Par for the course. Reflate those popped tires and keep driving towards that vast chasm in the distance.
February 28, 2007 – Dow Jones @ 12,268
March 13th, 2007 – Henry Paulson: “the fallout in subprime mortgages is “going to be painful to some lenders, but it is largely contained.”
March 28th, 2007 – Ben Bernanke: “At this juncture . . . the impact on the broader economy and financial markets of the problems in the subprime markets seems likely to be contained,”
March 30, 2007 – Dow Jones @ 12,354
April 20th, 2007 – Paulson: “I don’t see (subprime mortgage market troubles) imposing a serious problem. I think it’s going to be largely contained.” , “All the signs I look at” show “the housing market is at or near the bottom,”
April 30, 2007 – Dow Jones @ 13,063
May 17th, 2007 – Bernanke: “While rising delinquencies and foreclosures will continue to weigh heavily on the housing market this year, it will not cripple the U.S.”
May 31, 2007 – Dow Jones @ 13,627
June 20th, 2007 – Bernanke: (the subprime fallout) “will not affect the economy overall.”
July 12th, 2007 – Paulson: “This is far and away the strongest global economy I’ve seen in my business lifetime.”
August 1st, 2007 – Paulson: “I see the underlying economy as being very healthy,”
October 15th, 2007 – Bernanke: “It is not the responsibility of the Federal Reserve – nor would it be appropriate – to protect lenders and investors from the consequences of their financial decisions.”
December 31, 2007 – Dow Jones @ 13,265
January 31, 2008 – Dow Jones @ 12,650
February 14th, 2008 – Paulson: (the economy) “is fundamentally strong, diverse and resilient.”
February 28th, 2008 – Paulson: “I’m seeing a series of ideas suggested involving major government intervention in the housing market, and these things are usually presented or sold as a way of helping homeowners stay in their homes. Then when you look at them more carefully what they really amount to is a bailout for financial institutions or Wall Street.”
February 29th, 2008 – Bernanke: “I expect there will be some failures. I don’t anticipate any serious problems of that sort among the large internationally active banks that make up a very substantial part of our banking system.”
March 16th, 2008 – Paulson: “We’ve got strong financial institutions . . . Our markets are the envy of the world. They’re resilient, they’re…innovative, they’re flexible. I think we move very quickly to address situations in this country, and, as I said, our financial institutions are strong.”
March 18th, 2008 – Bear Stearns Bailout Announced
May 7, 2008 – Paulson: ‘The worst is likely to be behind us,”
May 16th, 2008 – Paulson: “In my judgment, we are closer to the end of the market turmoil than the beginning,” he said.
May 30, 2008 – Dow Jones @ 12,638
June 9th, 2008 – Bernanke: Despite a recent spike in the nation’s unemployment rate, the danger that the economy has fallen into a “substantial downturn” appears to have waned,
July 16th, 2008 – Bernanke: (Freddie and Fannie) “…will make it through the storm”, “… in no danger of failing.”,”…adequately capitalized”
July 20th, 2008 – Paulson: “it’s a safe banking system, a sound banking system. Our regulators are on top of it. This is a very manageable situation.”
July 31, 2008 – Dow Jones @ 11,378
August 10th, 2008 – Paulson: “We have no plans to insert money into either of those two institutions.” (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac)
September 8th, 2008 – Fannie and Freddie nationalized. The taxpayer is on the hook for an estimated 1 – 1.5 trillion dollars. Over 5 trillion is added to the nation’s balance sheet.
September 16th, 2008 – $85 Billion AIG Bailout “Loan”
September 19th, 2008 – $700 Billion Bailout Plan Announced
September 19th, 2008 – Paulson: “We’re talking hundreds of billions of dollars – this needs to be big enough to make a real difference and get at the heart of the problem,” he said. “This is the way we stabilize the system.”
September 19th, 2008 – Bernanke: “most severe financial crisis” in the post-World War II era. Investment banks are seeing “tremendous runs on their cash,” Bernanke said. “Without action, they will fail soon.”
September 21st, 2008 – Paulson: “The credit markets are still very fragile right now and frozen”, “We need to deal with this and deal with it quickly.”, “The financial security of all Americans … depends on our ability to restore our financial institutions to a sound footing.”
September 23rd, 2008 – Paulson: “We must [enact a program quickly] in order to avoid a continuing series of financial institution failures and frozen credit markets that threaten American families’ financial well-being, the viability of businesses, both small and large, and the very health of our economy,”
September 23rd, 2008 – Bernanke: “My interest is solely for the strength and recovery of the U.S. economy,”
October 31, 2008 – Dow Jones @ 9,337
March 31, 2009 – Dow Jones @ 7,609From
Posted by nahnopenotquite 
Posted by nahnopenotquite 
Posted by nahnopenotquite 
