JasonC

Bailout Talks Lose Sight of the Cost Question

tvb is correct, most of the present value comes in the form of the continuing interest payments on the solvent loans in the set and the early ones in particular.

As for the cost, people hopelessly clueless on the entire concept! The Treasury earns $480 billion a year in tax revenue from the financial sector. That is the golden goose. Cut it in half and the present value loss to the US treasury is on the order of $6.5 trillion. Not to mention externalities in the rest of the economy, which the government draws 20% of every which way.

You can't improve government finances by beggaring the citizenry.