Obama to Send TARP Funds to MAIN STREET

[ProSense]

Obama to Send TARP Funds to MAIN STREET

by MeMeMeMeMe

This is a welcome development. If you've grown tired of seeing "too big to fail" institutions getting all the bailout money, there may be a change of strategy in the works:

The Obama administration on Wednesday said it will use leftover funds from the $700 billion financial bailout to help small businesses.

Obama is set to announce the plan today during a visit to a small business in Maryland.

Now you're probably asking, how much of that TARP (Troubled Assets Relief Program) money is left after bailing out Wall Street?

A report from the TARP’s official watchdog estimated that there is $317 billion left in the program, a sum that includes funds paid back to the government by some banks.

<...>

The White House site adds a bit more detail:

The President’s Announcement will include the following:

1. The Administration will take steps to improve access to credit for small businesses by supporting lending by small banks and Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) through the Financial Stability Plan. This new initiative will support small business lending by providing lower-cost capital to small banks that present small business lending plans and to CDFIs that lend to small businesses in the hardest-hit rural and urban areas.
   
   
2. To get small businesses more access to the credit they need to grow and thrive, the Administration will seek legislation to increase the maximum size of three types of Small Business Administration loans. Increasing the maximum loan size of 7(a) loans from $2 million to $5 million will help small businesses invest in machinery, equipment, land, and buildings. Increasing the maximum loan size of 504 loans up to $5.5 million will help small businesses grow and expand their payrolls by supporting real estate purchases. And increasing the maximum loan size of SBA microloans from $35,000 to $50,000 will give a boost to start-ups and other smaller businesses.
   
   
3. The President will call on Treasury Secretary Geithner and SBA Administrator Karen Mills to convene a conference of regulators, Congressional leaders, and small-business owners to establish further steps the government can take to help small businesses access the credit that is so vital to their growth, and to economic prosperity in this country.

more

[Rosa Luxemburg]

1. Holy Moly!

:bounce::bounce: :bounce:

[Cha]

2. President Obama and his intrepid Team

want America to be successful and they've got the will to do it.:patriot::patriot::patriot:

[TheWraith]

3. But, but, but... Bush lite! Corpocrats! Sellout! Blubber! Oddment!

Just anticipating the DU Misery Brigade response.

[vaberella]

11. Don't worry. They'll find a counter article which most likely will have an anonymous contributor.

n/t

[dionysus]

14. rush me to the fainting couch, elevens!!11!!11!!

[dionysus]

15. rush me to the fainting couch, elevens!!11!!11!!

[denem]

4. Insanely Great.

Henry Paulson, what have you done?

[andym]

5. k+r nt.

[phleshdef]

6. Geez, the whiners are getting PELTED the past few days.

[butterfly77]

7. This is the rightwing media's favorite talking point...

but,I don't think he should use the whole 700 billion on small businesses because a lot of them are double dipping with all of the tax cuts,subsidies and other things that the republiCONS have put in to every bill that has come up. Now,once they are done with that they should use some of the money for affordable housing for low income citizens.

[vaberella]

12. And yet at the same time they scream about unemployment and the failure of the stimulus.

These bastards are enough.

[Beetwasher]

8. This Is Stimulus Part II And WILL Create Jobs!!

Repubs will be in a tight spot come '10 when the backloaded stimulus really starts kicking in and jobs are really starting to be created.

[ProSense]

21. Yes. n/t

[SpartanDem]

9. Using the paid back money to give it small business is a great idea

I didn't there that much left in TARP

[vaberella]

10. Something good happens and it's basically ignored...AGAIN on DU.

It's very rarely he gets congratulated. Good stuff, when I think it's not possible to adore my President more, he goes and does something great. Ed---where are you talk about this great news?!

[Parker CA]

13. Excellent news!! Keep it comin'!!!

[Arkana]

16. This is excellent news. Glad to hear that he's taking yet another step

to clean up the mess.

[TheWraith]

17. KICK! nt

[Fire1]

18. Good news but not surprising. n/t

[Kdillard]

19. Excellent news : but why am I not surprised :)

[ronnykmarshall]

20. TARP is a TRAP!!

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

23. You mean

?

[Engineer4Obama]

22. This has been a good news day for us

[BREMPRO]

24. good news and natural shift toward helping small business now that larger financial institutions

are more stable. Excellent pivot and timing by the Obama team- they really are working hard for the public interest despite what some people here think.

[CTLawGuy]

25. K&R

NT

[The Hope Mobile]

26. I wish there was some way to shift some of that money to social security, medicare,

disability ins, unemployment, etc so they could get a long overdue cost of living adjustment. That's the Main Street I'm most concerned about.

[lunatica]

27. Goodness! I just felt a strange rush of enthusiasm

It was positively uplifting. I hope it truly does create jobs. I also hope small green businesses flourish big time!