States are now "too big to fail" Talks of federal bail-outs begin.

Policy makers are working behind the scenes to come up with a way to let states declare bankruptcy and get out from under crushing debts, including the pensions they have promised to retired public workers.

www.nytimes.com...

Well, it's not law. Yet. They are just in the talking phase.
But to add. . .

The 10th Amendment to the United States Constitution is a guarantee of States' rights. The Constitution designed the federal government to be a government of limited and enumerated, or listed, powers. This means that the federal government only has powers over the things that are specifically given to it in the Constitution. All other powers are reserved to the States. The 10th Amendment in the Bill of Rights reads like this:


"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."

And. . .

Why did the Founding Fathers put the 10th Amendment into the Bill of Rights? The explanation is that they did not want the central government to become too powerful. They didn't want a government that was located far away from their homes dictating how they lived their daily lives. They wanted as much power as possible to be retained in their local state legislatures.

Today, the 10th Amendment idea of limiting the federal government's power has been severely weakened by many years of gradual changes in the view of what is and what is not a federal power. The main culprits in this weakening of the 10th Amendment have been the Supreme Court and Congress itself.

Link to source
www.revolutionary-war-and-beyond.com...

My questions are many, but central is this, "If states accept federal bail-outs do they become federalized? Do they lose the strength that the 10th Ammendment gives them? And doesn't this just strengthen the government?

reply to post by beezzer

including the pensions they have promised to retired public workers

Pensions are not merely promises..
They are pre determined parts of wage negotiations..

reply to post by backinblack


I'm sure that state unions will be happy. They'll get part of the bail-out. This may be the real reason behind it as well.

Where did you get "States are too big to fail" from that??? What I read is they are going to let the States file bancruptcy and take away my retirement money! Bancruptcy is not a bailout, and for the other poster, you don't receive money from filing bancrupty you just cancel debts. So your union remark is pretty far off base.

It's ok to bail out the banks, the brokers and the auto industry but it's ok to take away the pensions of people that worked for the State their whole lives. You need to read it again.

Originally posted by damwel
Where did you get "States are too big to fail" from that??? What I read is they are going to let the States file bancruptcy and take away my retirement money! Bancruptcy is not a bailout, and for the other poster, you don't receive money from filing bancrupty you just cancel debts. So your union remark is pretty far off base.

It's ok to bail out the banks, the brokers and the auto industry but it's ok to take away the pensions of people that worked for the State their whole lives. You need to read it again.

edit on Fri January 21st, 2011 by damwel because: (no reason given)

I got the "states too big to fail", because they are treating states like GM, or banks. They are not, however, anything like that. People need to be angry at the states that made those deals. If they use tax funds, then by all rights, I'll be bailing out the states and the unions.

Our area of Pennsylvania went into hyper poverty when diary farming collapsed from the Federal Government allowing powdered milk to be imported from 3rd world countries.

The only people who aren't in poverty are the public school teachers who now are retired and living like King's on their plush retirements bilking the county poverty with high property taxes. Retired teachers and State Police built themselves mansions to overlook the poverty and sold the middle class homes they bought for cheap 40 years ago and sold them for crazy high prices to the poor generation today who will never pay those old run down chicken coop farm houses off.

This generation got robbed. If the Federal Government bails out the States...they will be bailing out State Liability for plush retirements of those that have been robbing communities all along.

The poverty...ex-middle class of America won't be bailed out.

reply to post by Pervius


What I'd tell the states is to cut spending. I'm sure many will say that a simplistic solution is not viable. But why not? Inane programs that do nothing for most yet aid a select few are providing an excuse to federalize individual states. Why bother with states representatives then. Instead, you could have an administrator overseeing the people who would be living on government property.
I know this sounds extreme, but when Obama bailed out GM, the administration fired the CEO, placed union reps on the board of directors, and dictated of all things, the Chevy "Volt".

Just an open question, what state will go first? California, Illinois, or Michagan?

reply to post by damwel


I don't know how this is all going to play out -- it's going to be painful for the "small people" anyway you cut it.

It always seems to be the people who can least afford it who take the brunt of the blow.

What really makes me angry is how in a state like California, a good chunk of this debt has been accrued by supporting a HUGE ILLEGAL immigrant population with benefits they should never have been entitled to.

As California goes, so goes the country.

SeaWind

Well the fed sent 3 trillion dollars to the EU banks so why not right?? The whole thing is completely out of control. All the fed is doing by printing up pile upon piles of money is prolonging the inevitable the collapse of the dollar. They Yen or Euro will go first but we're not far behind. All pawns in the new global currency scheme being played.

reply to post by beezzer


All of this boo-hooing about how the states are cash strapped, but I see a lot of expensive red light traffic cameras popping up everywhere, brand spanking new police and gov vehicles.

Start there stupid wasteful goberment.

This is what will lead to the injection from the fed and then overnight hyper inflation.

Sucks that what we thought would happen is literally happening in front of our eyes on a daily basis.