Hill sources: Treasury won't use full bailout

[sabra]

Source: AP

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Bush administration has told top lawmakers it does not plan to use at least half of the $700 billion bailout fund that Congress approved this fall to aid the financial industry, congressional officials said Monday.

These officials said Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson passed the word over the weekend that he intends to leave $350 billion untouched when the administration leaves office on Jan. 20. That would mean the incoming Obama administration would decide whether and how the funds should be spent.

The disclosure comes at a time when Democrats are working to pass emergency legislation to spend $25 billion of the bailout money to provide loans to the battered auto industry.

These officials spoke on condition of anonymity, saying they were not authorized to disclose the developments.

Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gJcsQ0auJmcBMDWDOMuck02XFWDgD94GRDR00

[HereSince1628]

1. Very hard to imagine. Is Paulson expecting a currency collapse?

The only way a greedy assed capitalist would walk away from such a pile of money is if the money is literally worthless.

[On the Road]

20. Perhaps It Suggests That

"greedy assed capitalist" is not the best description for him.

[closeupready]

2. I do not believe this for a second.

n/t

[Gman2]

3. Those fucking criminals.

They used the door in the face sales technique. Then, they hear rumblings about Dems getting the ball rolling with injections, and they all the sudden claim that they meant it all along. Bullfuck. It is to head off any dem immediate acts to bolster the little guy. At least till they can screw us further, to claim there is no money that wasnt strangled in Grover Norquists bathtub.

[Gman2]

4. Those fucks also see clear as a bell that it aint working.

They tie dems more fully to the hated bailout. Especially now that Paulson sees that there is gonna be no payback. They allow the pugs to more fully boo and hiss at us. Come fully seated Obama. They are going to wash their hands of all the mess. And blame that most hated liberal, George Bush. They will continue to blame it all on the poor and minorities, ignoring entirely, the sidebets that dwarf the mortgages 100 to 1. Treacherous and unamerican. That is how I would describe republicans. They are innoculating Bu$h from the socialist meme.


And anyone that has a brain can prove they are lying. If you are trying to stabilize the markets, you dont do the dollar trick, with string attached. If they were told that there is 700 bill, there better be 700 bill. Hey, ya fucked up, ya trusted us.

[watrwefitinfor]

5. Excuse me, but

doesn't Congress have to approve the second half of the bailout funds before they're released to Paulson?

I smell some deal making going on. Maybe. Then, maybe all you guys are right and I just heard it wrong.

Wat

[Igel]

7. Yes.

They'd have to vote to commit the funds.

It's hard to know if he's just given the dems a gift, a slap in the face, or whether he's holding it off so that it can be used in ways that he--or dems--would prefer. Or something entirely different.

[OwnedByFerrets]

6. IE:Even they dont know how to blow that much money in such

a short time.

[Miss Chybil]

8. But they needed it so quickly or the US was going to implode.

Kind of reminds me of WMD in Iraq.

[Pale Blue Dot]

9. Bush may let Obama decide part of bailout (Administration may leave half of $700 billion untouched)

Source: MSNBC

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration has told top lawmakers it does not plan to use at least half of the $700 billion bailout fund that Congress approved this fall to aid the financial industry, congressional officials said Monday.

These officials said Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson passed the word over the weekend that he intends to leave $350 billion untouched when the administration leaves office on Jan. 20. That would mean the incoming Obama administration would decide whether and how the funds should be spent.

The disclosure comes at a time when Democrats are working to pass emergency legislation to spend $25 billion of the bailout money to provide loans to the battered auto industry.

These officials spoke on condition of anonymity, saying they were not authorized to disclose the developments.

White House spokesman Tony Fratto neither confirmed nor disputed their account, adding that any decision about the use of the remaining $350 billion was up to Paulson.

Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27770950/

---

Here you go President Obama! The mess is all yours!

And pardon me for being cynical, but I think this is only the latest sign that Bush, Pulson, et al, know that this bailout won't work no matter what they do. If they leave the rest of the spending up to Obama, they will then try to blame its failure on him.

[onehandle]

10. So that Obama shares the blame when it fails!!?

Noooooooooooo!

whatever.

[ixion]

11. Remember how it HAD to be $700 billion and it HAD to be RIGHT NOW

and anything short of that would be a total meltdown? I distinctly recall that.

Seems it wasn't so critical after all -- the reason the gave. Seems like they just wanted a big ass pool of borrowed cash to be able to wallow in.

And so now, cash flowing from their pieholes like water, they're feeling drunk -- magnanimous, in a twisted sort of way -- how very...lame.

[bluestateguy]

12. So then he can give the auto industry their money without Congress' permission?

GM would just have to hold out until 1/20/09.

[peace13]

13. Bush and Paulson to Obama...

We'll only spend half of the pretend money, you can have the rest.

[Frustratedlady]

14. What did they do, cut back on the bonuses?

There had better be some accounting on that money and it better be made public. Their only concern is that we will see how much they each got in bonuses and/or used to cover up their crimes.

[BrklynLiberal]

15. We all know they are not doing this out of the goodness of their so-called hearts.

[w4rma]

18. Bush didn't want to go back to Congress and justify asking for the rest of it.

He's trying to sneak off under the radar with what he's got.

[stray cat]

16. Congress has to approve releasing the other half - not Bush's call

[VWolf]

17. Yeah, the part that requires intelligence n/t

[benld74]

19. There he is in front of the world washing the blood from his hands

[whosinpower]

21. When someone else takes over - then we shall see

Paulson has precident setting style that suggests all the money is already gone...or is that Bernanke?