Stopped Clock Is Right Alert

Today's "wingnut making a whole hell of a lot on sense for once" contestant is Power Line's John Hindraker, who nails Timmy's ass to the wall as he very astutely dissects the Special Inspector General's report on how the $700 million TARP program became the $3 trillion TARP program. Do read the whole thing, but for the TLDR crowd, his summation:

What conclusions can we draw? 1) The government's $3 trillion and counting TARP program represents the greatest opportunity for sharp operators to profit at taxpayer expense in history. 2) The Obama administration is either in favor of giving Wall Street sharks this opportunity or, at a minimum, doesn't much mind doing so. (If this seems odd, remember where Obama got the biggest chunk of campaign contributions in 2008.) 3) It may be that the TARP complex of programs is the beginning of a national-socialist type takeover of the financial services industry by the federal government. Thus, 4) we can only hope that this turns out not to be the case, and TARP is only the biggest--and perhaps, by the end of the day, the crookedest--waste of taxpayer money in history. Finally, 5) so far the only person or organization who appears to be looking out for the taxpayers is the Special Inspector General. We will be reading his future reports with great interest.

While #3 there is really just kneejerk winger compaints about Plan N/Recievership (which Hindy still sees as THE DREADED SOCIALISM), he's right on the rest. TARP is a hell of a scam, it's costing us trillions, and there's still no accountability.

I continue to have serious doubts about TARP, and you should as well. At the very least the SIGTARP report on the program shows egregious problems and all kinds of opportunity for graft, waste, and corruption, and yet more evidence that Tim Geithner continues to be the wrong man for the job.