Fannie Mae has again asked taxpayers for more money -- this time $8.4 billion -- after reporting another steep loss for the first quarter. The taxpayer bill for rescuing Fannie and its sibling Freddie Mac has grown to $145 billion -- and the final tally could be much higher.
The sad thing is that sober commentators (like your humble blogger) know how the euro rescue story will end. Our ruling elite ought to know, but either really doesn't know or pretends not to know just to fleece the taxpayers who are now on the hook to support the "sick men" of Europe. I strongly suspect that the Eurolords and their friends on this side of the Atlantic really are setting up the middle classes for one final push over the cliff, with a firm plan to grab one final payout before it all comes down:
America's top CEOs are set for a once-in-a-lifetime pay bonanza.
Most of them got their annual stock compensation early last year when the stock market was at a 12-year low. And companies doled out more stock and options than usual because grants from the previous year had fallen so much in value that many people thought they'd never be worth anything.
But stock prices have generally surged ever since. Even with last week's sharp declines, CEOs still have enormous gains on paper.
Do you really need to read any more? This euro bailout was designed to ramp up the markets just so insiders can cash out one more time. These bailouts are nothing but handouts, gifts to corporate masters who relish the thought of lording over the grubby peons farther down the ladder. I only regret that I couldn't grab my share this time around. Big deal. There will be plenty of money to be made on the downside as 2010 gives way to a replay of 2008.
