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mac
Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17751
Location: Berkeley, California
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techno900
Joined: 28 Mar 2001
Posts: 4166
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 Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 8:55 am Post subject: |
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Gee, I didn't know that the Democrats had no input or say about what was in the bill. And even more surprising is that the Democrats voted to pass the bill not knowing what was in it. I guess that's the norm for lefties.
Mac - get real: | Quote: | | Written by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) with significant input from congressional Democrats, the package includes close to $400 billion in loans made available through lenders certified by the Small Business Administration, such as banks and credit unions. The maximum loan is capped at $10 million. |
Google headline from the Post.
And by the way - someday, you might learn that posting articles from news papers where only subscribers can read them is pretty much worthless. And I don't subscribe to the Post. |
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mac
Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17751
Location: Berkeley, California
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| Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 10:25 am Post subject: |
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| techno900 wrote: | Gee, I didn't know that the Democrats had no input or say about what was in the bill. And even more surprising is that the Democrats voted to pass the bill not knowing what was in it. I guess that's the norm for lefties.
Mac - get real: | Quote: | | Written by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) with significant input from congressional Democrats, the package includes close to $400 billion in loans made available through lenders certified by the Small Business Administration, such as banks and credit unions. The maximum loan is capped at $10 million. |
Google headline from the Post.
And by the way - someday, you might learn that posting articles from news papers where only subscribers can read them is pretty much worthless. And I don't subscribe to the Post. |
Techno--I guess you don't remember agent orange and Fox shelling Democrats for pushing for oversight and benefits for smaller businesses? One of the reasons that the legislative process is usually long and complicated is to make sure that the details in laws do what is intended. But I guess your primary intent was to try to divert attention from the fact that the initial bill was drafted by Republicans at the direction of McConnell and provided benefits almost exclusively for the biggest of businesses. Or maybe it was to crow that the Democrats had not found and removed all of the poison pills that Moscow Mitch put in?
During the coronavirus crisis, both the Washington Post and the Grey Lady have made most of their coverage free. But I guess the servers in the South don't allow fact checked articles to go through. |
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isobars
Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935
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| Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 12:27 pm Post subject: |
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| techno900 wrote: | | I don't subscribe to the Post. |
Why would anyone who wants facts subscribe to a Bezos publication? Yeah, I know Fox and the WSJ are owned by Murdoch, but they present both sides and leave it up to me to dig further for facts on issues worth the effort, and that effort has given me some indication how honest each host and regular pundit may or may not be. |
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mac
Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17751
Location: Berkeley, California
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| Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 4:34 pm Post subject: |
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$1200 for John Doe, whatever pig oil wants:
| Quote: | President Donald Trump proposed offering financial assistance to the oil and gas industry after U.S. oil prices saw a historic drop yesterday. Via Twitter, the president said he has instructed the secretaries of Energy and the Treasury to "formulate a plan which will make funds available so that these very important companies and jobs will be secured long into the future," though he did not provide further details. (The Hill)
Indiana-based coal firm Hallador Energy Co. received a $10 million loan from the federal Paycheck Protection Program, intended to rescue small businesses with fewer than 500 employees floundering in light of the coronavirus pandemic, despite the fact that its March 9 Securities and Exchange Commission filing shows it employs 768 employees. Hallador - which has lobbying ties to former Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt - said it got the low-interest loan from the program under Small Business Administration guidelines that allow some bituminous coal companies with up to 1,500 employees to qualify. (The Washington Post)
Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette said that several coronavirus stimulus aid options are being considered to help the oil industry, including a lending program for businesses. Brouillette said he is collaborating with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to ensure the industry can access programs such as the Main Street lending program and the Federal Reserve facility. (Bloomberg Environment) |
Anyone with a brain would know that sending money to coal is like burning it. |
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vientomas
Joined: 25 Apr 2000
Posts: 2343
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| Posted: Wed Apr 22, 2020 6:16 pm Post subject: |
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I ain't no econ-o-myst, but...why not give money to the consumer to buy stuff instead of giving money to corporations to line their pockets? To keep the stock market going? Does the average person have an interest in the stock market?
"To be precise, a narrow majority of Americans does own stocks, according to credible recent studies. But Khanna has a point that Americans of modest incomes are significantly less invested in the stock market than wealthier Americans are. Other large groups, including minorities and those without a college education, also lag in stock ownership, meaning that the stock rally is largely passing them by."
https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2018/sep/18/ro-khanna/what-percentage-americans-own-stocks/
The rich getting richer, off the American taxpayer. The American way... |
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mac
Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17751
Location: Berkeley, California
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| Posted: Thu Apr 30, 2020 3:09 pm Post subject: |
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Pro Publica is hardly a balanced source. But still...
| Quote: | Last month’s $2 trillion bailout bill barred President Donald Trump, his family or other officials from benefiting from one of the law’s giant loan programs. But as reporters noticed, there was no such language included for other elements of the bailout. Some provisions of the bailout are particularly beneficial to businesses like Trump’s.
There is no evidence that any provisions in the bailout were written specifically to benefit the president. It’s also not known whether the Trumps will seek such aid. We asked the Trump Organization and White House about whether the company plans to apply for bailout loans. They did not respond.
The president has said it’s not clear to him even how his company could benefit.
“I mean, I just don’t know what the government assistance would be for what I have,” he said in a recent White House briefing.
We had the same question: What are the ways the Trump Organization could benefit from the bailout?
So we’ve dug into it.
First, at least four of Trump’s hotels each seem to qualify for a separate, forgivable loan…
The bailout has a huge loan program to help many businesses with payroll and other costs. While it’s only open to smaller companies, there’s a carveout for hotels: As The New York Times reported, the law says individual hotels can each qualify for separate loans, even if they’re all owned by a single company, so long as the hotel itself has 500 or fewer employees.
The provision was pushed by a hotel industry group, which argued it was needed for 33,000 hotels to qualify for the bailout. The group, of which some Trump hotels are members, organized a meeting between hotel CEOs and Vice President Mike Pence in mid-March to discuss the industry’s struggles and ask for help.
Each small business — and each hotel — can qualify for up to $10 million in loans, depending on payroll costs. The loans can then be forgiven if the money is used to cover payrolls and other ongoing expenses.
Four Trump hotels appear to qualify: two that Trump owns and two that his company manages.
Representatives at the four hotels did not respond to our questions about staff size or whether they plan to apply for loans through the small business loan program. The four hotels are:
The Trump International Hotel — Washington, D.C.
The general manager of the hotel, which the president owns, said in a 2018 interview about 450 people work there. (The interview was first flagged by the 1100 Pennsylvania newsletter.) The hotel’s company page on LinkedIn also lists the staff size as between 201 and 500.
Companies getting the loans must make a “good faith certification” that they need the funds to continue operating. Occupancy rates at Trump’s D.C. hotel dropped to as low as 5% at the end of March. Trump borrowed $170 million from Deutsche Bank to finance the hotel’s renovation, one of several loans with the bank he personally guaranteed.
Albemarle Estate at Trump Winery — Charlottesville, Virginia
Trump once boasted that his Charlottesville winery was the largest on the East Coast. It’s not. The property also includes a 10-room hotel that the general manager describes as having under 100 employees.
The Trump International Hotel and Tower — New York
The Trump Organization manages this hotel. Industry groups are still seeking clarification on who the eligible borrower is when a hotel is owned and managed by separate companies, a common business structure in the hotel industry. We talked to industry experts who said their understanding is hotel management companies can apply for the small business loans if they’re the ones who employ the staff.
Trump’s New York hotel reports a staff size between 201 and 500 on its LinkedIn company page. |
Now Fox and the stooges have bashed Democrats for trying to get the various bills to be less oriented to the biggest businesses. And it is not surprising to see real estate and hospitality industry benefits tucked into such a large bill.
But...
One of the legitimate criticisms of the bank melt-down in 2008 was that some banks deserved to fail, and bankruptcy and bargain sales are a good way to deal with their lack of competitive moxie in the market. I agree with that--up to the point where the cure takes down the whole economy, which is where we were in 2008 and again here...now here's the but.
I would think that the hospitality and retail industries are in for a very long slog before business is ever back to anything near what it was in 2019. Zoom will reduce business travel, and older folks most at risk from traveling were much of the clientele of tourism. Neither the businesses nor their landlords can last through a year or 18 months of dramatically less business. So my question is, how do we make sure that government bailouts don't simply extend the life of businesses that will not be competitive for the next 2 years? If we have over-invested in hotels--with loans and tax benefits--shouldn't we now look for ways to turn those buildings into housing? Shouldn't governments or non-profits acquire some of those properties and turn them into single-room occupancy units? After all, it was tax policies that helped turn SRO's into condos and Air B and B units. |
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mac
Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17751
Location: Berkeley, California
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| Posted: Fri May 01, 2020 11:04 am Post subject: |
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If you needed any more information that the Republican party is now a fully owned subsidiary of cook the earth energy companies, this should do it. Both from Morning Consult:
| Quote: | After oil and gas industry allies lobbied the Trump administration, the Federal Reserve overhauled its Main Street Lending Program, allowing larger and more heavily indebted companies to qualify and use the money to pay off prior loans. The relaxation of regulations will open the door for a number of oil and gas companies struggling to survive an oil price rout and collapse in demand, and "help them bridge the gap" said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.). (Bloomberg)
As lawmakers work to negotiate more coronavirus relief funds, the Department of Energy has yet to disburse $43 billion in low-interest loans authorized by Congress for clean energy projects, which could include renewable power, nuclear energy and carbon capture and storage technology. Sen. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.) said the DOE has not put almost any of these loans - which had some pre-pandemic bipartisan support - to use since President Donald Trump's inauguration, noting that "the president is not someone who seeks to promote the clean energy sector." (The New York Times) |
And then there are the bad loans to carbon-based energy companies:
| Quote: | | Wells Fargo & Co. has brought back its special group for bad energy loans within its credit-resolution group, people familiar with the matter said, pairing the team with bankruptcy specialists who have been reassigned to focus on energy amid an anticipated wave of oil and gas industry restructurings. One person familiar with the matter described the situation with Wells Fargo's oil and gas portfolio as "a blood bath." (Reuters) |
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mac
Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17751
Location: Berkeley, California
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| Posted: Sun May 03, 2020 1:09 pm Post subject: |
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Trillions for banks, pennies for those thrown out of work:
| Quote: | | After oil and gas industry allies lobbied the Trump administration, the Federal Reserve overhauled its Main Street Lending Program, allowing larger and more heavily indebted companies to qualify and use the money to pay off prior loans. The relaxation of regulations will open the door for a number of oil and gas companies struggling to survive an oil price rout and collapse in demand, and "help them bridge the gap," Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) said. |
PT Barnum convinced angry working American's that the Republican party would take care of them. He sold air conditioners in Alaska too. |
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mac
Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17751
Location: Berkeley, California
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| Posted: Tue May 05, 2020 12:10 pm Post subject: |
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McConnell made this possible:
| Quote: | By
Peter Whoriskey
May 5, 2020 at 7:51 a.m. PDT
Since the coronavirus pandemic was declared, Caterpillar has suspended operations at two plants and a foundry, Levi Strauss has closed stores, and toolmaker Stanley Black & Decker is planning layoffs and furloughs.
Steelcase, an office furniture manufacturer, and World Wrestling Entertainment have also shed employees.
While thousands of their workers are filing for unemployment benefits, these companies rewarded their shareholders with more than $700 million in cash dividends. They are not alone. As the pandemic squeezes big companies, executives are making decisions about who will bear the brunt of the sacrifices, and in at least some cases, workers have been the first to lose, even as shareholders continue to collect.
Executives say the layoffs support the long-term health of their companies, and often the executives are giving up a piece of their salaries. Furloughed workers can apply for unemployment benefits. But distributing millions of dollars to shareholders while leaving many workers without a paycheck is unfair, critics argue, and belies the repeated statements from executives about their concern for employees’ welfare during the coronavirus crisis. |
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