Kevin Colby: News, culture, political blog

What the hell is wrong with her?  Hillary Clinton has pledged $900 million to war torn Gaza. The last time I checked Israel bombed their ass.  I love how the fact we have $900 million  just to piss away on some bullshit terrorist country.  So where are we going to get this money?  Well how about this story

Northern Trust — the bank that got caught last week for throwing a series of lavish parties and concerts in L.A. — is giving back the $1.6 billion in federal bailout money!

But here is the true story about Northern Trust which is a bank based out of Chicago.

It received $1.6 billion under the government’s $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). According to the bank, it did not seek TARP assistance, but it agreed to participate in the program at the request of the Treasury Department. The TARP funds were essentially forced on Northern Trust. Northern Trust has made it clear in corporate statements that TARP “funds are not allocated to operating expenses, including marketing, advertising, corporate sponsorship or charitable activities.”

Back in the fall of 2007, the bank signed a five-year contract to sponsor the Northern Trust Open, which is a PGA tour event. We are talking about a year before TARP even existed, okay folks? On February 19th-22nd .. just last week .. the bank held its second annual golf tournament. Phil Mickelson won, for anyone that cares. The event included parties and concerts and goody bags from Tiffany’s. Does it look bad? Yeah. But is that the whole story? Of course not.

Then comes John Kerry, Barney Frank and the rest of the wealth-envy crowd. They are upset with the “extravagant spending practices of U.S. banks” that receive taxpayer money. John Kerry actually pulls out this line, “Americans who play by the rules are losing their jobs and struggling to pay their mortgages … It’s an embarrassment that this legislation is necessary, but some companies clearly need a reality check to get their priorities straight so taxpayer money is used to get their house in order and not to pay for lavish parties.”

But now, under pressure, Northern Trust CEO Frederick Waddell sent a letter to members of the House Financial Services Committee, saying his bank will repay the government funds “as quickly as prudently possible.”  I would send a check back in an envelope that says: You can stick this up your fat slobbering ass Barney.

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Tags: barney frank, chicago, frederick waddell, gaza, Hillary Clinton, israel, john kerry, northern trust, tarp, temporary asset relief program