Neil Barofsky, TARP Watchdog: Bailout Will 'Almost Certainly' Result In Loss For Taxpayers

bloomberg.com:

Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Neil Barofsky, the federal watchdog for the $700 billion financial industry bailout, said the program will "almost certainly" result in a loss to U.S. taxpayers.

Read the whole story: bloomberg.com

Comments

[winstonsmithcloned]

With 'almost certain certainty', anything is possible.

As Alan Greenspan said in his banking committee testimony just about a year ago, the best forecasters are wrong more than half of the time. The value in paying attention to any of them appears to be minimal.

What is actually certain is the fact that some of those businesses who were labeled as the most likely to go out of business a year ago have repaid these loans with significant amounts of interest to the taxpayer.

Warren Buffet (who is generally not a prognosticator) thought it was a good program. There is not a lot of good evidence that there are many in the country with a better sense of how to make money than him. Perhaps we would all be doing ourselves a favor by spending less time paying attention to those who have figured out how to get paid for making statements that have little probable value and more time making sure that our own personal finances are in good order based on the rules of simple arithmetic.

[NoMoreBail2]

We, the American people, dug ourselves into this hold for which there is no escape.a

hat tip to: http://financeopinionss.blogspot.com

[PhilipTaylor]

AMERICANS GET SCR_EWED ON BANKSTER TARP - LOSSES NOT GAINS!

Bar0fsky, special inspector general for $700 billion TARP bailout will be loss to taxpayers.

Barofsky is conducting 65 fraud investigations with very little cooperation from Treasury

Barofsky will release an Audit looking at if AIG paid too much to G0LDMAN & others=$50Bn

Fraud ranges from complex Derivatives to Mortgage-Fraud = 50% from insiders+v­ictims+ public

Barofsky=“I’d be..warning about potential fraud..and..hear ‘Oh, they’re bankers..they wouldn’t put their reputations at risk committing fraud.”

“We’ve done a good job of instilling ..skepticism that..Wall Street isn’t necessarily Holy Grail.”

Barofsky = Has NOTHING to say about BofA investigation by New York's AG Cuomo!

[PhilipTaylor]

Clarification:

Last December 2008 G0LDMAN had $30 Trillion in Hidden Derivatives!

http://www.occ.gov/ftp/release/2009-34a.pdf

See page 22!

Current 3rd 2009 Quarter G0LDMAN had $48 Trillion in Hidden Tier Three According to OCC!

A 60% increase in three Quarters!

[PhilipTaylor]

G0LDMAN’S Earnings=FAKE “Mark-to-Fantasy” Accounting = Massive UNJUSTIFIED BONUSES PAID ON BACKS OF AMERICANS (via FED+Treasury+A1G)

Credit products+m­ortgages=S­ecurities held but Can’t sell=Mark to whatever profit number we want

"Revenues in Equities were 78% higher”= Derivatives FAKE mark up over prior year quarter

Mark-to-Fantasy illiquid Derivatives =Fabulous Incomes+Bonuses paid by Treasury+FED+AIG

JPM+G0LDMAN=FAKE MASSIVE ACCOUNTING Paper PROFITS = Cash Bonuses

In the hoopla the media missed that housing foreclosures hit a new record high!

JPM + G0LDMAN = A Grand Theft in the FACES OF THE WORLD’S People

Should JPM+GS really get BONUSES or be PUT IN PR1SON?

http://truthingold.blogspot.com/2009/10/re-goldman-sachs-earnings.html

[shivasquest]

What does Geithner say?

[PhilipTaylor]

What is that name again?

[PhilipTaylor]

AMERICANS GET SCR_EWED ON BANKSTER TARP - LOSSES NOT GAINS!

Bar0fsky, special inspector general for $700 billion TARP bailout will be loss to taxpayers.

Barofsky is conducting 65 fraud investigations with very little cooperation from Treasury

Barofsky will release an Audit looking at if AIG paid too much to G0LDMAN & others=$50Bn

Fraud ranges from complex Derivatives to Mortgage-Fraud = 50% from insiders+v­ictims+pub­lic

Barofsky=“I’d be..warning about potential fraud..and..hear ‘Oh, they’re bankers..they wouldn’t put their reputations at risk committing fraud.”

“We’ve done a good job of instilling­..skeptici­sm that..Wall Street isn’t necessarily Holy Grail.”

[vinny]

revolt

[sonofsamphm1c]

if you go to an American family, two kids, etc., and say the only way to reform is revolt, they are going run straight into the arms of the first person who promises them he/she will oppress.

[Carolab]

Are you saying that fear will keep the people from doing anything to fight back -- and do you consider that a good thing?

[shivasquest]

LOL!!!
Nice ......... lower case.

[lightningbolt]

Every person who took bonus money and received a ridiculously high salary paid for by bailout money is a thief. Taxpayers won't get paid back the bailout money because it is hiding in the pockets of these criminals. The bailout was the greatest robbery in world history. The worst part is that the U.S. government is not even going to enforce the law to put these criminals behind bars and recover the taxpayer's money.

[lightningbolt]

Of course taxpayers won't see the bailout money anymore. It is hiding in the pockets of the executives who gave themselves bonuses with this money.

[NoMoreBail2]

No more bailouts for too big to fail. NO more stupid tax cuts and other gimmicks. Need more jobs, affordable education & heath care.

good articles; http://financeopinionss.blogspot.com

[sonofsamphm1c]

You need jobs. Great. Then wise up, because you will not get jobs if you keep thinking destroying the financial system would have been a good idea.

[Carolab]

The financial system is only for the benefit of the banksters and not Main Street America. We are NOT getting helped here.

[Papa Swamp]

Geez ya think? Waiting for bailout 2.0 or is it 4.0/5.0 since AIG has had 3 trips to the $$ trough and Fannie needs another bailout (3rd 4th?).

At least they will get their bonuses.....vomit

[vippy]

Now our dear congress wants gambling associated with derivatives! That stinks to high heaven.
Derivatives should be outlawed. Why is no one jumping on the speculators in oil driving up the price of gas, oil should be no more than $ 40 per barrel. Hedgefunds should be outlawed!
The bonuses need to be stopped until the taxpayer gets all their money back first.

[BostonB]

As Homer says: DUHHHHHHHH­HHHHHHHHHH­HHHHHHH

[ntmessage]

No doubt at all on this. Once the congress got their hands on TARP and decided that non-financial firms, unrelated to the crisis should get bailed out as well they turned this money from investment to spending. Not to mention the extra 180B of pork. So perhaps 300-400 Billion of almost 900 Billion went to what TARP was designed to do. Now we continue to vilify the financial businesses once they paid the money back only to deflect that the other 500-600 Billion was simply spent. Your congress in action. Nice work. If only they can get rid of the pork in the health care, we would see that we could pay for the entire robust public option via the bush tax cuts alone. For this congress? Not a chance. When legislation gets passed everyone in congress, have their hands in the citizens pockets for their special interests alone. And then they blame others for their own actions.

[sonofsamphm1c]

Yes, he should be segregating by sectors. For being a champion of transparency, Barofsky speaks murky.

[StephenJK]

"The bankers would never risk their reputation to make a few bucks!"

HAHAHAHAHAH

[Carolab]

While I like Barofsky in general, this comment is a bit hard to stomach:

"The inspector also concluded in that report that ex- Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke didn’t illegally pressure Bank of America to complete its acquisition of Merrill Lynch & Co. While Bank of America considered ending the deal last December after Merrill’s losses spiraled, Paulson and Bernanke advocated its completion, and arranged another $20 billion in assistance."

Oh, why? Because they SAID so?

[PhilipTaylor]

I am with you on that! Very fishy!

[Carolab]

I mean, is he trying to say Cuomo's case is full of crap?