Why is the Obama administration refusing to accept repayment of TARP loans? (chad)

Stuart Varney has the answer:

My answer: The government wants to control the banks, just as it now controls GM and Chrysler, and will surely control the health industry in the not-too-distant future. Keeping them TARP-stuffed is the key to control. And for this intensely political president, mere influence is not enough. The White House wants to tell 'em what to do. Control. Direct. Command.

It is not for nothing that rage has been turned on those wicked financiers. The banks are at the core of the administration's thrust: By managing the money, government can steer the whole economy even more firmly down the left fork in the road.

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Think about it: If Rick Wagoner can be fired and compact cars can be mandated, why can't a bank with a vault full of TARP money be told where to lend? And since politics drives this administration, why can't special loans and terms be offered to favored constituents, favored industries, or even favored regions? Our prosperity has never been based on the political allocation of credit -- until now.

source

I said during the campaign that Obama was at best a socialist and at worst a Marxist. It looks like it is the scale is rapidly weighing towards the worst.

Oh I'm sure that he will never outright seize control of the banking system or any industry but there will be central planning committees and five year plans and commissars in the work place, disguised as compliance officers of course. It isn't that far a jump from what Obama pulled with Rick Wagoner to making a subtle threat to the workforce as a whole. "want a good job?", they will ask, then toe the line and vote Obama.

I'm not sure I can adopt the blank stare of Obama worship. I guess I better get used to beans and rice and a cardboard box as a house.

Update:andros asserted in the comments section that repayments are being accepted. It turns out that (at least according to the NY Times) he is correct.

Four small banks became the first to return millions of dollars of emergency aid, and more may soon follow as the industry tries to escape what it considers the onerous conditions attached to the government’s money.

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Originally, banks that accepted TARP money were required to raise private capital before they could repay the loan. But after Congress passed its economic stimulus bill in mid-February, the repayment policy was loosened as strict new compensation rules were put in place.

Banks could apply to their primary regulators for permission to return the TARP money to the Treasury Department early. The returned money could be used for other Treasury programs.

The article goes on to say that there are no rules in place for determining whether or not a bank will be allowed to repay quickly or whether larger banks will be allowed to.

So in other words you have to ask the government for permission to pay the money back and it's a whimsical decision on their part whether or not to allow you to.

posted by xgenghisx at 10:44 PM

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