One of the finest illustrations I have seen of the difference between normal people and the politicians who infest Washington is an initial report on the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
As we know, normal people are delighted to run across distressed home owners. While feigning sorrow, we buy their houses for 80 cents on the dollar, and celebrate our good fortune. Sure, we feel sorry for the seller, but only for 10 seconds or so.
Politicians, who are not playing with their own money, apparently take a different view. Elizabeth Warren, chairwoman of the Congressional Oversight Panel, overseeing the TARP transactions, testified to the Senate Banking Committe on Thursday that the U.S. Treasury Department paid $254 billion for assets that were worth $176 billion at the time of the transactions in 2008.
Instead of underpaying for distressed assets, Treasury overpaid.
By my calculation, the sellers now owe the politicians $78 billion in campaign contributions, but I'm sure they'll settle for less.
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