“The Obama administration said Wednesday it will sell 200 million shares— or 40 percent of its remaining stake in General Motors Co. — back to the automaker and announced plans to completely exit the Detroit automaker by March 2014.
The Detroit automaker said it will purchase 200 million shares of GM stock held by Treasury for $5.5 billion — or $27.50 per share — nearly $2 above the stock’s closing price on Tuesday. GM shares jumped sharply on the news and were up 7.5 percent to $27.36, or $1.90, early afternoon in very heavy trading.”
Well that doesn’t sound bad. But wait, what do those numbers really mean to taxpayers?
“A few days after divesting its stake in the firm that started it all, AIG, and at a profit at that (ignoring that the risk has merely been onboarded by the Fed whose DV01 is now $2+ billion as a result), the US Treasury continues to divest of all its bailout stake, this time proceeding to GM, where the channel stuffing firm just announced it would buyback 200MM shares from the US government at a price of $27.50. More importantly, the “Treasury said it intends to sell its other remaining 300.1 million shares through various means in an orderly fashion
within the next 12-15 months, subject to market conditions. Treasury intends to begin its disposition of those 300.1 million common shares as soon as January 2013 pursuant to a pre-arranged written trading plan. The manner, amount, and timing of the sales under the plan are dependent upon a number of factors.” Assuming a price in the $27.50 range, this implies a nearly 50% loss on the government’s breakeven price of $54. So much for the “profit” spin. One hopes all those Union votes were well worth the now booked $40+
billion cost to all taxpayers.”
“Prominent conservative leaders, including former attorney general Edwin Meese III, Ken Blackwell of the Conservative Action Project, Brent Bozell of ForAmerica, Colin Hanna of Let Freedom Ring, Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, David Bossie of Citizens United, Gary Bauer of American Values, Jim Backlin of the Christian Coalition of America, Richard Viguerie of ConservativeHQ.com, Al Regnery of the Paul Revere Project, and Andy Roth of the Club for Growth, among a myriad of others, scheduled a press conference this afternoon to denounce Speaker John Boehner’s “Plan B” tax increase for addressing the fiscal cliff. Some are accusing Grover Norquist of giving cover to the establishment to facilitate this cave-in and hand President Barack Obama a liberal victory.
The group released a statement this afternoon:
As leaders of broad based American citizen groups we call upon Republican House Members to vote no on Speaker Boehner’s Tax Hike known as “Plan B.” This tax increase bill is just like the tax increase proposal Nancy Pelosi offered last year on May 23rd. Speaker Boehner, President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and too many Members of the Republican conference have forgotten that the problem in Washington is too much spending and not too little taxation. When the American people voted to return the Republican majority in the House last month we sent you to cut spending. Instead, you are now voting on the Pelosi plan to increase taxes next year. We urge Members of the House to vote no on the procedural rule to stop the Pelosi/Boehner tax plan from coming to the House floor for a vote.
Boehner’s plan would concede that marginal tax rates need to go up on those earning more than $1 million per year. The biggest job-creators in our economy would get hit with a crushing tax burden in a weak economy.”
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Well you’ve all seen the Benghaziwhitewash report by now. Apparently, the buck now stops at middle management, and not anyone important.
“Four State Department officials resigned under pressure Wednesday, less than a day after a damning report blamed management failures for a lack of security at the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, where militants killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans on Sept. 11.”
“Obama administration officials said those who had stepped down included Eric Boswell, the assistant secretary of state for diplomatic security; Charlene Lamb, the deputy assistant secretary responsible for embassy security; and Raymond Maxwell, the deputy assistant secretary of state who oversees the Maghreb nations of Libya, Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss personnel matters publicly.”
Above their pay grade I guess.
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This next one is not surprising. What is surprising is just how far off most Democrats, and the media, are with what the people think, and want to see come from this tragedy. Here’s a hint, it’s not gun control.
“The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 48% of Americans believe more action to treat mental health issues will do the most to prevent incidents like last Friday’s school shootings in Newtown, Connecticut. Twenty-seven percent (27%) think stricter gun control laws will do the most to prevent such shootings, while 15% put the emphasis on limits on violent movies and video games. Ten percent (10%) are undecided.”
“Americans are most likely to say that an increased police presence at schools, increased government spending on mental health screening and treatment, and decreased depiction of gun violence in entertainment venues would be effective in preventing mass shootings at schools. Americans rate the potential effectiveness of a ban on assault and semi-automatic guns as fourth on a list of six actions Gallup asked about.”
“Democrats substantially more likely to see assault gun ban as effective.”
My internet has been questionable for the last 12 hours.
Still haven’t figured it out, it’s possibly due to high winds last night.
😦
So what’s up with you?
Quote of the Day
“‘The Christmas Song,’ by Nat King Cole, is not only a masterful performance; to me it just sounds like the holidays. I’ve never sung it, because Nat’s version is so perfect. I gotta leave it alone.”
There’s plenty to talk about today. Some of it is just disturbing.
CONTENT WARNING!!!
It’s disturbing to say the least. I guess I’m old-fashioned, but I wasn’t aware that this was so prevalent amongst teens, well Swedish teens at least. I’d heard of it sure, but the number of kids involved, and their ages is just heart-breaking. These are children!
“Swedish high school students outraged over sexual rumours circulating on Instagram about girls and boys in the Gothenburg area barricaded a school in protest and turned violent when police intervened.“
“The turmoil was set off after an Instagram user asked for tips on “censored” in Gothenburg, and promised anonymity to anyone sending in pictures. More than 200 pictures were submitted, giving names and alleged sexual activities of girls and boys aged 13 to 14.”
“Once the Instagram account was shut down, the allegations then appeared on a Facebook page. Users began naming each other and the comments field was quickly filled with threats of violence.”
“As an independent review into the BBC’s handling of the Jimmy Savile child sex scandal prepares to release its findings, a British lawmaker says he has yet to get satisfactory answers from New York Times Company CEO Mark Thompson about what he knew of the abuse allegations before he left his BBC director-general post in September.
Not only has Thompson not replied to three letters sent since late October, Conservative MP Rob Wilson told CNSNews.com Monday, but the New York Times editorial page editor also declined to publish a letter submitted this month – on grounds Wilson found puzzling.
Wilson voiced concerns “about whether the CEO of the New York Times Company has lived up to the ethical code expected of the company’s journalists.””
“The federal government’s system of tracking immigration status is so broken that it gives a green light to one in eight aliens who have been ordered deported, according to an audit Tuesday that found the government has gone on to approve some of those who slip through for work in sensitive areas of airports and granted them benefits such as Medicaid or food stamps.
Some of those aliens who should have been kicked out had serious criminal records, including assault and extortion convictions, according to the audit by the Homeland Security Department’s inspector general.
All told, some 800,000 immigrants are living in the U.S. who already have been ordered deported but have not yet left the country or been removed by the government.”
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And for the last one….. let’s just stick with things they can’t do right.
“Another weapon from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agency’s controversial Operation Fast and Furious was recently recovered at a Mexican crime scene, CBS News has learned. Congressional investigators say the crime scene was likely where a recent shootout took place between reported Sinaloa drug cartel members and the Mexican military, in which Sinaloa beauty queen Maria Susana Flores Gamez and four others were killed.
According to Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, the Justice Department did not notify Congress of the Fast and Furious firearm recovery in November, even though Grassley has requested an accounting of weapons that surface from the case. During Fast and Furious, ATF allowed more than 2,000 weapons, including giant .50-caliber guns, to fall into the hands of Mexican drug cartels and other criminals. Other so-called “gunwalking” operations by ATF let hundreds more guns hit the street. Most of them have never been recovered.”
I doubt they’ll mention this while screaming for more gun control. You know, bad optics and all.
“Sources tell ABC News that the Inspector General for the Department of Defense has been preparing a report in which Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence Michael Vickers is criticized for giving sensitive information to the filmmakers behind “Zero Dark Thirty.”
Specifically, Vickers is said to have disclosed to the filmmakers the identity of a member of SEAL Team Six — though not a member of the team that conducted the raid on Osama bin Laden‘s compound. Names of members of that team are not to be disclosed because of the potential for violent retaliation.
Some in the Pentagon think the Inspector General is holding the report until after the current Secretary of Defense, Leon Panetta, retires so as to not sully or embarrass him.”
What? An attempt to shield the Sec. Def.?
😯
Also not surprising.
🙄
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This one actually is surprising, because it’s a good idea. Although a little late in coming.
“The Pentagon deployed military equipment and personnel, including about 300 Marines and sailors and 17 planeloads of power equipment, in an expanding effort to help New Jersey and nearby states recover from superstorm Sandy.
Military transport planes with more than 600 tons of power- restoration equipment, vehicles and crew from Southern California were being sent to the northeast, Pentagon spokesman George Little said yesterday. Marines and sailors from Camp Lejeune in North Carolina also were being deployed to the region, the Marine Corps said in an e-mailed statement.
Almost 4.5 million customers remained without power as of 2 p.m. New York time yesterday in blackouts that extended from South Carolina to Maine and as far west as Michigan, according to the U.S. Energy Department. More than 1.7 million homes and businesses in New Jersey, or 43 percent of customers, still had no power. The storm made landfall near Atlantic City on Oct. 29.”
“But instead of leveling-up, students can earn “badges” to show they’ve mastered an academic concept, icons they can not only earn over the course of a semester, but also post in social media outlets and even tally up and group together to indicate special skill sets on their resumes.
Badges are trending in the higher education arena, and whether they catch on remains to be seen, but a few professors piloting the concept claim it’s a positive paradigm shift.
They’re more specific than grades, the educators argue, adding the badges also create a carrot-stick approach to education that keeps kids engaged and interested.
“(Many students) were motivated by that badge, so they did the optional badges as well; not all, but some went to learn further,” Purdue University professor Bill Watson, who piloted the program this semester, told The College Fix.”
When will the madness end?
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Oh wait, apparently, I have my answer. 3 Days.
Someone will look like a genius in 3 days, if he is correct.
Otherwise, and I’m bettin’ otherwise, he just looks silly and like he has too much money to waste.
“If you’re seriously concerned about the world ending on Friday, then this could be just the ticket.
Ron Hubbard has built a luxurious underground bomb-proof shelter in Montebello, California, with a leather sofa, plasma TV and wooden flooring – just in case the Mayans’ predictions come true.
The civilisation’s Long Count calendar which began 5,125 years ago in 3113 B.C. ends on December 21, 2012 – sparking fears among a small group of people that a major catastrophe could happen.”
Wandering Views 