President Obama gave certain hedge fund manager types who held out for “an unjustified taxpayer bailout,” as he put it, a dressing down in the midst of his comments about Chrysler’s bankruptcy filing on Thursday. Needless to say, that didn’t go over so well with the targeted demographic.

The Wall Street Journal:

The comments, which came after an unnamed administration official went so far as to say the holdouts weren’t acting in the national interest, overshadowed some of the details of the historic Chapter 11 filing and news of Chrysler’s alliance with Fiat SpA (FIATY). The fact that Obama expressed his displeasure more than once during his remarks seemed to indicate he was picking a fight with hedge funds, and it didn’t play well with many on Wall Street.

“So what?” said Phil Goldstein, who runs Bulldog Investors, referring to the decision by some funds to hold out. “Aren’t you entitled to reject a deal?” said Goldstein, who has railed against hedge-fund regulation in the past.

Henry Bregstein, who is co-managing partner at law firm Katten Muchin Rosenman and who represents hedge funds, said it is possible that accepting the government’s offer could have theoretically exposed the funds that Obama criticized to lawsuits from investors.

Read more

 Wait, before you go…

If you're reading this, you probably already know that non-profit, independent journalism is under threat worldwide. Independent news sites are overshadowed by larger heavily funded mainstream media that inundate us with hype and noise that barely scratch the surface. We believe that our readers deserve to know the full story. Truthdig writers bravely dig beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that tells you what’s really happening and who’s rolling up their sleeves to do something about it.

Like you, we believe a well-informed public that doesn’t have blind faith in the status quo can help change the world. Your contribution of as little as $5 monthly or $35 annually will make you a groundbreaking member and lays the foundation of our work.

Support Truthdig
In this Article:
#bailout#bankruptcy#barack obama#chrysler#hedge fund#taxpayer#wall street