Wall Street Folly

• Fannie Arrives at a Deal to Sell $2.6 Billion in Unused Tax Credits
• Citigroup Plans IPO For Primerica Life-Insurance Unit
• Uproar as Firms Get Swine-Flu Vaccine
• AIG Posts Net Income of $455 Million, Second Straight Profit
• Fannie’s Draws From Emergency Treasury Fund Reach $60 Billion Share Business Exchange
• Buffett’s ‘Wake-Up Call’ to Managers May Signal More Cost Cuts
• BofA’s Moynihan Said to Testify as House Sorts Merrill E-Mails
• BNY Mellon’s Kelly Says He Doesn’t Want Bank of America Post
• U.S. Property Investors Deem 2010 Worst Time to Sell Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: AIG, Bank of America, Citigroup, Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Real Estate, Warren Buffett

If you want to piss of Fiat boss and the new head of Chrysler, Sergio Marchionne, put together a really long PowerPoint presentation, or give long winded problem explanations. According to an ex-Fiat Automotive News source: Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Autos, Chrysler, Sergio Marchionne

• Banks Fleeing TARP Face $5 Billion Warrant Repayment
• Marchionne Has Dual Task of Reviving Chrysler, Keeping Fiat Fit
• Fed Says Downturn May Be Moderating Amid Weakness
• Overseer to Set Executive Pay at Rescued Companies Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Chrysler, Compensation, Czars, Fed, Fiat, TARP

It’s over.  No love from the Supreme Court for the Indiana state pension funds that tried to block the Chrysler asset sale to Fiat.   We still believe that the secured creditors were completely robbed.

Late Tuesday, the Supreme Court turned down the opponents’ last-ditch bid. The court issued a brief, unsigned opinion explaining its action. To obtain a delay, or stay, someone must show that at least four of the nine justices find that the issue raised is serious enough to warrant hearing a full appeal and that a majority of the court will conclude the lower court decision was wrong.

“The applicants have not carried that burden,” the court said.

Supreme Court to let Chrysler sale go forward – AP

Tags: Autos, Bankruptcy, Barack Obama, Chrysler, creditors' rights, highway robbery, Politics, SCOTUS

• Bank of America Says Ward, Mitchell Resign From Board
• Fiat Will ‘Never’ Walk Away From Chrysler, CEO Says
• GM Credit Swaps Traders Said to Accelerate Auction
• BlackRock Said to Offer Cash, Stock for Barclays Unit
• Credit-Card Delinquencies Increase
• U.S. Said to Plan Approving 10 Banks to Repay TARP
• Pimco Says ‘Rate Hikes Will Be Some Time in Coming’
• Globe’s largest union rejects cuts
• McDonald’s Falls After May U.S. Sales Trail Estimates
• WL Homes Bankruptcy Case Converted to Liquidation Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Headline Roundup

Not so fast: A small window of hope has opened that long held legal rules may still actually mean something.  The Supreme Court has stayed, at least temporarily, the sale of Chrysler assets to Fiat.  No time frame was noted in Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s order.

Tags: Autos, Bankruptcy, Barack Obama, Chrysler, creditors' rights, Politics, Supreme court

• High Court Asked to Delay Fiat Deal
• Palm Pre Sells Out as Sprint Customers Line Up for Thin Stock
• Gas prices above $2.60
• Ford to Face Tougher Rivals Following U.S. Rescue
• Chrysler dealers scramble to unload vehicles
• Chrysler Legal Releases for Officers Opposed By U.S.
• Bank of America Stocks Board With Ex-Regulators, Former Bankers
• Penske ‘a Good Home’ for Saturn as GM Shrinks in Bankruptcy
• Filene’s Basement Sold to Men’s Wearhouse Affiliate for $62 Mln
• Weinstein Company Takes Step to Ease Debt Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Apple, Autos, Bank of America, Chrysler, Ford, GM, Headline Roundup, iPhone, SCOTUS

The stay has been extended to June 8 (Monday) to allow what sounds like a likely appeal to the Supreme Court.

Tags: Asset Sale, Autos, Bankruptcy, Barack Obama, Chrysler, creditors' rights, Fiat, Legal, Politics, Supreme court, UAW

Last night super lawyer David Boies talked to Charlie Rose.  While he came on the show to discuss Proposition 8, at around the 12:46 mark the discussion veered to economics where he had some interesting remarks.  They talked about AIG, which he thinks is just going to “dribble away” with not enough money for even the government to get fully repaid.  And of the Chrysler secured lenders, he thinks they’re getting screwed.

Tags: AIG, Charlie Rose, Chrysler, David Boies, GM, Legal

Future scape goat?: The New York Times focused on Brian Deese, a 31 year old who interrupted his Yale law school studies to work for Obama and who ultimately found himself on his auto task force.  They say he’s “emerged as one of the most influential voices” behind Obama’s restructuring game plan.  With a build up like that, we know who they’re gonna be point the finger at if it fails…..

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: auto task force, Autos, Bankruptcy, Barack Obama, Chrysler, creditors' rights, GM, Politics

• The Obama Motor Co.
• ‘New GM’ Products Face Triple Market Challenge
• What’s GM worth?
• GM Filing Pits UAW Against Investors
• GM’s Bankruptcy Plan Wins Support From Majority of Bondholders
• Germany Picks Magna to Buy Opel; 11,000 Jobs May Go
• Auto Suppliers Brace for Blow of GM Bankruptcy
• Chrysler Judge Plans to Rule June 1 on Asset Sale to Fiat Group
• Opponents of Chrysler Sale Fight to the End in Court

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Autos, Bankruptcy, Barack Obama, Chrysler, Economy, GM, Politics

Tags: Autos, Bankruptcy, Chrysler, Distressed, GM, Jon Stewart, Videos

Obama's money pit:  We kind of thought that the point of lending bailout money was to get a return on it, or at the very least to get all or most of it back. But those deep thinking gurus in D.C., in charge of doling out our taxpayer funds to temporarily prop up ailing companies don't seem to be doing so well on our behalf.  Turns out that the funds that were lent to Chrysler just months ago, not to mention what we've just lent them days ago to see them through their bankruptcy, won't be paid back. Gone. *Poof*  All that we'll have to show for it is a not even 10% Chrysler equity stake, of questionable value, if the firm somehow manages to survive.  And that's a big IF.

So all in all, along with the nonTARP senior lenders, we the taxpayers are getting screwed royally in the deal. And we didn't even have the chance to file an objection with the bankruptcy judge.  So who reaps the benefit? Obama and his cozy relationship with the UAW that we've all now apparently subsidized. If we really wanted to lose money that badly, we could have put it with Bernie Madoff.

And Joe Biden tells us that paying taxes is patriotic? *COUGH*

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More talk about the heavy handedness of the Obama regime, as well as how the "propaganda" has led to death threats to members of the Non-Tarp Lenders…..

Here are some excerpts as well as the full filing:

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Excellent reads: Here are the bankruptcy court filings made yesterday and this morning by the Chrysler NonTARP Lenders objecting to the flawed and unfair plan that tramples all over creditors' rights. 

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Tags: Autos, Bankruptcy, Barack Obama, Chrysler, Politics

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Per Bloomberg:

The nerve of those nasty hedge funds that hold first lien secured Chrysler paper who won't roll over and accede to the will of the Obama administration.  Because they wouldn't roll over and allow themselves to be totally screwed in favor of more junior creditors (like the UAW to which Obama is politically beholding), they're being painted as the sole reason for the failure to cobble together an out of bankruptcy restructuring.  We cry bullshit on the Obama administration (as well as their continual deluded statements that any bankruptcy will be "quick" or "surgical" or "quick rinse". Good luck with that).  Following is a statement from an unnamed Obama administration official cited by the Wall Street Journal, and below that is the response of the hedge funds (aka, the Non-Tarp Lenders).

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