Court asked to stop Chrysler sale [Obama steals pension funds from teachers and police]

BBC ^ | June 7, 2009

[grundle]

Pension funds opposed to Chrysler's sale to Fiat have asked the US Supreme Court to block the deal immediately.

Three Indiana state pension and construction funds filed papers at the court on Sunday calling for the sale to be halted so they can pursue an appeal.

It comes after a US appeals court approved Chrysler's sale to a group led by Fiat, a union-aligned trust and the US and Canadian governments.

Chrysler entered bankruptcy protection in April after falling vehicle sales.

US carmakers have suffered from a massive slump in sales during the recession.

The US government has backed its sale to the Fiat-led consortium, which would see it emerge from bankruptcy.

Fiat would control 20% of Chrysler, while 68% would be owned by a union trust, and the two governments would share 12%.

However, the pension funds, which hold about $42m (£26.3m) of Chrysler's $6.9bn in secured loans, are opposed to the sale.

They say it inverts usual bankruptcy practice and unlawfully rewards unsecured creditors, such as the union, ahead of secured lenders.

The emergency legal request from the Indiana State Police Pension Fund, the Indiana Teacher's Retirement Fund and the state's Major Moves Construction Fund goes before Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

The judge can act on her own or refer the matter to the full court, when a vote from five of the nine Supreme Court members would be needed to put the Chrysler sale on hold.

If the sale is put on hold by the court, the Indiana funds would then pursue a full appeal.

If the deal is not completed by 15 June then Fiat, which is not paying anything for its 20% stake, has the option of pulling out.

[grundle]

Thanks for telling me about Obama referring to the teachers and police officers as “greedy speculators.”

[tommyboy]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124286497706641485.html

[sport]

The teachers, by a big majority, voted for him also the teacher’s union[s] supported him. They deserve what ever he does to them. As far as the police go, I don’t know enough about how they voted to comment.

[IncPen]

For 10 years I worked alongside unionists

Their mantra was that anything that screwed the company was good for the union

No doubt the unionists at Chrysler and GM believed the same thing

Now that they have screwed the company (but good) they wonder where their jobs went

It is immoral that Zero bailed these people out of anything and it burns me to no end that my grandkids will be supporting the retirement of union people who retired at the age of 45

[Girlene]

If the deal is not completed by 15 June then Fiat, which is not paying anything for its 20% stake, has the option of pulling out.

How does this work? Fiat gets 20% of the company for nothing???!!!

According to this article, Chrysler Appeals Court Won’t Block Asset Sale to Fiat (Update1) , the US Treasury will own 9.9 percent of the new Chrysler, the Canadian government 2.5 percent, a workers health-care trust almost 68 percent and Fiat 20 percent. Later Fiat has an option to increase its stake to 51 percent.

How will Fiat own 51% of Chrysler later?

[randita]

Therefore, because it is unions at risk, in this case the teachers' unions, he will arrange a bailout for them because of their support.

This is only one teacher's union from on state. Odds are that a majority of states are in this same situation. Are we going to have to bail them all out? It would take trillions more.

[Crawdad]

This is Marbury v. Madison stuff.

[johniegrad]

Personally, I think he will try to payback as many of his supporters as he can with taxpayer monies. There will be places where he won’t have to however. For instance, if the teachers pension funds in California were in question, I don’t think he would intervene because he doesn’t need them to carry California in the future.

[Gritty]

I didn’t realize Fiat was receiving 20% of Chrysler without investing a dime.

Given the slavish proclivities of our state run media, why should you be surprised at this convenient omission?

We are living under an absolute dictatorship.

Not quite yet. But soon. It just takes a few more building blocks and then finish the job with the economic crash.

One of the building blocks can be cemented in if Ginsburg refuses the case, essentially upholding the judicial legality of outright government abrogation of legal contracts and theft of private property.

Comforting, eh?

[Gaffer]

.....,where the government can come in and pirate the funds out a business and tell the shareholders to go screw themselves.....

Which is exactly why I pulled everything I had in the market out in October of last year when I determined this socialist was going to win. I really wish I'd done it 12 months ago.

[Gaffer]

Maybe, but that was during a time when I'd hazard to guess that everyone on the SC thought only of themselves as an American and not some hypenated-American.

Ever notice how extemely, eggregiously large heists are usually the result of 'inside jobs'? Well, I have come to the conclusion that the DEMS have destroyed this country by 'inside jobs' on the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches. It is truly a sad demise for this country. Largesse and honest inequity to extreme proportions are the only thing coming. Think French Revolution where the maniacs are now in charge. Don't even think that the most vile, sadistic, treacherous, and unlikely events as have been seen on this earth aren't possible in this country. It is coming.

[grundle]

Thank you for the link.