John Stossel’s article Government Sets Us Up for the Next Bust outlines how the inflationary policies of the Treasury and Federal Reserve are interfering with the proper functioning of a free market economy. The government bailouts are impediments to recovery, because they enable failing financial companies to prolong their failures, rather than restructure into stronger entities.

The government aided by the media is using scare tactics to cheer on further intervention. Comparisons of the current recession to the Great Depression run amok. Even Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke has felt the need to issue denials. Steve H. Hanke of the Cato Institute debunks the notion that government intervention aids in recovery.

the New Deal held down the spontaneous recovery and contributed to the 1938-1939 slump. Indeed, Higgs’ evidence demonstrates that investment was depressed by New Deal initiatives because of regime uncertainty—”a pervasive uncertainty among investors about the security of their property rights in their capital and prospective returns.”

The more the government interferes with the free market, the greater the negative impact will be to economic recovery, because of the damage it does to confidence in property rights. Consequently, the economy is worse off than if it was left to recover on its own, if private investment were allowed to direct the market.

Tags: financial crisis

Tags: financial crisis

Henry Paulson and Ben Bernanke are defending their administration of the bailout, despite mounting criticism.

The question is, who is this bailout working for? Ask yourself: has the bailout, which you are paying for, been working for you?

Tags: financial crisis

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is abandoning his plan for using the $700 billion bailout fund to buy up bad mortgage debt. The entire justification for authorizing the bailout is being replaced at Paulson’s whim. The nation has once again been duped.

Updated 11/13/2008: Three GOP Senators have sent Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson a “joint letter of concern”. The senators are Tom Coburn, Richard Burr, and David Vitter.

Updated 11/14/2008: Michelle Malkin writes Hank Paulson, naked emperor, a scathing roast.

Tags: financial crisis

Bloomberg reports that Barney Frank is proposing that GM, Ford, and Chrysler receive $25 billion in loans. Further legislation would be needed to authorize additional funds from the $700 billion financial bailout to also be used for this purpose.

Fortunately, the top Republican on the Banking Committee, Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama, opposes aid to automakers. Thank goodness.

There is fear that a collapse of the US automobile industry would put 2.5 million jobs at risk. The truth is, US automobile companies are ill. Unions have negotiated collective bargaining that saddle each vehicle with approximately $1500 in health care costs alone, never mind the cost of sweet pension plans and other benefits. Comparatively, a Japanese vehicle is saddled with only about $150 in health care costs. Having the government intervene to prop up this uncompetitive house of cards is only prolonging the industry’s drunken voyage into oblivion, and impeding the necessary restructuring of the industry and work force. All at taxpayer expense to add insult to injury.

Updated: this Cato Institute article “There’s Nothing Wrong with a Big Two” agrees.

Updated 11/13/2008: this Cato Institute article “Say No to the Auto Bailout” also agrees.

Updated 11/18/2008: CEOs of GM, Ford, and Chrysler gave testimony to the U.S. Senate Banking Committee in support of a bailout. They warn that without an bailout of the automakers, the U.S. economy risks “catastrophic collapse”. The automakers want loans that will fund retooling to produce more energy efficient vehicles. In other words, the “big three” stooges want taxpayer dollars to finance their uncompetitive and inefficient companies, so that they can exploit this unfair advantage over other healthy automakers (Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Hyundai, Kia, etc.), who employ American workers to build vehicles in American factories in a much more efficient manner.

Even after retooling, we should realize that GM, Ford, and Chrysler are saddled by inefficiencies (e.g., health care costs, labor costs) that would continue to make these companies fatally uncompetitive, no matter how their products can be improved. This is an even more important reason why a bailout must be avoided. Without bankruptcy protection to enable these companies to reorganize and shed these inefficiencies, the necessary changes cannot take place to bring about financial health to these companies. Otherwise, taxpayers will be on the hook to redistribute their wealth for years to come to overpay the employees of these automakers, while hurting the healthy automakers by making their salaries and benefits less competitive. Where is the equal protection under the law that the US Constitution guarantees to every American?

Tags: financial crisis