Sunday, January 11, 2015

U.S. ends TARP with $15.3 billion profit - Dec. 19, 2014

 

Treasury sold its remaining shares Friday in Ally Financial, its last remaining major stake from the $426 billion bailout of banks and the U.S. auto industry.

The Troubled Asset Relief Program was passed in 2008, in the wake of Lehman Brothers' bankruptcy, as the nation's financial system was on the verge of collapse and economists feared another Great Depression. At the height of the bailout, Treasury owned a significant stake in all of the major U.S. banks, such as Citigroup (C) and Bank of America (BAC), two of the nation's Big Three automakers -- General Motors (GM) and Chrysler Group (FCAM) -- as well as one of its largest insurers, AIG (AIG).

But with the sale of the Ally (ALLY) stock, Treasury now only holds stakes in 35 small community banks.

Ally Financial was formerly known as GMAC, and had been GM's finance arm. While it was hurt by the plunge in car sales, its move into subprime mortgages did the most damage. Ally was bailed out as part of the auto industry bailout, since its failure would have left a significant portion of the nation's car dealers without the financing they needed to stay open.

Treasury received $1.3 billion from its final sale of Ally stock Friday, leaving it with a $2.4 billion profit on the company.

Overall, the auto bailout was the one big money loser for TARP. Even with the Ally sale, taxpayers lost about $9.2 billion.

But opting not to bail out the auto industry likely would have proven far more costly, since GM, Chrysler and many car dealers likely would have gone out of business without the government's help.

If GM and Chrysler had gone under, it would have cost an estimated $39 billion to $105 billion in lost tax revenues as well as assistance to the unemployed, according to a study from the Center for Auto Research. And the government also would have been on the hook for billions in promised pension payments to autoworkers.

U.S. ends TARP with $15.3 billion profit - Dec. 19, 2014

Gov.-elect Bruce Rauner names key advisers, cabinet directors - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

 

SPRINGFIELD— Gov.-elect Bruce Rauner named a Democrat, a former Republican legislator, campaign workers and ex-employees of an Indiana governor to top staff and cabinet positions Saturday.
Rauner, a Republican who will take the oath as the 42nd Illinois governor on Monday, got a jump on areas that were crucial to his successful campaign last fall against Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn: the state budget, economy and jobs, education and transportation.
The businessman from Winnetka reached across the party line in naming the Rev. James Meeks as chairman of the State Board of Education. Meeks was an education advocate as a Democratic member of the state Senate and is pastor of the 15,000-member Salem Baptist Church in Chicago.
Rauner's budget director will be Tim Nuding, who's spent 25 years with Senate Republicans and is currently Minority Leader Christine Radogno's chief of staff.
Former GOP Rep. Jeff Mays, president of the Illinois Business Roundtable, will be director of the Department of Employment Security. He served five terms in the House of Representatives.
For the Department of Transportation, which has been criticized for improper hiring under Quinn, Randy Blankenhorn was tabbed as secretary. He has been executive director of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning. Before that, he was a two-decade IDOT employee.

Rauner previously named Mike Zolnierowicz, his transition committee director, as his chief of staff. Other former Citizens for Rauner campaign staff workers who will continue serving the incoming governor include Richard Goldberg as deputy chief of staff for legislative affairs; Mike Schrimpf as deputy chief of staff for communications; and Aaron Winters, deputy chief of staff for policy.

Jason Barclay, announced in December as general counsel, was legal counsel to former Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, whom Rauner wants to emulate. Two others Rauner named — David Wu as director of government transformation and Allie Bovis as deputy press secretary — also served under Daniels.

Read more: http://www.rrstar.com/article/20150111/News/150119919#ixzz3OYL9TJDY

My View: Animals must be ensured humane care - Opinion - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

  •  

    •  

  • By Lisa Fowler-Kobylewski
    Posted Jan. 10, 2015 @ 3:00 pm

    Boone County residents should be aware of the Dog Breeder and Boarder text amendments that have been proposed in Boone County. The purpose of these ordinances is to update and strengthen terminology regarding the humane care of animals kept in confined spaces for breeding purposes and boarding purposes.
    The end goal of these amendments is to prevent puppy mills from being allowed to operate within the county and to do more to help ensure humane care for animals within its boarders.
    Every business must keep pace with society’s evolution. Companion animals have created a business market that results in U.S. citizens spending more than $50 billion a year on animal care and products for their pets.
    Society now views these animals as members of the family and expects them to be treated as such. With this in mind, the days of cramming animals into tiny cages with little food and water and next to no veterinary care for the purpose of pure profit has come to an end.

 

Society will no longer tolerate this behavior as it comes to light in our towns and cities. Reputable breeding and boarding businesses should welcome the opportunity to show how much these animals
are truly valued by them, and how much your business means to them, by taking all measures to ensure their facilities meet any newly required standards of care for these companion animals. Those who protest may be found highly suspect.

Animal welfare organizations and humane groups all across the country are standing with citizens to develop common sense text that fits expectations of today’s humane standards. We as a society are realizing that the Animal Welfare Act and the Illinois Humane Care for Animals Act, as well as county ordinances, are written with a broad stroke and allow for too much individual interpretation, making it difficult to enforce these laws.
The goal of these amendments is to strengthen the language and clarify today’s expectations of humane care. This will improve the quality of life for these breeding animals and animals kept in boarding, and make enforcement of these local ordinances easier.
These amendments will also protect human health and consumers who purchase these animals, as stricter standards will do more to prevent illness and disease associated with consistently confined breeding operations.
The first attempt to pass these amendments failed, as I believe misconceptions regarding their purpose fueled huge breeding industry push back. However these amendments do not seek to put reputable breeders or boarders out of business, but instead hold them to the same standards of quality improvements we expect every other business to make if they are to succeed.
Boone County has made headlines with its Christiansen and Lettier Kennels being identified in “101 Puppy Mills, A Sampling of Problem Puppy Mills in the United States” by the Humane Society of the United States.

Page 2 of 2 - The county doesn’t need any more bad press. In light of this, the Boone County Board and Chairman Bob Walberg have appointed a group of individuals to an advisory committee to help better shape the amendments for the county. This group of individuals will be tasked with creating the language that determines how these breeding animals are treated and how healthy the puppy that you purchase truly is.
Please take an interest in this topic as it directly reflects on your community and its growth and progress. Tell your county board representatives that you only want reputable businesses operating within your county. Attend a county meeting of the advisory committee and listen to the discussion. Better yet, take any opportunity to become a part of it yourself.
Your county is judged on many factors, including its treatment of animals. Businesses in the county are considered the company you keep. Don’t let those who allow cruelty define your county!
Lisa Fowler-Kobylewski is a Boone County resident.

My View: Animals must be ensured humane care - Opinion - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL