The Year of the Bailout
2008 will go down in history as the year of the Great American Bailout. Congress this year has already granted $700 billion dollars in relief funds to bailout our ailing banking system. 2009 looks like it is going to be another bailout year as our new government works hard at preparing a second bailout package that will go before congress next year.
This economic disease created by our leaders past and present has infected the economy at every level and at every spectrum. In order to breathe more life into the economy the next presidential administration is expecting to spend another $300 to $700 billion in additional funds. This money is supposed to be used to create an additional 2.5 million jobs. The government is looking to spend money on re building the nations deteriorating infrastructure. Highways and bridges need to be fixed. Government buildings need to be modernized with energy efficient upgrades being one of the top priorities.
Many argue that spending money will not necessarily improve the economy. However, there are many who argue otherwise. The government needs to spend money in times of recession in order to keep the economy moving. Rebuilding our infrastructure will replace 2.5 million jobs that have been lost during this terrific downturn. In addition Obama plans to create new jobs in new energy projects that are aimed at reducing our dependence on both foreign and domestic oil.
The next bailout on the agenda is going to be our mighty troubled automakers. After executives arrived to Washington in their private Gulfstream jests, Congress rejected any talks about bailing out the big three automakers. However the big three will soon face Congress again with a new plan. The automakers need to modernize their plants so that multiple models can be made on the same assembly lines without any major modifications. Foreign automakers have been doing this for years. For example, Toyota may manufacture the Corolla and the Camry on the same assembly line without new configurations to line. There is also talks about the automakers getting rid of brands that end up competing with each other. It does make sense for General Motors to market both Buick models and GMC models. The Buick Enclave is basically the same thing as the GMC Acadia.
This downturn has also affected consumer credit so significantly that the government has had to allocate funds to unfreeze these credit markets. Citigroup has had to seek relief funds from the government to the tune of $25 billion. American Express has also had to restructure itself into a bank holding company in order to access TARP funds as well. Credit card companies continue to slash credit limits and raise interest rates. This has affected the American consumer deeply. Retailers are experiencing fewer sales as the economy continues to spiral downwards.
Our country continues to make history. Should Obama obtain approval for these new bailout funds, it will be the biggest public spending initiative since former President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “Big Deal” public works project of the Great Depression. This will certainly alter history forever. As a nation, we must be optimistic that we will crawl out of this giant economic hole that we have dug.
Lastly, there are not many people who will not agree that something drastic needs to be done for our economy. The release of recent economic data shows that our economy has been in a recession since December of 2007. This recession has been among the worst in history. However, there is hope that our economy will start to recover possibly by spring of 2009. In the past, we have always recovered from recessionary markets within at least 16 months. Should the trend prove to be correct we have about 4 months left of this bad economy. As a nation, we must stay strong and stand together during these tough times. Fortunately, we are a much tougher nation that will withstand tough times.
2008 will go down in history as the year of the Great American Bailout. Congress this year has already granted $700 billion dollars in relief funds to bailout our ailing banking system. 2009 looks like it is going to be another bailout year as our new government works hard at preparing a second bailout package that will go before congress next year.
This economic disease created by our leaders past and present has infected the economy at every level and at every spectrum. In order to breathe more life into the economy the next presidential administration is expecting to spend another $300 to $700 billion in additional funds. This money is supposed to be used to create an additional 2.5 million jobs. The government is looking to spend money on re building the nations deteriorating infrastructure. Highways and bridges need to be fixed. Government buildings need to be modernized with energy efficient upgrades being one of the top priorities.
Many argue that spending money will not necessarily improve the economy. However, there are many who argue otherwise. The government needs to spend money in times of recession in order to keep the economy moving. Rebuilding our infrastructure will replace 2.5 million jobs that have been lost during this terrific downturn. In addition Obama plans to create new jobs in new energy projects that are aimed at reducing our dependence on both foreign and domestic oil.
The next bailout on the agenda is going to be our mighty troubled automakers. After executives arrived to Washington in their private Gulfstream jests, Congress rejected any talks about bailing out the big three automakers. However the big three will soon face Congress again with a new plan. The automakers need to modernize their plants so that multiple models can be made on the same assembly lines without any major modifications. Foreign automakers have been doing this for years. For example, Toyota may manufacture the Corolla and the Camry on the same assembly line without new configurations to line. There is also talks about the automakers getting rid of brands that end up competing with each other. It does make sense for General Motors to market both Buick models and GMC models. The Buick Enclave is basically the same thing as the GMC Acadia.
This downturn has also affected consumer credit so significantly that the government has had to allocate funds to unfreeze these credit markets. Citigroup has had to seek relief funds from the government to the tune of $25 billion. American Express has also had to restructure itself into a bank holding company in order to access TARP funds as well. Credit card companies continue to slash credit limits and raise interest rates. This has affected the American consumer deeply. Retailers are experiencing fewer sales as the economy continues to spiral downwards.
Our country continues to make history. Should Obama obtain approval for these new bailout funds, it will be the biggest public spending initiative since former President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “Big Deal” public works project of the Great Depression. This will certainly alter history forever. As a nation, we must be optimistic that we will crawl out of this giant economic hole that we have dug.
Lastly, there are not many people who will not agree that something drastic needs to be done for our economy. The release of recent economic data shows that our economy has been in a recession since December of 2007. This recession has been among the worst in history. However, there is hope that our economy will start to recover possibly by spring of 2009. In the past, we have always recovered from recessionary markets within at least 16 months. Should the trend prove to be correct we have about 4 months left of this bad economy. As a nation, we must stay strong and stand together during these tough times. Fortunately, we are a much tougher nation that will withstand tough times.
Labels: 700 Billion Dollar Bailout, Barrack Obama, credit cards, economic recesion
Credit Card / Financial news blog post by Todd Holliday at 7:20 PM 