Government Motors

[moreluck]

Am I missing something? Everybody is celebrating G.M and their IPO today. I hear they paid back the $$$ that they got as a bail out. They had their best quarter in 11 years. The Prez. was on TV just crowing away about his success....

Wasn't it OUR money that bailed out GM? Where is my money. GM didn't pay me back !! Shoot, GM doesn't even make stock available in the IPO to us commoners.
I don't get it.

 

[scratch]

GM making money???? Thats makes me laugh. My brother is a 25 year employee and has just got laid off. They are going to close the plant he works at in Shreveport, LA. Its one of their most modern and efficient plants. He is a steamfitter/plumber, he might be called back to work for a few weeks when they start gutting the equipment out of the plant. He bought $200,000 in GM stock a few years ago. he sold it for $17,000. A very bad investment on his part. Even if he still held that stock, I don't think its part of this IPO. I bought my first Ford the last time I bought a new car.

 

[clueless]

Ha Ha! You can't make this stuff up--Barack "Blame Bush First" Obama is now taking credit for the GM IPO today:

Obama's claim today:

"American taxpayers are now positioned to recover more than my administration invested in GM, and that's a good thing," Obama said, speaking shortly after the 4 p.m. market close.

He said the early success of the IPO validates his administration's $50 billion taxpayer-backed rescue of the venerable automaker. The sale of the new stock is a milestone for both the corporation and for the Obama administration..."

The Reality:

Dec. 19, 2008

Bush announces $17.4 billion auto bailout

President George W. Bush stepped in Friday to keep America's auto industry afloat, announcing a $17.4 billion bailout for GM and Chrysler

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1208/16740.html

 

[Jones]

Ha Ha! You can't make this stuff up--Barack "Blame Bush First" Obama is now taking credit for the GM IPO today:

Obama's claim today:

"American taxpayers are now positioned to recover more than my administration invested in GM, and that's a good thing," Obama said, speaking shortly after the 4 p.m. market close.

He said the early success of the IPO validates his administration's $50 billion taxpayer-backed rescue of the venerable automaker. The sale of the new stock is a milestone for both the corporation and for the Obama administration..."

The Reality:

Dec. 19, 2008

Bush announces $17.4 billion auto bailout

President George W. Bush stepped in Friday to keep America's auto industry afloat, announcing a $17.4 billion bailout for GM and Chrysler

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1208/16740.html

The 17.4 billion from Bush was just the first part. After Obama took over GM got substantially more, I think about 19 billion more pre-bankruptcy and then another 30 billion post bankruptcy, so his claim that he "lent" GM 50 billion is pretty close. You're right though, he really ought to give Bush more credit for getting the whole thing started.

 

[moreluck]

They said on the news today that the old GM stock has nothing to do with this new IPO.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

The old GM stock was worthless the day the govt bailed out GM.

 

[Lue C Fur]

For our govt to break even the stock will need to hit 53bux a share...then i would think they would have to sell the stock to actually make the money. So when and if it hits 53, the question is do they sell it all at once and if so wouldnt that tank the stock???

 

[over9five]

This Obama statement pissed me off:

"American taxpayers are now positioned to recover more than my administration invested in GM, and that's a good thing," Obama said, speaking of the government's $50 billion ......

"My administration"???? Wasn't it the American taxpayer that did that?

maroon.

 

[moreluck]

"recover taxpayer money" ??? Does that mean he'll wallpaper it ?? How about you recover taxpayer money and refund it to taxpayers.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

This Obama statement pissed me off:

"American taxpayers are now positioned to recover more than my administration invested in GM, and that's a good thing," Obama said, speaking of the government's $50 billion ......

"My administration"???? Wasn't it the American taxpayer that did that?

maroon.

There is nothing wrong with his statement IMO. I think he included the reference to his administration to separate himself from W.

Using your thought process, I assume that you would have preferred that this bailout be put in to the form of a referendum which would then be voted upon by the American people.

We will never recover our full investment from this bailout but I shudder to think what would have happened had we not bailed them out.

Now, the AIG bailout is a different story...

 

[Lue C Fur]

This Obama statement pissed me off:

"American taxpayers are now positioned to recover more than my administration invested in GM, and that's a good thing," Obama said, speaking of the government's $50 billion ......

"My administration"???? Wasn't it the American taxpayer that did that?

maroon.

I would have been better if the Messiaah and the CEO for Govt Motors came out and thanked the tax payers. Also saying that they would "Recover more" is a pipe dream.

 

[wkmac]

There is nothing wrong with his statement IMO. I think he included the reference to his administration to separate himself from W.

Using your thought process, I assume that you would have preferred that this bailout be put in to the form of a referendum which would then be voted upon by the American people.

We will never recover our full investment from this bailout but I shudder to think what would have happened had we not bailed them out.

Now, the AIG bailout is a different story...

Upstate,

Put the politics and personal preferences aside and Over is correct. It was the American taxpayer who did this. Take the American taxpayer completely out of the equation and where does the gov't get the money from? As to "getting our money back" you are correct and we won't but before you grant your final blessing on this bailout, follow the money. Follow the former Lazard executives who are running this show for Uncle Sam. Checkout one private equity investor Steven Rattner and see how he might factor in this. Or better yet, look at why the Wall Street Journal would say: "Wall Street bankers are salivating over one of their biggest potential paydays since the market meltdown of 2008: the planned initial public offering of General Motors.” Word is that the IPO will generate somewhere around $2 billion in brokerage fees so who is the real winner here?

Put the politics, the parties and the personalities aside, follow the "friend"ing money!

 

[Lue C Fur]

Word is that the IPO will generate somewhere around $2 billion in brokerage fees so who is the real winner here?

So far they have made 40 Mil!!!!

 

[Babagounj]

I found it interesting that several car magazines published glowing reports for the Volt just before this stock went public.

 

[cachsux]

Word is that the IPO will generate somewhere around $2 billion in brokerage fees so who is the real winner here?

Put the politics, the parties and the personalities aside, follow the "friend"ing money!

Going up or going down, all stocks generate brokerage fees. It`s the nature of the business. We make money shipping the box, we make money sending it back.

 

[Babagounj]

(Reuters) — U.S. President Barack Obama took time out from a NATO summit in Lisbon on Saturday to tout a new hybrid electric car which General Motors plans to roll out in Europe next year.
Obama found himself acting as salesman-in-chief for GM Opel’s Ampera model just days after he declared in Washington that U.S. taxpayers would get their money back for saving GM in a bailout that was broadly unpopular.*

 

[Babagounj]

A three year FBI investigation into insider trading around the country is about to break, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Federal agents have investigated consultants, hedge funds, mutual fund managers and investment banks, including bankers at Goldman Sachs.
More from the WSJ:
The criminal and civil probes, which authorities say could eclipse the impact on the financial industry of any previous such investigation, are examining whether multiple insider-trading rings reaped illegal profits totaling tens of millions of dollars, the people say. Some charges could be brought before year-end, they say.
The investigations, if they bear fruit, have the potential to expose a culture of pervasive insider trading in U.S. financial markets, including new ways non-public information is passed to traders through experts tied to specific industries or companies, federal authorities say.


Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/fbi-...ed:+clusterstock+(ClusterStock)#ixzz15s1iUGWQ​

 

[moreluck]

We used to have an Opel station wagon....bright canary yellow!!

 

[scratch]

We used to have an Opel station wagon....bright canary yellow!!

My best friend in high school had a yellow Opel station wagon we ran around in. He could rev that four cylinder engine all the way up and jerk the steering wheel a certain way and it would bark a tire in fourth gear. This was quite funny.

 

[moreluck]

Ours was a stick and hubby was trying to teach me to drive a stick while I was 8 months pregnant. I had to stop at a light at the top of a hill in Akron and a cop car pulled up behind me...about a foot from my bumper. I freaked because I knew if i lifted a foot from the brake it would roll back and hit them....also if I didn't give it enough gas it would stall and also slip back before I could get that foot on the brake.

So I did the one thing any woman would do.....I bust out crying and the cop came to my window to see what was going on. He took one look at me and my belly and told me that he would get back in his car, back up and give me all the room I needed to get moving. I was totally mortified!! I actually think my daughter was born knowing how to drive a stick.