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Illinois Postpones $3.7 Billion Bond Sale
As another day passes, we get another confirmation that that racist, unpatriotic, communist traitor Meredith Whitney is absolutely right in claiming that US states are beyond rescue. Illinois, which was supposed to deny all the naysayers, by successfully issuing $3.7 billion in bonds and purchase a few months of breathing space for its insolvent pension funds, courtesy of an underwriting syndicate that includes Morgan Stanley, Goldman, Sachs & Co and Loop Capital Markets on Thursday, has just announced this, uh, isn't going to happen. Reuters notes: "Illinois' sale of $3.7 billion of pension bonds has been delayed until next week to give potential buyers time to go over Governor Pat Quinn's fiscal 2012 budget, a spokeswoman for the state budget office said on Monday." And the validation for the delay just takes Goebbels to a whole new degree:
"We are receiving a great deal of international interest on these bonds. It is only appropriate to give investors time to digest the governor's budget speech which is Wednesday," said Kelly Kraft, the spokeswoman.
Could one inquire where this international interest is coming from: Greece? Portugal? Spain? Ireland? Italy? Egypt? Tunisia? Algeria? Libya? Bahrain? oh wait, it must be Saudi "on the verge of revolution" Arabia, or Ch"we just changed our food CPI weighting"ina, or Bang "stock market is down 10% for the 4th time in a month" ladesh, or, best of all, bankrupt Japan? Inquiring minds really want to know.
The logic goes that since the rest of the world rescued Illinois a year ago, before the world itself was bankrupt, the broke state can pull it off again. Uh, no.
Illinois is turning to pension bonds for a second year in a row to raise money for its payment to state employee pension funds. A $3.46 billion bond sale in January 2010 was oversubscribed and attracted buyers from Europe and Asia, according to state officials.
Since then, however, the state's deteriorating financial condition led to bond rating downgrades as Illinois ended fiscal 2010 in "the worst fiscal position in its history," according to the state comptroller.
Last month state lawmakers passed a hefty increase in income tax rates to stave off a projected $15 billion deficit heading into fiscal 2012, which begins July 1.
Perhaps if Illinois has a huge snow storm between now and next week, when the bond sale is postponed again, the state treasurer can use that good, old (anti)climatic mainstay. In the meantime, we can all just bash Whitney for telling the truth...
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China would love to buy Chi Town. Assimilation of the governing doctrine would be seamless. I say win-win.
Yep, the bribery culture in one is the same as the other; hence, no learning curve.
~Misstrial
Joe Bond Buyer has broken up with Illinois because she's a total cheat, but Illinois claims she didn't want to go out with Joe anymore anyway, so there.
They ain't truthful. A little rant on the topic with a solution at the end...
http://forums.wallstreetexaminer.com/topic/935291-truth-squad-20/
I present to Chicagoans the Chairman of the Politburo for Crook County, Your Supreme All-Knowing High Chancellor and Right Honorable Rahm "Supreme" Emanuel, Major General of the Israel Defense Forces.
Whom will save you all, in turn for your silent obedience...
This is what Meredith Whitney will look like in 30 years:
http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2011/02/the_meredith_whitney_virus.html
This is why I love photo shop. From the article you posted.
I looks like someone has been peeking at Banzai7's work. :>)
The interest is coming from Hosni "I hate those goddam Swiss" Mubarak.
I am laughing so hard, "Could one inquire where this international interest is coming from: Greece? Portugal? Spain? Ireland? Italy? Egypt? Tunisia? Algeria? Libya? Bahrain? oh wait, it must be Saudi "on the verge of revolution" Arabia, or Ch"we just changed our food CPI weighting"ina, or Bang "stock market is down 10% for the 4th time in a month" ladesh, or, best of all, bankrupt Japan? Inquiring minds really want to know."
Thanks Tyler, that was too funny.
Hell who knows, maybe they are waiting for Rahm to roll into the Mayor's chair. Rahm's got lots of loot, he will buy it all.
It just drives me nuts. Instead of cutting pensions, any legal way they can because they cannot afford to pay them and go deeper in the hole each month, they issue bonds, and make it even worse for state finances.
What is so difficult, we cannot afford to pay you these pensions, medical benefits, negotiate cuts or we will file for bankruptcy. Anyone with a set of balls out there.
Beyond words.
Spot on - where is the leadership. No wait, I'm gonna go have a fancy bottle of wine and lobster tail tonight and tag its cost onto my mortgage. Enjoy it tonight and maybe pay it off in 30 years.
Next threat is no rainfall, bringing lake levels too low, for all the escapees to get the flock out. And ODummer .....why bother.
Just rate the articles. Only 2 votes so far.
The assault on Meredith Whitney as "ludicrous, irresponsible and reckless" is so flippin assinine. Isn't it irresponsible to perpetuate the myth of how fine everything is? The collusion going on in the debt and equity markets now is simply incomprehensible . . . except that it is happening right in front of us.
I love that she is "self interested" because she touted her opinion on 60 Minutes, but it is okay for Bill Gross, PIMCO, and muni bond brokers and underwriters to call her bonkers - cuz that isn't self interest.
My oh my what dangerous webs we weave.
Hey, there's no honor in being honest! If you're going to loot, make it big n' most importantly - make it public!
(kidding aside I completely agree with you. We can't have truth these days, why, that'd cause panic)
Hu wants Chigago?
Hu's your Daddy.
Hu's my Daddy.
Hu gives a fuck?
Hu let the dogs out.
This is his chance.
Hu's on first.
Today Hu are Hu, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Huer than Hu!
whu's a chinaman ?
no, Wen......
That's nice of them. Don't want a few greedy billionaires hogging all their Pension bonds. Giving the little people a shot at owning a piece of the Illinois Pension Pie. I have a few dollars laying around that I was going to invest in some gold coins this week. Now that I know about this hot deal I'm going to use the money instead to buy Illinois Pension Bonds. Thanks for the heads up Tyler. I just hope I can get my bid in time before they are all spoken for.
the pensions might be unsustainable but before anyone cuts them, they should jail all those bailed out bankers that bribed and shafted their way into destroying those pension funds.. until you burn goldman, jpm, etc, they will continue to destroy everyone and convince you that others can persish but never them...
Now that the 'Patriot' act has been renewed, can we have roving wiretaps on Hu is interested in this IL crap?
Just shoot me now, please. And I ain't Mark.
I believe them.
You print and buy my bonds, I print and buy your bonds. Then we are in Bondage together. Gotta give them time to see if folks believe the govenor's performance or if they see it as a bunch of bullshit. If it seems plausible, buy, buy, buy.
If the Fed can buy from the Treasury (via PDs) and hold them on it's balance sheet, why can't the CBs pretend to bail each other out forever.
Fiat forever Bitchez.
I still don't know which is funnier. That the entire US debt was about 20 billion in 1933 or that the state of illinois now has that much debt.
Thank god the Fed has a mandate to keep "stable" prices otherwise there might have been ludicrous net inflation in the interim.
And our agreed safe-word is "default". Now where did that cat-o-nine-tails go?
huh?
Long term, the Treasury will introduce another fiat debt instrument to compete directly with the FRN at parity. The FRN and all previous contracts based on it will die on the vine. Yes, it is default but they won't call it out in plain English.
"Could one inquire where this international interest is coming from: Greece? Portugal? Spain? Ireland? Italy? Egypt? Tunisia? Algeria? Libya? Bahrain?"
Silly...it's coming from the Cayman Islands.
Can't Play if you don't Pay! That's what Blago said......
Ok, who want's to be Mayor????? Buy a bond.....
It is funny how the people that accurately predicted financial events over the past 15 years are shunned. The people that have missed everything over the past 15yrs are allowed to scream from the highest mountain day after day.
Paul Volcker, praised for saving the economy in the 1980s, is pushed out of office this year. People don't like the truth because the truth will hurt in many ways.
Or the truth will cost someone money. Or cost someone re-election.
The truth always was over-rated. Better just to make shit up as you go and anyone calls you on it can suck it.
If I was Whitney, I'd have cleared my calendar and told Congress I could be there in 15 minutes.
Ya, rag on those bastards. I'd even pay for it, if I had pay-per view.
Whitney was going to get grilled in front of congress for her "lies". It was a witch hunt. With Moodies, S&P, and Fitch grading all these bonds over investment grade how dare she have any other thoughts about the quality of these bonds. Congress needs the bonds to be rolled over and over always increasing in the debt size. Whitney was attacking Congress and their re-election bid and Congress can not have that.
Whitney is...(enter stage right, cue evil music)...the Bond Vigilante! She must be destroyed.
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/28/the-invisible-bond-vigilante...
Was it those fuckers that sold the city parking meters?
how do you say Chicago Cubs in Mandarin ?
"Chicago Cubs". The number one language to learn in China is english. No language barrier makes it easier when they come to collect.
shibàizhe
Curiously, it is also the same word used for Rahm, Daley, Obama as Illinois Senator, the State of Illinois, and the Illinois Teacher's Pension Fund. Isn't it odd how Chinese has so many different meanings?
Is this primary reason why Rahm "Wall St hedge fund' Emmanuel is running for mayor of Chicago
No. Rahm is running because the Sheeple of Chicago are morons, have always voted for morons, and outlawed guns so those few non-morons couldn't remove the majority.
I would think that a screwdriver in the eye socket would do the job if a gun's not handy.
"I'm here to fix your liquor cart, sir. Oooh, sorry! Better put some ice on that."
there is a connection but I am not sure exactly what it is. However all should become clear clear after (s)election on 2/22/2011
My guess is that it's the ECB who wants in. They have bought all the shit from the euros who are going under, so why not buy Illinois' debt too?
Could be Soc Gen wanting to be first in line to buy all the CDS anyone else will write.
Re: Cubs in Mandarin From Wikipedia:
UselessOldman Sac and Company? What the hell kind of name is that?
International interest is probably coming from a combination of those who own significant assets in IL and the ECB as FRB (via GS and RE) calls in a chit for the dollar swap lines.
I take it these investors know what a bond is but are more than a little confused about Illinois.
Maybe it's the domestic corporations that need a way to get their money back into the states. They just launder it through the Illnois Pension Fund Bonds.
I think it is Canada.....only they will want to move the Blackhawks to Winnipeg to complete the deal.
There are no US tanks in Baghdad!
They are hundreds of miles from Baghdad! in the east, the west, the north and the south, we are defeating them. -Baghdad Bob
Needs more teletext.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lM4WStPXEDQ
Saaay...dis is ah nice little state youze have heah...be a shame if sumpin were to happen to it eh?
Not too proud to be from Illinois now.
Governor Quinn sucks as does the true political power in the state, Mike Madigan, the speaker of the Illinois House. The both made a deal made a deal with the public unions locking in their pensions for the next few years in return for their support.
I voted for a true dip of a Rebulican in the hopes Quinn would lose. Unfortunately the right wing of the Rebublican party dominates in Illinios and they are social conservatives who would rather vote for a losing anti-abortion candidate than a middle of the road socially, fiscally conservative Republican.
Senator Kirk barely won his primary yet took Obama's seat, showing that the majority of Illinoians are reasonable and pragmatic. Too bad the the people have a hard time getting moderate candidates through their respective parties primaries. We have f*cked ourselves pretty good here in Illinois.
It will be interesting to see if Rahm breaks out the hatchet in Chicago and attacks the entrenched public and private pigs who are feeding at the public trough.
I hope the bond deal fails so the politicians have to act now.
I live in a northern Illinois community and our city budget has a 10 million dollar hole to fill and the police and fire pensions are only funded at 39 and 40 percent, respectively. Of course those same city employees are paid 77,000 and up, 9 paid federal holidays, 12 sick days, retirement age of 50, and increasing weeks of paid vacation according to years of service. But everything will be ok now because our democrat dominated state legislature rammed through the civil unions bill in the lame duck session last fall. God help us
Governor Quinn won 4 of 102 counties. Half his vote came from Chicago. The income tax increase came 10 hours before the Republicans took over the legislature.
The dirty secret -- look at WHO is going to collect those state and county pensions, and where they live. Now. Imagine what will happen if they all get told their pensions are cut in 1/2. Or zeroed out and they get a cash contribution plan for current employees.
Ah, Illinois, home sweet fucking corrupt home........
Bang De Ho Illinois needs you!
Phone rings in Chicago...
Bang Dai-Ho: Her-row, Governor Quinn? It me, Bang. Me want buy bonds.
Quinn: That's terrific Bang!
Bang Dai-Ho: First, me want know... how you pay back?
Quinn: Well, I happen to be personal friends of the president. He assures me of a bailout.
Bang Dai-Ho: Oh, me know him. He bigger pimp than me!
Quinn: Well, what do you say?
Bang Dai-Ho: Oh, must be sure thing. First, me must call advisors Yu Fat-Priku and Ya Moma-Ho.
I hope she displays the same hubris the banker CEOs did before Congress. They need a strong dose of reality.
Illinois needs to raise state income taxes 100% and property taxes 50% to pay for their insolvent state pension plans. I suspect Americans will go bezerk if the Feds bail Illinois (or any other state) out. Just my guess but people I see are still pretty upset over non-stop Bank Bailouts.
Illinois is trying to sell Bingo cards when the fat woman over in the corner of the room is already one "I-27", "N-46", or "O-61" away from winning the game.
Phone rings in Chicago...
Bang Dai-Ho: Her-row, Governor Quinn? It me, Bang. Me want buy bonds.
Quinn: That's terrific Bang!
Bang Dai-Ho: First, me want know... how you pay back?
Quinn: Well, I happen to be personal friends of the president. He assures me of a bailout.
Bang Dai-Ho: Oh, me know him. He bigger pimp than me!
Quinn: Well, what do you say?
Bang Dai-Ho: Oh, must be sure thing. First, me must call advisors Yu Fat-Priku and Ya Moma-Ho.
It's a bit of a conundrum.
On one end they are dumping revenue-neutral-or-better assets to connected parties and on the other end they are attempting to float debt. It works until demand for the worst of the worst asset dries up.
These politicians need to be reigned in. They are predictably myopic and understandably so. But that does not excuse their blatantly corrupt behavior.
Corporate LOLmerica has a, admittedly flawed (see option back-dating scandals), reasonable solution for this. If a politician promises something and it doesn't work out- claw back EVERYTHING. The promise expired worthless. If it does work out, hook'em up with whatever.
I'd bang Meredith Whitney. Any gal who calls for Citibank's demise is hot in my book. Besides, Abby Joe Cohen is taken. I think.
timmy or benny will
Looks like more Fed money laundering to me. Fed creates electronic dollars, swaps them overseas and has Euro central banks and others "buy" them for the fantastic deal they represent. When will the oppressed masses in the US stop these clowns. Oh, wait a minute, American Idol is one, I gotta go.... A government big enough to give you everything you want is a government big enough to take from you everything you have. - Thomas Jefferson
as an illinois resident my whole life, this is embarrassing. this is just a mini version of what the federal situation would look like if the fed could not issue debt with debt.
i have no interest in leaving the country... any suggestions on where to go that has decent schools for my young kids about to enter grade school?
It is not a pleasant thought of having to pay increasing taxes for services that were rendered (pensions) the past 30 + years.
They can't find buyers, and the fed don't dare to buy. Because once they do they will have to do it for the other 49 states, you can't keep that secret no matter what you do.
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