Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Barker's Newsbites: Tuesday, July 27, 2010


I "discovered" this song the other day via YouTube "autoplay on."
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5 comments:

William R. Barker said...

http://www.sigir.mil/embargo/audits/10-020.pdf

Weaknesses in DOD’s (Department of Defense) financial and management controls left it unable to properly account for $8.7 billion of the $9.1 billion in DFI (Development Fund for Iraq) funds it received for reconstruction activities in Iraq.

* HEY... THAT'S ONLY 96% UNACCOUNTED FOR... IS THAT REALLY SO BAD FOR THE GOVERNMENT...??? (*SNICKER*)

This situation occurred because most DOD organizations receiving DFI funds did not establish the required Department of the Treasury accounts and no DOD organization was designated as the executive agent for managing the use of DFI funds.

The breakdown in controls left the funds vulnerable to inappropriate uses and undetected loss.

* I THOUGHT ROBERT GATES WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A F--KING GENIUS...?!?!

* SO LET ME GUESS... NO ONE GETS FIRED. (*SMIRK*)

July 27, 2010 at 8:22 AM
William R. Barker said...

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/00068a58-9906-11df-9418-00144feab49a.html

Credit-worthy borrowers with straightforward mortgages are entering foreclosure at a record pace, according to a report released on Tuesday by Lender Processing Services, which tracks and analyzes mortgages.

Foreclosure rates among “agency prime” loans, which conform to guidelines set by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-sponsored mortgage finance companies, have jumped 425% since January 2008, with a particular acceleration in the last two months, LPS said.

* YEP. YOU READ THAT RIGHT. "FOUR HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE PERCENT."

The rise in foreclosures of prime loans will be felt most acutely by Fannie and Freddie, which own or guarantee nearly half of the $10,000bn in mortgages outstanding.

* IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN, $10,000 BILLION IS ACTUALLY... er... $10 TRILLION.

* AND BY "FELT MOST ACUTELY BY FANNIE AND FREDDIE" THE AUTHOR MEANS... er... THE U.S. TAXPAYER IS TAKING IT UP THE... er... WELL... UP THE "YOU KNOW WHAT."

Through the first quarter of 2010, Fannie and Freddie reported $330bn in non-performing loans. Of the roughly 10% of those loans that have been liquidated, Fannie and Freddie have recovered about 58 cents on the dollar.

* OH, YEAH... FANNIE AND FREDDIE CONTINUE TO DO JUST AN "OUTSTANDING" JOB... (*SIGH*)

Rajiv Setia of Barclays Capital said he expected that to fall to 50 cents on the dollar and non-performing loans to balloon to $550bn over the next three years.

* WE ARE SO FRIGG'N SCREWED, PEOPLE... (*SIGH*)

July 27, 2010 at 9:25 AM
William R. Barker said...

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703700904575391253913078636.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_MIDDLETopOpinion

"Let's not get silly here."

That was Senator John Kerry's response Friday to questions about his new $7 million yacht, Isabel, which last week was berthed in Rhode Island rather than in Mr. Kerry's home state of Massachusetts.

In doing so, Mr. Kerry will save almost $500,000 a year in taxes.

[T]he Massachusetts Senator's office says the decision to base the yacht in Newport had everything to do with "long-term maintenance, upkeep and charter purposes" and nothing to do with tax avoidance.

(*SNORT*)

* LONG TERM MAINTENANCE...??? MASSACHUSETTS DOESN'T HAVE "LONG TERM MAINTANCE" FACILITIES...???

* CHARTER PURPOSES..??? (HMM... DO I SMELL A FUTURE TAX WRITE-OFF STRATEGY HERE...???)

[T]here's a smell of hypocrisy.

In addition to sailing around the tax issue, Mr. Kerry chose to build his boat in New Zealand at a time when Bay State boat builders are having trouble keeping their work force employed. "I'm confident that anything constructed in New Zealand could be constructed here in the state," Gregory Egan, who owns the Crosby Yacht Yard in Osterville, told the Boston Herald.

Others noted that the Isabel was specially designed to be piloted without a crew - letting Mr. Kerry scrimp on employment costs and payroll taxes.

(*SMIRK*)

* WHAT A GUY, HUH?!

The senator is the main sponsor of a bill that would squeeze U.S. lifestyles by cutting back on carbon emissions. At the same time, he has decided to treat himself to a new yacht, built overseas and carefully berthed outside the state he represents.

* YEP. A REAL FRIGG'N WINNER... (*SIGH*)

July 27, 2010 at 9:26 AM
William R. Barker said...

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703294904575385402114489796.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_LEADTop

In theory, campaign finance reform is about clean elections, transparency and ending special interest influence.

In practice, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has scheduled a cloture vote for this week on a bill designed to undo a recent Supreme Court free speech decision and give Democrats a fund-raising advantage in the fall elections.

[W]hat they've proposed is a blatantly partisan bill sponsored by two Members whose main duty is electing Democrats. The House version...is sponsored by Representative Chris Van Hollen, who runs the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. The companion bill in the Senate was introduced by Charles Schumer, the two-time head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee...

(*SNORT*)

In the name of "transparency," the Schumer-Van Hollen legislation tilts the playing field in favor of Democratic candidates by taking direct aim at corporate speech. ... Even provisions that ostensibly apply to both corporations and unions would in practice mostly restrict the ability of corporations to participate in elections.

Mr. Reid now wants to ram through the legislation with no Senate hearings and little debate.

This bill restricts the political speech of some in order to enhance the political power of others, which isn't the way democracy is supposed to work.

July 27, 2010 at 9:26 AM
William R. Barker said...

http://thehill.com/homenews/house/111069-hoyer-ethics-decision-up-to-rangel

The House’s second-ranking Democrat on Tuesday said Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) will decide on his own whether to resign his seat or go forward with Thursday’s ethics inquiry. Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) told reporters he did not know what Rangel’s decision would be.

Hoyer indicated House leaders aren’t inclined to force Rangel’s hand - at least not overtly. “Mr. Rangel has to do what Mr. Rangel believes is appropriate and proper,” Hoyer said.

* WHICH TELLS YOU ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT HOYER AND THE REST OF THE DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP.

(*SHRUG*)

On Monday night, the Congressional Black Caucus came out in strong support of Rangel...

* AGAIN... A REAL BUNCH OF "PATRIOTS," HUH?

(*SMIRK*)

July 27, 2010 at 3:31 PM

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