Trump says U.S. must "wipe out" Puerto Rico debt

What does that have to do with monetary problems and budget allocations in Texas? The school system budgets there were cut by $5 billion dollars.

 

I understand your argument among equals, or at least states playing on a level playing field. Puerto Rico isn't a state and as a territory it is subject to congressional and general federal government meddling and oversight. Puerto Rico is not in control of its own economic destiny in the way states are. Puerto Rico isn't constitutionally protected from federal rule as states are.

Take an evening and read a little of Title 48 of the U.S. Code on territories. It's a convoluted mess.

 

Yeah, they have their savings account, and then don't use it when TEXANS are suffering, the same Texans that paid into that account - just another example of a red state soaking up more then it's worth.

Tell you what, just change your screen name to Texas Liberal and be done with it.

 

PR's debt has nothing to do with American taxpayers?

Yet it's individual investors who own most of these investments.

Only about 25 percent of Puerto Rican debt is held by hedge funds, according to Cate Long, founder of Puerto Rico Clearinghouse, a provider of research and analysis on legal and legislative efforts to restructure the island's municipal debt.

Long said there are more than 500,000 individual bondholders and likely hundreds of thousands more investors with small exposure through mutual funds. "It's mainly held in the retail sector," she said.

Retail investors have piled into Puerto Rico bonds in the past decade as they searched for investments promising higher yields. The bonds also held another lure: They are triple-tax free, meaning the interest earned on them generally is free of federal, state or local taxes.

 

The Texas budget is fine. There's no need to worry your pretty head.

 

So convoluted.

Red states pay more to Washington than blue states. Blue staters (NY, CT, NJ, CA, etc.) can deduct local income taxes from their federal income tax. They end up paying little or nothing to the federal government. But the red staters without a state income tax (like Texas) have to pay 100% of their federal tax.

Get a clue, man.

 

There's a bedrock rule in all of commerce that has been around since ancient Rome -- "Caveat emptor" -- Latin for, "Let the buyer beware!" Anybody who invested money in anything, of any kind, in Puerto Rico took a risk in return for fat returns. If that risk backfires on them it is not (NOT) the responsibility of the United States Government or any of its taxpayers to bail ANYBODY out!

We cannot do this again! We did this kind of "bailout" crap during the 'Great Recession" of nine years ago -- 'rescuing' people who were too greedy or stupid to see the signs that had been as clear as sunbeams ever since mid-2006. It was total BULLSHIT for us to have "bailed out" anybody then, and it will be total BULLSHIT if we "bail out" anybody now!

Please, Mr. President, back away from any 'Puerto Rico bailout' talk, and never go near it again....

 

Common sense goes over like a lead balloon in a room full of libs.

 

Puerto Rico is a financial disaster, mainly because its run by corrupt politicians. A bail out just creates incentive for even more corruption.

 

I'd like to think that even a liberal might not want to see a bunch of private investors bailed out of their bad Puerto Rico investments. Some guy who sucks on a welfare 'crack-pipe' for years and years doesn't get enthused at the idea of some rich jerk being considered "too big to fail" by a government run by slimebags, and 'rescued' from bad judgment and obliviousness -- just because he has 'influence' with government crudballs because of contributions and wealth....

 

Libs don't see it that way. They just want whitey to pay the poor, abused people of Puerto Rico. It's a form of income redistribution.

 

I really hope the president comes out publicly and walks this back or clarifies it quickly. Puerto Rico is going to try to hold the president to this crazy promise.

 

If PR and USVI were to default on their debt obligations this would destroy their credit rating for future funding. Since PR is $50-$75 billion in debt, we can assume they do not have the tax revenues to fund the government and nation, meaning going forward without the option to borrow money they will fail. There must be a way PR can restructure their debt, service that debt, maintain a reasonable credit rating, be able to borrow for the future, and get their financial house in order ASAP. Even if PR were to become the 51st US state, PR like all other current US states, must be reasonably fiscally responsible. Lastly, PR doesn't need $50-75 billion in cash...they need enough to fund the nation and service their debt...

 

I guess we could give the island back to spain

But I would rather fire the elected government and put them on an austerity program like I outlined earlier

 

It would be interesting to see a detailed financial report on PR. We can guess PR government overspends as we do in most US states and certainly at the federal government level so that must be in order. In the 90's Congress rolled back a business tax exemption and this led to businesses leaving along with jobs, etc. Then there's the Merchant Marine Act that only allows US vessels to transport between PR and the US which increases prices on everything and PR cannot be competitive with surrounding islands...we heard about this problem getting hurricane relief to PR. Not only has PR lost jobs but they are losing their skilled workers as they relocate to the US and other places. And Congress terminated PR bankruptcy laws, the same laws US states use today, like in Detroit and other cities, to restructure early on. Actually, I think there are a lot of people who need to be fired...

 

I thought that was more recent, like maybe in the last 5 years...?

 

Yes...Congress began to roll back the business tax exemption in the 90's and terminated it completely in '05 or '06...

 

I still thought it was more recent than that, but maybe that just shows I'm getting old if 11 years ago seemed like just 'a couple of years ago' lol.

 

I'm for the federal government working to find a solution for Puerto Rico’s economic problems, after all the feds had a big hand in creating the mess.

As to bailing out private investors, hell no! They knew that Puerto Rico (the majority of its current debt) was not, and is not, covered by the "full faith and credit" of the United States.

Further, it's been the banking, investing lobby that has written and influenced the regulations involved in Puerto Rican debt.

Cheers

48 U.S. Code § 2150 - No full faith and credit of the United States

(a)In general
The full faith and credit of the United States is not pledged for the payment of any principal of or interest on any bond, note, or other obligation issued by a covered territory or covered territorial instrumentality. The United States is not responsible or liable for the payment of any principal of or interest on any bond, note, or other obligation issued by a covered territory or covered territorial instrumentality.

(b)Subject to appropriations
Any claim to which the United States is determined to be liable under this chapter shall be subject to appropriations.

(c)Funding
No Federal funds shall be authorized by this chapter for the payment of any liability of the territory or territorial instrumentality.

 

Thank You for that quote.

Support an Independent Puerto Rico,
Now More Than Ever.

An economic sinkhole before, now and future.
And with independence lose any place in line to come to the mainland


Moi
Viva Puerto Rico liberte

 

The invester do not have to get all their money as long as the PR's suffer a lot of pain too

but the lenders are entitled to something

 

Give Puerto Rico its complete independence.

 

delete post

 

What Trump said was odd. He said that "Goldman Sach or whoever should FORGET ABOUT IT" - the billions of dollars in debt they hold. Was he saying that the banks holding the loans are just going to get stiffed?

 

California is over 1 TRILLION in debt. Do we need to just "wipe out" that debt too?