Bloomberg News' Rachel Layne and Rebecca Christie have all the gory details of the federal government's $139 billion gift to GE Capital. Headline: "GE Wins FDIC Insurance for Up to $139 Billion in Debt."
$139 billion going into the same fungible pot of money that pays for NBC News, CNBC and MSNBC--neat! Where do all the other news outlets go to get such a cash infusion?
The Cable Gamer has been following this story for a week now. As I wrote, "The Fix is In." And I hate to say, I was right. Here are the key points from the Bloomberg story:
General Electric Co. said the U.S. government agreed to insure as much as $139 billion in debt for lending arm GE Capital Corp., the second time in a month it has turned to a federal program designed to help companies during a global credit crunch.
Granting GE Capital, which isn’t a bank, access to a new Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. program may reassure investors and help the unit compete with banks that already have government protection behind their debt, said Russell Wilkerson, a spokesman for the Fairfield, Connecticut-based company. Coverage would be for about $139 billion, or 125 percent of total senior unsecured debt outstanding as of Sept. 30 and maturing by June 30.
Nice work, Keith Olbermann! Your candidate, Barack Obama, won the election, and now you parent company, GE reaps huge benefits. You've earned your big new paycheck.
In fact, more than earned it. Way more.
