[lbo-talk] House rejects bailout

[Tim Francis-Wright]

Doug Henwood wrote:
> On Sep 29, 2008, at 10:52 PM, Gar Lipow wrote:
>
>> Even in the short run there are more progressive ways to deal with
>> this than just modifying Paulson's crap.   FDIC expansion,
>> Nationalizing the Federal Reserve and turning it into a Bank of the
>> United States that grants the kind of credit we need.
>
> You're kidding, right? With this Congress? Or even the next one?

Why is this so far-fetched?  We have already seen this week one
data point that suggests that nationalization, or at least partial
nationalization, may be acceptable.  The orchestrated takeover
of Wachovia's banking operations by Citigroup includes issuance
of preferred shares and warrants to the FDIC.  If that is good
enough for Wachovia, why cannot Congress demand similar treatment
in situations that the bailout would be addressing?

--tim francis-wright