread about an economic collapse since it lacks honesty, reliability, and facts that are essential to free market economies and financial systems. There is a severe breach in trust or our government, Wall St. corporations, media, and message boards which has been damaging any faith in our institutions. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Reuters Insider - Double Dip in Depth: Not Likely, Economists Say, But Expect Economic Pain Tuesday 27 July 2010, 14:24 GMT (2:24pm EST) Time/Date: 14:00 GMT - Tue, 27 Jul 2010 Title: Double Dip in Depth: Not Likely, Economists Say, But Expect Economic Pain Description: Dan Burns and Jen Rogers discuss the prospects for the U.S. economy, garnered from interviews with economists, policymakers and strategists, saying that though weak, the economic recovery is not heading towards a double dip. View Show: insider.thomsonreuters.com/link.html?ctype=group_channel&chid=3&cid=127881&shareToken=Mzo2ODYyNTI4YS1mZjFkLTQwNmItYjhmMC02NDA2MTBhODgwMzk%3D%0A&playerName=ReutersNews Quote: "It's not going to feel good. It's going to be very miserable. Even if it doesn't -- even if we don't see an economic contraction -- it's going to sure as heck feel like one." Dan Burns, Reuters Specialist Editor
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 22:06:51 GMT -5
Stay Put Message #1535 - 07/27/10 09:06 PM
Fed Chairman Bernanke signals more bank bailouts, calls for cuts in social programs
In two days of testimony before Congress, Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke defended the multi-trillion-dollar bailout of the banks while seeking to allay fears on financial markets of a potential eruption of inflation.
Bernanke’s testimony before the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday and the Senate Banking Committee on Wednesday underscored the commitment of both the central bank and the Obama administration to defending the profits and wealth of the financial elite. His reception by the Democratic-controlled committees made clear that, whatever minor criticisms Congress may offer, it shares this overriding goal.
Bernanke published a lengthy commentary in the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday, timed to coincide with his appearance before the House committee, arguing that the Fed had an “exit strategy” to unwind the massive injections of capital into the banking system and avoid an inflationary spiral once business activity begins to rebound from the deepest recession since the 1930s.
In his prepared statement, Bernanke cited the rally on Wall Street and the renewed profitability of major banks as signs that the financial crisis had abated. At the same time, he made clear that unemployment and home foreclosures would continue to rise and remain at near-record rates for at least the next two years, and warned that consumer spending would remain depressed.
The Fed chairman forecast a slight growth in the US economy by the end of 2009 and a gradual acceleration in 2010 and 2011. But he said the central bank, which cut its key interest rate to near zero last December, would continue to hold interest rates at record lows “for an extended period.”
Bernanke acknowledged that “financial conditions remain stressed, and many households and businesses are finding credit difficult to obtain.” In response to a question about the prospects for a jobs recovery, he said, “We have a very long haul here. Unemployment is going to stay high for quite a while, and so it’s not going to feel really like a strong economy.”
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 22:07:39 GMT -5
Stay Put Message #1536 - 07/27/10 09:07 PM
However, he called a second economic stimulus package “premature” and proposed no measures either to provide immediate relief for the millions hit by plant closures, layoffs, and the collapse of home values and savings, or to allocate government funds to create new jobs. Nor did he propose any measures to compel the banks, which have received more than $200 billion in taxpayer cash and trillions more in low-interest loans, subsidies and government backing for their debt, to increase their lending and make credit available to working families.
On the contrary, he reiterated earlier demands that Congress and the Obama administration agree on plans to slash the budget deficit by cutting basic social programs such as Medicare and Medicaid. In his prepared statement, he said “...maintaining the confidence of the public and financial markets requires that policymakers begin planning now for the restoration of fiscal balance. Prompt attention to questions of fiscal sustainability is particularly critical because of the coming budgetary and economic challenges associated with the retirement of the baby-boom generation and continued increases in the costs of Medicare and Medicaid. Addressing the country’s fiscal problems will require difficult choices, but postponing those choices will only make them more difficult.”
In the course of his testimony, he endorsed the drive by the Obama administration, in the name of health care “reform,” to reduce the costs to business and the government of health insurance for workers. “I do believe,” he said, “for the broad economy’s health or fiscal health, we do need to address the problem of increasing cost. And so any program that is undertaken should look to how we’re going to get control of costs...”
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 22:08:50 GMT -5
Stay Put Message #1537 - 07/27/10 09:08 PM
An exchange on Wednesday with Jim Bunning, the right-wing Republican senator from Kentucky, highlighted the priorities of the Federal Reserve. Citing the role of former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker, who, under presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan, raised interest rates above 20 percent and precipitated a wave of plant closures and layoffs, Bunning asked, “But do you have the will as former Chairman Volcker did to tighten even if the economy is still weak?”
Bernanke replied, “We will absolutely do it, so long as we are not forced to do something different by Congress.”
At the same time, Bernanke made clear that the Fed would continue to allocate whatever funds were needed to prop up the banks. In response to the plea from Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, Democrat from Connecticut, Bernanke said he was prepared to extend one bailout program, the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF), beyond its December 31 expiration date.
Much of the discussion at both hearings focused on fears of an impending avalanche of commercial real estate defaults. Trends Research Institute Director Gerald Celente, who forecast the subprime mortgage crisis, has predicted that defaults will turn into a commercial real estate collapse that will “dwarf the subprime problem.”
Moody’s Investor Services reported that the number of commercial properties in default, foreclosure or bankruptcy in June was more than twice the number six months earlier and almost twice the value.
Bernanke at one point acknowledged that “Many banks will be facing mountains of CRE (commercial real estate) challenges going forward.” He told the Senate Banking Committee that it “may be appropriate” for the government to guarantee commercial mortgages, an allocation of government funds that could run into the hundreds of billions of dollars.
In a further indication of the character of the “recovery” touted by Bernanke, the Fed chairman said, “The American consumer is not going to be the source of a global boom by any means. On that very topic, we are continuing to encourage our trading partners in Asia and elsewhere to understand—and I believe that they do—that they need to substitute their own domestic spending, their own domestic demand, for American consumers as the engine of growth in their economies.” He cited China’s stimulus program as a positive example.
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Post by traelin0 on Dec 28, 2010 22:09:39 GMT -5
Stay Put Message #1538 - 07/27/10 09:09 PM
Bernanke used the hearings to oppose an Obama administration proposal to establish, as part of a revised bank regulatory system, a largely token consumer protection agency, a measure that is fiercely opposed by Wall Street. He also denounced a pending bill in Congress that would expand the powers of the Government Accountability Office, an arm of Congress, to audit the Federal Reserve.
The hearings, known as the semi-annual Monetary Policy Report to Congress, came in the wake of bumper profit reports by bailed out banks, most notably Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase, and record set-asides by Wall Street firms for executive salaries and bonuses. Public anger is rising over the windfalls for bankers and big investors, some of it coming from predatory hikes in credit card rates and fees and huge penalties being charged for bank overdrafts.
This sentiment found no genuine reflection in the hearings. Massachusetts Democrat Barney Frank, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, devoted his opening remarks to absolving Bernanke of any wrongdoing in last year’s Bank of America takeover of Merrill Lynch.
A number of congressional hearings have been held into charges that Bernanke and then-Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson pressured Bank of America CEO Kenneth Lewis to go through with the takeover even though it had become clear that Merrill’s debts and toxic assets were far higher than the failing bank had acknowledged. Shareholders have filed suits alleging that Lewis, under pressure from Bernanke and Paulson, concealed the real state of Merrill from shareholders and the public.
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