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Why another GMAC bailout is (especially) bad for America

Posted Oct 28th 2009 10:10AM by Zac Bissonnette (RSS feed)
Filed under: Scandals

The Wall Street Journal reports (subscription required) that GMAC Financial Services Inc. (NYSE: GKM) is seeking a third round of bailout funds from the Treasury Department ranging from $2.8 billion to $5.6 billion. This is, the WSJ writes, "a stark reminder of how some battered financial firms remain dependent on government lifelines."

Here's what is so incredibly so screwd up about this: GMAC provides financing for car buyers. Any personal finance expert will tell you that borrowing money to buy a car is one of the dumbest things that you can possibly do.

Continue reading Why another GMAC bailout is (especially) bad for America

GMAC Chairman may finally be dethroned

Posted Jan 2nd 2009 10:40AM by Zac Bissonnette (RSS feed)
Filed under: General Motors (GM)

With GMAC Financial Services (NYSE: GKM) having been run into the ground to the point where it required an emergency $6 billion bailout from the federal government, you'd think the chairman of the company's board of directors would have been toast a long time ago. But he's still there: billions of dollars in irresponsible loans apparently aren't enough to get you fired.

Change my be on the way. The bailout makes the federal government the largest shareholder in the company, and according to BusinessWeek, "That means there will be a clean sweep that will likely push out J. Ezra Merkin, along with most of the executives who were appointed to the board by owners General Motors (NYSE: GM) and Cerberus Capital Management, say sources involved with the changeover. Day-to-day management, however, may stay in place."

GMAC's board will be reduced from 12 members to 7 and chairman Merkin is "unlikely" to remain.

Wow. Merkin has presided over a reckless spree of bad loans that culminated in the need for a federal bailout, and, by the way, is being sued by New York University for allegedly concealing Bernard Madoff's fraudulent practices when he funneled NYU money into his investments scheme.

In corporate America, that's apparently only enough to make you unlikely to remain in power. Until that changes, we're probably doomed.

Symbol Lookup
IndexesChangePrice
DJIA-154.4810,309.92
NASDAQ-37.612,138.44
S&P 500-19.141,091.49

Last updated: November 27, 2009: 06:16 PM

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