CNBC Giving Airtime to Bailout Winners

CNBC, the broadcaster that so graciously gave Bill Gross near endless airtime to propagandize for an unfettered bailout of all debt holders of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, permitting his company PIMCO, the nation's largest bond trader to clear between 1.7 and 1.8 billions in profits on the backs of American taxpayers, is at it again. This afternoon at around 2pm (please see "CNBC's Fawning Coverage Helping Bond Billionaires Fleece Main Street," 09.15.08) Gross has been invited back on CNBC to give his insights on the current bailout plan.

Question: will he be asked to reveal his book and will he be asked exactly how the bailout will impact his fund's bond holdings, and to what degree of profit? Or will he simply be given free rein to lecture us about the stormy seas ahead and what needs be done for PIMCO's sake -- oops, sorry, I mean for our sake.

By the way, for those who were listening, Warren Buffet was on earlier this morning on CNBC. Now there is someone worth listening to and who plays with an open deck.

Comments

[GermanQR]

This piece is a bit unfair.

This guy has been warning everyone who would listen about the housing bubble and the subprime mess for years now. He steered clear of subprime mortages and chose to focus on high quality paper issued by the government sponsored entities. He was protecting his client's money at the cost of lower returns (and lower risk).

And by the way, he's not a bond trader, he's a fund manager. Those profits he made were not for him, but for his clients. Most of whom are pension funds. As it happens, pension funds are the main holders of GSE issues, and he helped protect these assets.

I'm not saying he's a saint. Of course he's not, but you should note the difference between fund managers and investment bank proprietary traders. And you should at least give him credit for warning us all about the coming disaster.

[suzonne]

CNBC has for some time been a propaganda channel for the revolving door of guests.

I do want to call out to Mark Haines who is great at calling them on it.

[SamEllison]

So when does paying $10 billion a month, for the wars
and even more per month in energy costs, that we have been borrowing to pay for,
not effect our economy.
Why are we blaming the sub-prime borrower?

The price of crude in the last ten years has gone up
fourteen hundred percent, $10 to $140 per bbl is 1400%!

Our economy has run out of money and that is not being said, anywhere!