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Originally Posted by RollingStone
Could it be that "wallstreet" decided it wanted Obama to be president and timed the crises to cause that effect? Who received the benefits of TARP? Who got the benefits from TARP?
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Interesting questions. What I remember about 2008 is that the "tired of Bush" mantra was strong, and McCain didn't seem "maverick" enough to bull out of the Beltway gravitational field, and his VP pick was a loose cannon, so Obama had the inside track, financial meltdown or not.
Then.... by some strange coincidence, the Wall Streeters went to Washington and said they were broke and needed a quick $750 billion dollar bailout to cover some bad bets. So I remember George W standing there and saying how we needed to come up with the money quick for his ex-moneyed friends to keep their shirts on.
It looked to me at the time like the Bankers knew the 8 year run was almost over; a new sheriff was coming to town, and they wanted a nice, 3/4 trillion dollar going-away present to tide them over until the cash spigots could open up again. Like a drunk staggering out of a weekend bender and wishing for a quart of Johnnie Walker Red to nurse him through the hangover.
That was my view at the time. With 3 years of perspective, and Obama's "Change" now looking like "More of Same", I realize that probably the Wall Streeters would have fleeced us anyway (they kept their fat profits, and we covered their losses) regardless of whose name was on the mailbox at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.