Goodbye. Goodbye. GOODBYE. Get the fuck out already.

[Smarmie Doofus]

Bloomberg's Eisenhowerian farewell: "the labor-electoral complex."

Good grief.

What a repellent , graceless, twisted little gnome.


>>>Bloomberg has said previously, including in a major speech this summer, that rising pension and health care costs imperil progress in New York and other cities. But he painted the issue Wednesday in dramatic terms, lashing out at what he called a "fiscal straitjacket" for cities and a "labor-electoral complex that has traditionally stymied reform" — a phrase that evoked the "military-industrial complex" about which President Dwight Eisenhower famously warned the nation in a speech days before he left office in 1961.>>>>

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/nycs-bloomberg-decries-labor-electoral-complex

Adios, muchacho.

[jberryhill]

1. "labor-electoral complex"

Uh... workers who vote?

Yeah, that's a conflict of interest right there. We should have voters who aren't biased by things like whether the government is addressing their concerns.

[BlueToTheBone]

2. That sounds like I hate you all 'cause you

voted for the guy who will work for you and you should be ashamed.

[Kurovski]

9. He really is perverted.

Twisted beyond human recognition.

[BlueToTheBone]

21. Totally twisted

and his face shows it.

[Skidmore]

81. It's probably more to do with his loss of a

kingdom to rule. If he could have weaselled himself the job of Mayor for Life, he would have.

[badtoworse]

3. Ignore what he said at your own peril.

The reality is that many cities, towns and even states will not be able to make good on all the promises made to public employees regarding pensions and health care. They just won't have the money. Detroit and Illinois are just the beginning - these scenarios will become increasingly common going forward.

Public employee unions can deal with the issue by negotiating changes that preserve reasonable levels of benefit or they can take the Alfred E. Newman approach and ignore the issue. Detroit is a good example of the latter.

[sabrina 1]

4. Then it's time to cut the Pentagon budget, to slash it actually, and to start prosecuting the

criminals who stole the money and caused the collapse of the economy. The US has plenty of money to pay for all of these things. It is the PRIORITIES they have, wars, bailing out criminals on Wall St, etc, Corporate Welfare iow, that is the problem.

We never have a shortage of money for their favorite killing machines. So no, we should NEVER accept the excuse that there is no money. There is plenty of money.

[badtoworse]

6. It's not a federal issue

The federal government isn't bailing out Detroit because if they did, there would be a steady parade of towns and cities showing up with their hands out looking for a bailout.

This issue needs to be dealt with at the state and local level where it originated.

[sabrina 1]

12. 'with their hands out, looking for a bailout'! Lol, and exactly what would be wrong with that

when we had no problem with the steady parade of 'Too Big Too Fail' Corps/Banks showing up before Congress with THEIR hands out looking for AND GETTING massive amounts of money to cover their criminal tracks? That was OUR tax dollars, trillions of it, Congress gave them. We had no say in it of course, because if we had, the money would have gone to Towns and Cities instead of Wall St Gamblers and Criminals.

Why are towns and cities NOT TOO BIG TOO FAIL??

Can you explain why, since the Federal Govt has now established that it will out CRIMINALS who crashed the economy, they would not feel at least equally responsible to bail out those who suffered the fall out from those crimes, cities, towns etc??

That was actually funny, in a truly ironic way.

[badtoworse]

18. I didn't agree with those bailouts either, but at least the banks paid the loans back with interest.

As for the criminal aspects, DOJ is dealing with that.

I would not expect towns and cities to do the belt tightnening needed to pay back a loan (and I wouldn't believe them if they said they could do it). Given that, the only option would be for the federal government to just absorb the responsibility to make good on the benefits that the towns and cities don't have the money to continue providing. The federal government doesn't have the money for that either without a massive realignment in spending priorities. Aside from being a political impossibility, it would be unfair to taxpayers in the fiscally prudent jurisdictions that have promised only benefits they can afford to provide and then made sure those plans were adequately funded.

[RedstDem]

20. good grief

why cant you anti union, anti worker, anti American trolls go to your own blog and gtfo of here?

[badtoworse]

24. What an erudite response.

[El_Johns]

39. It's more erudite than your repetition of right-wing talking points on public pensions.

[Starry Messenger]

64. Dare to dream.

[KansDem]

54. "...but at least the banks paid the loans back with interest."

Did they?

More than half of $4 billion in federal funds disbursed this year to spur small-business lending by community banks was used to repay bailout funds that the banks received under the government's Troubled Asset Relief Program.

The Small Business Lending Fund was meant to raise capital at smaller banks, which tend to lend more heavily to small businesses, in the hopes of jump-starting growth and employment. But instead of directly lending to small businesses, many of the banks used the money to rid themselves of higher-cost TARP debt and tougher restrictions.

"It was basically a bailout for 100-plus banks," said Giovanni Coratolo, vice president of small-business policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. "From a point of view of a small business owner, it was very ineffective in getting funds out to small business."

WSJ

And...

WHILE THE media focused on the Washington charade over raising the federal debt ceiling and cutting the estimated budget deficit, a a one-time audit of the Federal Reserve released in late July showed that the Treasury Department and Federal Reserve Bank have doled out an incredible $16 trillion in assistance to financial institutions and corporations in the U.S. and around the world.

The audit, conducted by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), was mandated as part of the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act sponsored by Democratic lawmakers Christopher Dodd and Barney Frank.

The audit revealed that the various emergency lending facilities, guarantee programs and bailouts for Wall Street--a project wholeheartedly supported by both major parties--was in itself far larger than the deficit that now has the same parties gunning for deep cuts to critical social programs.

Socialist Worker

Paid back?!!

We were fleeced...BIG TIME!

[badtoworse]

57. They still have the SBA loans on their books, but at a lower interest rate than the TARP loans.

If you read the WSJ piece, the banks' position is that it puts them in a better position to make SBA loans. It's a complex arrangement, but I would not agree we were fleeced unless the banks default on the SBA loans. There is no reason to believe that will happen.

That does change anything with respect to bailing cities out of their pension obligations

[tabasco]

65. So, were you lying in your previous post about the loans being repaid?

I think so.

[badtoworse]

66. I was actually thinking of the large I Banks like Goldman, Citi, Deutsche Bank, AIG, etc.

Not small community banks to the tune of a couple of billion.

[sendero]

80. No pal..

.... the DOJ is letting the statute of limitation run out. There is no valid reason that there are not prosecutions of these crimes, the justice dept, like every other branch of our govt, is bought.

[badtoworse]

82. I don't see any relevance to this thread

You need to elaborate and provide some details.

[sendero]

83. "As for the criminal aspects, DOJ is dealing with that."..

... your words. They are flat wrong. Not a single bankster will go to jail after wrecking the economy via fraud for their personal benefit.

[badtoworse]

84. I had forgotten that Sabrina 1 mentioned that in her post

I didn't believe it was relevant in her post and I mentioned DOJ to just dismiss it. Bank fraud is not really at issue here, at least not in my opinion.

[arcane1]

7. And de-privatize prisons, utilities, etc. End tax breaks for corporations.

[Gidney N Cloyd]

16. Detroit and Illinois's financial problems are not due to public pensions.

[badtoworse]

23. I agree, but that does not change fiscal reality

If a town or city is going broke, the employees need to deal with that. See Post 19.

[tkmorris]

34. And yet that is PRECISELY what you implied in response #3

[badtoworse]

40. I took no position, implied or otherwise, as to why towns and cities would be unable to pay.

Detroit is broke because the city has been managed by morons for a long time. There likely are situations where the cost to provide benefits to current workers and retirees is draining an excessive amount of a city's cash. As a practical matter, what difference does it make why the jurisdiction is going broke? If they have no money, their creditors have to deal with it

[El_Johns]

43. The average pension is $19K. That's your idea of excess?

"As a practical matter, what difference does it make why the jurisdiction is going broke?"

As a practical matter, what does it matter why your stereo & TV are gone? Let's look forward...

[badtoworse]

47. I don't think $19k is excessive, but I do think you're missing the point.

Look at what actually is happening in Detroit. The city owes around $15 billion to various creditors including the pensioners and current workers. It doesn't have the money to pay these creditors; has filed for bankruptcy and the judge has allowed the bankruptcy to proceed. That means that everyone to whom Detroit owes money is going to get less than they were expecting. In this bankruptcy, the workers and the pensioners have the status of unsecured creditors which puts them behind secured creditors, like the holders of Detroit's bonds, in allocating who gets what share of the assets that Detroit currently has. As I understand things, (I'm not a lawyer), the pension fund assets are not immune from being used to pay creditors other than the retirees. That means that the pension fund money gets thrown into the pot from which all of the creditors will be paid. Because the bondholders are secured creditors, they will get a substantial amount of the money that was supposed to have been used to fund pensions. The estimated numbers I've seen have the bondholders getting 60 - 70 cents on the dollar and the pensioners / workers getting 15 - 20 cents on the dollar. I don't think it's fair, but that is my understanding of how things work in a bankruptcy proceeding. (Perhaps a bankruptcy attorney or someone with more expertise will weigh in and correct me if I'm wrong).

Detroit's workers and pensioners are getting a pretty rotten deal, especially since the pension funds are apparently well funded. When I say it doesn't make any difference how the city went bankrupt, I'm looking at it from a purely practical standpoint - the city is broke. The unions had to decide what to do when the city was trying to cut deals with its creditors and avoid bankruptcy. Detroits unions chose to stand pat and not negotiate. Was that the best strategy? You tell me - it's hard to imagine a worse outcome than 15 - 20 cents on the dollar for people who opted out of Social Security. What would you have done if it was your call?

The looking forward question is what should a union should do if that scenario seems likely to play out with its city? If the city does go broke and files for bankrupcty, it seems likely to me that they could get screwed the same way Detroit's pensioners likely will be. If it were up to me, I'd cut a deal to avoid bankruptcy that was contingent on everyone taking an agreed upon haircut.

You've been calling me a RW troll, but all I'm trying to do is look at a huge problem in very practical terms. I don't see this being solved at the federal level. Other than insulting me, do you have any answers?

[El_Johns]

67. "The city owes $15B" -- that is not immediate debt, but long-term debt, and that figure is

debatable.

According to a recent report, "The Detroit Bankruptcy," written by former Goldman Sachs investment banker Wallace Turbeville, not only is $18 billion an inflated and inaccurate estimation of Detroit's long-term debt, it is irrelevant. Unlike corporations, cities cannot be liquidated, therefore cash flow, as opposed to long-term debt, is what must be addressed.


http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/17/opinion/eisenbrey-detroit-pensions/

All the press reports about Detroit focus on that “$18 billion” of total debt. That includes not just pensions and retiree health care liabilities, but also all the usual long term bonds that large municipalities have (about $3.7 trillion total, nationwide).

In a bankruptcy proceeding, the question shouldn’t be “How much does Detroit owe?” The question SHOULD be “Can Detroit afford to pay its bills?”

And – with different political leadership – the answer to that question could easily be “yes”.

At the end of each fiscal year, public entities prepare a “Combined Annual Financial Report” that provides useful information about their finances... here’s what Detroit’s auditors said, in their 2012 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report: “The City has an accumulated unassigned deficit in the General Fund of $326.6 million as of June 30, 2012, which has resulted from operating deficits over the last several years.”

So… as I do the math… those operating deficits have been accumulating over several years… but just ONE year’s worth of those grants (which have been “just sitting there”)… could almost completely offset that accumulated deficit.

http://nhlabornews.com/2013/12/is-detroit-really-broke-because-the-math-does-not-add-up/


The "grants" under discussion are the ones the Obama administration pointed out to Detroit some time ago:

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20130926/NEWS01/130929883/


The emergency manager made no attempt to apply for or utilize them -- because he wants bankruptcy. And he wants it because his higher-level backers do.

Orr, a partner at Jones Day, the biggest law firm in the US, #1 internationally in mergers & acquisitions, was appointed by Gov. Snyder (R, Venture Capitalist), the same Gov that arbitrarily slashed Detroit's long-standing funding from state revenue-sharing (funding that is given not only to Detroit but to all Michigan cities):

The Detroit News notes that the city’s elected representatives are angry with the state for failing to provide over $220 million in revenue-sharing payments.

The money was supposed to be paid the city after it capped income tax rates. But even as Detroit’s economic circumstance worsened, Snyder refused to provide the needed assistance.

http://www.thenation.com/blog/173219/rick-snyders-detroit-takeover-plan-not-what-democracy-looks

At the same time, Snyder gave $1.8 billion in tax breaks to the wealthy and corporations at the expense of Michigan cities’ budgets. That alone is a big chunk of Detroit's deficit problem.

Jones Day also represents Bank of America & other of Detroit's creditors which is a huge conflict of interest & has led to some very questionable dealings:

Emergency Manager Order No. 17 is a dense 18 pages of state-of-the-art municipal finance legalese. It boils down to a few huge transactions. Simplified somewhat for purposes of explanation, it works like this: (If the bankruptcy court approves) 1) The big British finance bank Barclays will loan Detroit $350 million; 2) Detroit will immediately pay the even bigger (Jones Day client) Bank of America/Merrill Lynch and the other Wall Street ‘counterparties’ on interest rate ‘swaps’ $230-250 million; and 3) Barclays will then move to the head of the bankruptcy line, with a ”senior secured superpriority Chapter 9 debtor financing” … “Quality of Life Note” secured by a first-priority lien on every asset Detroit (i.e., Jones Day) sells that is worth more than $10 million. In other words, the Detroit Water & Sewerage Department, as well as anything else they can get their hands on.

In essence, Jones Day wants to put the whole city in hock to Barclays so they can pay off Bank of America and its bankster cohorts.

http://www.counterpunch.org/2013/10/23/detroits-dickensian-future/

To continue, information about the "13th check," blah-blah, is all over the news as though greedy pensioners and city workers were responsible for the situation the city is in. You hear much less about CDO swaps and other dubious investments sold to the city by Morgan, Citi, the usual financial cabal -- the people who crashed the economy and got bailed out.

In fact, Detroit's operating expenses have declined precipitously even while the percent of income they pay to finance capital has increased, because of such deals:

Detroit’s financial expenses have increased significantly, and that is a direct result of the complex financial deals Wall Street banks urged on the city over the last several years, even though its precarious cash flow position meant these deals posed a great threat to the city. The biggest contributing factor to the increase in Detroit’s legacy expenses is a series of complex deals it entered into in 2005 and 2006 to assume $1.6 billion in debt. Instead of issuing plain vanilla general obligation bonds, the city financed the debt using certificates of participation (COPs), which is a financial structure that municipalities often use to get around debt restrictions. Eight hundred million dollars of these COPs carried a variable interest rate, which the city synthetically converted to a fixed rate using interest rate swaps.

These swaps carried hidden risks, and these risks increased after the Federal Reserve drove down interest rates to near zero in response to the financial crisis. The deals included provisions that would allow the banks to terminate the swaps under specified conditions and collect termination payments... Because all of these events have occurred, the banks are now demanding upwards of $250-350 million in swap termination payments.

http://www.demos.org/publication/detroit-bankruptcy

Meanwhile, Detroit's tax breaks for big money continue:

Corporate subsidies and tax loopholes: While public workers were laid off and had salaries cut, Detroit gave away millions of public revenue in tax loopholes and subsidies to big corporations. A wealth of research finds that tax breaks like these are ineffective and it is apparent they have done little to create good jobs for Detroit residents. These tax breaks should be on the table, just like other obligations of the city in resolving the cash-flow crisis.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/17/opinion/eisenbrey-detroit-pensions/


Most of the companies & real estate in the bright new shiny downtown areas get big tax breaks.

Here's just one story about how big corporations get tax breaks the locals don't:

If Detroit is a food desert, then University Foods must be a mirage. The prevailing story line is that because no national supermarket chain has a store in the city, Detroiters lack access to quality food, including fresh meat, fruits and vegetables. That claim is used as justification for spending millions of state, city and county dollars to lure Whole Foods to Midtown and Meijer to the State Fairgrounds neighborhood.

But the shelves of University Foods are sagging with fresh fruit, vegetables and organic products. The meat section offers top quality cuts. The store, which has operated near the Wayne State campus for more than 30 years, is clean and bright, with wide aisles and a deep assortment of products.

And it’s less than a mile from where the city hopes Whole Foods will locate.

“I don’t mind the competition, but why should my tax dollars be used to subsidize a competitor?” asks Norman Yaldoo, who owns the store with his father, Edward.

Good question. Whole Foods would bring some trendy cachet to Midtown. But there are three other full-service supermarkets, including the Yaldoos’ store, that risk losing customers to the subsidized store.

And even though Whole Foods is a multibillion corporation, attracting its store to Detroit will require roughly $5 million in government sweeteners, according to state documents FOIA’d by the Chaldean News.

http://mydetroitgrocers.com/the-detroit-news-local-grocers-snubbed-for-whole-foods/


There's much more I could write, but here's my general point. You tell a simple story, the same one the media is mostly telling:

"Detroit is broke, that's just a fact, accept it & look forward, what's the best we can do?"

But it's not a fact, number one. Number two, "how we got here and who's responsible" is important, & has a direct relevance to the question of "What should we do?"

The big media are lying about almost everything about Detroit. That's because its owners are part of the same class that plans to asset-strip Detroit & use it as a test-run for the rest of the US.

It really makes me angry to see people repeating propaganda as though it were gospel.



The subsidies and tax breaks would allow Whole Foods to lease its Detroit store for $6 a square foot – half to two-thirds less than other supermarket owners typically pay in the city.

[badtoworse]

73. Maybe you're right, but in any case, I'm getting tired of debating Detroit.

My original point was about blowing off what Bloomberg said. IMO, the cost of continuing to provide the benefits to public employees that were historically promised will become unaffordable for many cities in the future. Bloomberg's point was about the consequences of being unable to make the changes needed to address the problem. I believe he makes a valid point that should not be ignored.

Maybe Detroit is not a good example of the consequences of unions being inflexible on benefits going forward, but they are where they are. My point is that if a city goes bankrupt, the workers and retirees are likely to get hosed as is happening in Detroit. That is something a union should consider in future contract negotiations - you only get the benefits if the city has the money to pay for them. You ignore that reality at your own peril.

[El_Johns]

75. I'm getting tired of people spreading propaganda. I don't ignore that reality, but I do attempt

to counter it where I meet it.

[Smarmie Doofus]

79. Holy fuck. You should post more. *Outstanding* analysis. n/t

[Gidney N Cloyd]

44. When you lead people to infer that pensions are what's draining gov't coffers people don't look at..

... the real problems, possibly all of which are quite fixable. But say PENSIONS and oh, my, we have to do something about those lazy goldbricks once and for all so the city (state, etc) can get back on its feet! So public opinion gets formed that pensions are behind the fiscal mess and that lays the groundwork for Wall Street to sweep in (again) and pick the workers' bones with impunity because, well afterall, they got greedy with their huge pensions and all so who cares about them. This kind of bullshit misdirection has to stop and I think it behooves the people on a liberal discussion board to not spread it any further.

[El_Johns]

68. +1.

[mokawanis]

17. Reasonable levels of benefits?

The reasons public employees are resisting cuts - they don't like watching asshats like Scott Walker cut their benefits at the same time he's doling out welfare to corporations that treat employees like shit. State employees are like workers everywhere, they know the playing field isn't anywhere near being level cuz the lion's share is going to the 1%.

[badtoworse]

19. Reasonable in the context of what Detroit's pensioners and workers are likely to get.

The numbers I've heard are 15 to 20 cents on the dollar. That truly sucks, but as the judge said, "You can't negotiate with a stone wall". IOW, the Detroit unions were unwilling to negotiate anything with respect to their benefits. Had they done so, they might have gotten a better deal than they will likely get in the bankruptcy proceeding.

[El_Johns]

37. More baloney.

[El_Johns]

36. That is baloney. Detroit's pensions are 91% funded. The "reality" is that there has been a

planned, coordinated effort to sink public pensions & destroy the public sector, by ruling elites.

[badtoworse]

42. The reality is that idiots were running Detroit. See Post 40.

[Ikonoklast]

45. You didn't tell the reason why they won't have the money. The politicians that promised it stole it.

The leaders of those political subdivisions made the promises to fund those pensions then reneged on them, using money that should have been earmarked for that purpose for other things.

Public employees are not the problem here, politicians that lied to both them and their constituency are the problem.


It's the same bullshit that corporations pulled, they promise the employees their pensions as part of a total compensation package, underfund it on purpose or use that money for other things, then tell those that they lied to all along that it's their own fault for wanting what was due them.

[badtoworse]

48. The politicians who promised it have likely been out of office for years

It's likely that the politicians that spent the money on other things (who may not be the same) are also out of office now. That leaves the current politicians that inherited the obligations, but not the money to make good on them. It's a bad situation, but not one that can be ignored.

I don't see the problem being solved by the Feds. That leaves it up the local government, it's taxpayers and its creditors to solve. Maybe the city can raise a little more tax revenue and maybe the city can make a deal with its creditors (which include the unions) that avoids bankruptcy. If there is no deal and no new revenue, the city runs out of money and it will likely go bankrupt. See Post 47.

[Ikonoklast]

51. Those promises are valid under each succeeding politician. Those contracts don't just go away.

The voting populace demands services, demands good municipal employees, demands, demands, demands...but never wants to raise their taxes to pay for them.

Detroit has been badly served by corrupt pols for years now, that has been their biggest problem. But you get what you vote for.

[badtoworse]

53. That is all true, but at the end of the day, the problem still has to be solved.

The bottom line is how to make the best out of a crappy situation. In that regard, I haven't seen much posted in this thread that points to workable solutions.

[Ikonoklast]

56. Put the pension obligations senior to all other debt.

Banks get anything left.

[badtoworse]

58. That would be a really bad move

The rates on municipal bonds would skyrocket and cities would be left unable to borrow money. All cities need to be able to borrow - you really don't want that to happen.

[Ikonoklast]

70. No, they would not. Cities with good credit ratings would have no problem borrowing money.

There are muni bonds senior to other debt, and there is other debt senior to some bond offerings even now, your opinion is not valid.

[badtoworse]

71. That is true and such debt is priced accordingly

If you screw secured creditors (the bondholders) by putting them behind unsecured creditors (in this case, the pensioners), it will have a huge impact on the cost of municipal debt. The risk that senior debt might not be senior in a bankruptcy would have to be priced into the offering and the rate would be much higher.

I work for a financial services firm and I deal with the debt guys on a regular basis. My opinion is based on personal experience with how how they think. Next chance I get, I'll ask them for their opinion on this issue.

[El_Johns]

69. Sorry, you're just spreading bankster BS. The city could raise BILLIONS in additional tax revenue

just by rescinding the corporate tax breaks it gives out. They could nearly make up their yearly deficit by cancelling the nearly $300 mill they plan to pay for A HOCKEY STADIUM.

http://www.fieldofschemes.com/2013/07/22/5540/detroit-development-official-confirms-red-wings-subsidies-a-go-despite-city-bankruptcy/

Quicken Loans Inc. founder and Chairman Dan Gilbert is seeking 15-year extension on a Renaissance Zone designation on the city-owned old Hudson’s site in downtown Detroit. It is potentially worth millions. Gilbert’s firms already have development rights and the zone designation at the site through 2017, which has stood vacant since 1998.

Businesses within Renaissance Zones don’t have to pay most city, county, state or business taxes. The record is clear that the long-range cost of such abatements is more than the benefits they were designed to provide. Officials need only examine their experience with other high profile projects to discover that abatements are an inefficient and costly process for business and job retention.

There have been too many to count over the years, but a classic example is the Riverfront West high-rise apartment complex located just west of the Joe Louis Arena on the Detroit River. When construction began in 1982, industrialist Max Fisher and developer A. Alfred Taubman received a $40 million mortgage with a below-market interest rate guaranteed by the federal government. It was also awarded some $50 million in tax-exempt construction bonds in addition to millions in Urban Development Action Grants (UDAG) and Urban Mass Transit Authority grants for two towers.

http://billjohnsondetroit.com/wp/?p=371


The fact that unelected city manager Kevyn Orr is a Jones-Day partner, and Jones Day represents both Detroit & the banks Detroit owes money to, demonstrates what an absolute farce this "bankruptcy" is.

Attorneys from the firm Jones Day, who are representing the the city in bankruptcy court, agreed to spend Thursday renegotiating the deal with Bank of America and UBS — and reconvene Friday morning for a hearing before Rhodes to discuss their progress.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/12/18/judge-orders-detroit-banks-to-renegotiate-loan-deal/4119701/


According to federal court records, this ongoing lawsuit includes numerous clients of Jones Day, Detroit EFM Kevyn Orr’s law firm, as plaintiffs, although the firm did not handle this particular litigation. In addition to Citigroup, which has now settled, other defendants in the case, which are Jones Day clients or subsidiaries of them, include:

Banc of America Securities, LLC
Barclay’s Capital Inc.,
Deutsche Bank Securities Inc.
Goldman Sachs & Co.
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc.,
UBS Securities LLC

Detroit EFM Kevyn Orr said at press conference that there is a "firewall" between Jones Day and its clients as relates to City of Detroit debts, and that he is no longer with the firm. However, he failed to disclose that Jones Day has been tapped to be Detroit's re-structuring counsel.

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/03/19/jones-day-client-citigroup-to-pay-730-m-in-bond-lawsuit-settlement/


Detroit is being deliberately destroyed & asset-stripped.

Please stop defending this bullshit.

[badtoworse]

72. You're making my point about Detroit for me - it's been run by morons.

[El_Johns]

76. No, it's been run by people working hand-in-glove with the banksters.

[Squinch]

46. If we made our taxes even flat, which is completely unfair to the poor, though much better than

what we have now, that would not be the case.

Detroit lost its only industry. It is more appropriately compared to Bethlehem PA after the collapse of the steel industry than economically viable cities.

Call for the capitulation of unions at YOUR own peril.

[badtoworse]

52. I think unions should act in their own interest, but refusing to negotiate may not be the best move.

If the choice is dealing with a bankruptcy judge or negotiating with the city, I think I would hold my nose and negotiate.

[Squinch]

60. Detroit is not the canary in the coal mine any more than Bethlehem PA was. Both are cities that

lost their sole industry.

The choice in most cities is not dealing with a bankruptcy judge or negotiating with the city.

And the reason that some cities have seen their tax base dwindle is that their citizens are experiencing falling wages, and the wealthy whose wages are not falling are paying about half the taxes that they used to. This is caused by lack of worker influence. Union capitulation won't improve these problems.

[badtoworse]

61. Time will tell. Every situation is different

[Squinch]

62. No kidding. So we shouldn't be talking as if the only choices are bankruptcy or union capitulation.

[badtoworse]

63. That was in the context of a city going broke. Of course there are other scenarios.

You will see many states and cities getting out in front of the problem by changing plans, requiring workers to pick up more costs, etc. New Jersey and Illinois have done this and I'm sure other states and citieswill follow. In the long run, I believe defined contribution plans will replace defined benefit plans in the public sector, as they have in the private sector.

[notadmblnd]

55. Still, Detroit has enough money to subsidize yet another stadium

for a rich sob that has more money than he'll ever spend. However, for those who served the city expecting it to keep it's promise to them as part of their employment? Well that's just too bad. They'rl just gonna have to learn to do more with less because those evil unions demanded too much from poor ole broke Detroit to begin with.

[GeorgeGist]

5. You don't get to be a Billionaire ...

by being fair to your employees.

[Lint Head]

8. He cares about his money. That's it. Period. People? He could give a good rat's ass.

[joeybee12]

10. Yeah, God forbid people who disagree with him should be allowed to vote...

So let's paint workers as some nefarious underworld plot...what a worthless POS he turned out to be.

[sabrina 1]

13. He always displayed an almost Royal disdain for the little people. It always amazed me that he ever

managed to get himself elected. I know he spent millions on getting himself elected, actually bought the job, and he's probably wondering why his money has finally stopped 'talking' right now, but why any working class person would have ever voted this elitest corporate entity is beyond me.

[joeybee12]

14. Initially I think NYers were still shocked by 9-11 and he fit the bill...

They grew tired of him, but the Dems didn't seem to get it together enough to oust him...they almost did the thrid time, though, and I wish they had.

[Egalitarian Thug]

30. Kind of blows that whole New York City intellectual image, doesn't it? n/t

[Blue_Tires]

22. That's actually a real, true belief with his crowd...

[joeybee12]

28. The utter contempt for democracy is appalling...

And only going to get worse since they got away with disregarding it in 2000.

[marmar]

11. Not that it's a mystery to (most) DUers......

....... but this man is an enormous pile of hippo crap. A posterchild for the removed-from-reality 1%.

[Pretzel_Warrior]

15. what a disgusting comparison. yeah....Billionaire profiteers are exactly equivalent to

city road repair guys who make lower than average wages and in exchange for stability, solid healthcare, and a pension.

Fuck you, Bloomberg!

[ryan_cats]

25. Is this guy for real?

Is this guy for real? He implements a nanny state, sticks his nose where it doesn't belong, goes across state lines and is a billionaire to boot? I really, really cannot stand this guy. I hope the new mayor can reverse some of these draconian laws.

Not a fan Guilliani but he makes him look good by comparison.

I wonder what the folks in NYC think of his hubris?

[badtoworse]

29. Speaking as one who who grew up in Queens and works in Manhattan,...

...I think he's an asshole, but not for the reasons in the OP. I agree with your points.

[ryan_cats]

35. What do you think of the new mayor?

What do you think of the new mayor? Has he said anything about de-Bloomberging NYC?
Has Bloomberg made any noise about what his next moves are, NSA?

[badtoworse]

41. Ask me in 6 months. I don't have an opinion yet.

[Warpy]

26. Door/bang/arse.

Bye, bye Bloomie. You were better than your predecessor, but not by much and certainly not to people of color. Bugger off and count your millions, that should keep you occupied for the rest of your life.

[reformist2]

27. Umm, isn't the "people-electoral" complex kind of how democracy is supposed to work?

Sounds like Bloomie is attacking democracy!

[politichew]

31. The only thing Bloombooger gets right is gun safety. nt

[badtoworse]

32. "gun safety"? Enough with the rebranding already.

Anyone who's paying attention understands his agenda when it comes to RKBA.

[KamaAina]

59. Why am I not surprised you're a gunner?

[napkinz]

33. Billionaire Bloomberg Explains Homeless Children: ‘That’s Just the Way God Works’

Bob Cull
December 19, 2013

In case anyone needed to be reminded just how far out of touch with the common man most billionaires are, Michael Bloomberg demonstrated the breadth of that gulf with his reaction to the recent New York Times piece on the homeless, which featured an 11-year-old girl named Dasani. According to Bloomberg the fact that Dasani and her family find themselves homeless is just bad luck.

He told Politicker that she and her family were in a “sad situation,” and that, “This kid was dealt a bad hand. I don’t know quite why. That’s just the way God works. Sometimes some of us are lucky and some of us are not.”

http://aattp.org/billionaire-bloomberg-explain-homeless-children-thats-just-the-way-god-works/

[El_Johns]

38. “Michael Bloomberg is the most corrupt politician New York has seen in our generation.”

http://bloombergwatch.com/index.php/10/bloomberg-the-corrupt/

[Ken Burch]

50. To which God replied:

[Ken Burch]

49. Shouldn't that be "Adios, MUCHACHITO"?

And again...there's that corporate equation of "reform" with austerity and inequality...as if social justice and worker's rights were a form of corruption.

[Arkana]

74. Fuck Michael Bloomberg.

When he wasn't being a rich douchebag he was busy engaging in some of the worst examples of nanny-state liberalism we've ever seen--all he did was give the right ammunition.

[Dawson Leery]

77. Remember when Bloomberg and his filthy cronies assaulted Occupy Wall Street?

Drop dead mikey!

[Jackpine Radical]

78. So, to be voted out of office is to be

"Electorcuted?"