DocHoliday

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/14/op...dget-plan.html

Some real gems in here. Wonder whose authority some of you here will back.

__________________

khayos

Sooo much credibility...

David Stockman - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Business career
Having left government, Stockman joined the Wall St. investment bank Salomon Brothers and later became a partner of the now very successful New York–based private equity company, the Blackstone Group.[10] His record was mixed at Blackstone, with some very good investments, such as American Axle, but also several large failures, including Haynes International and Republic Technologies.[11] During 1999, after Blackstone CEO Stephen A. Schwarzman curtailed Stockman's role in managing the investments he had developed,[12] Stockman resigned Blackstone to start his own private equity fund company, Heartland Industrial Partners, L.P., based in Greenwich, Connecticut.[13]

On the strength of his investment record at Blackstone, Stockman and his partners raised $1.3 billion of equity from institutional and other investors. With Stockman's guidance, Heartland used a contrarian investment strategy, buying controlling interests in companies operating in sectors of the U.S. economy that were attracting the least amount of new equity: auto parts and textiles. With the help of about $9 billion in Wall Street debt financing, Heartland completed more than 20 transactions in less than 2 years to create four portfolio companies: Springs Industries, Metaldyne, Collins & Aikman, and TriMas. Several major investments performed very poorly, however. Collins & Aikman filed for bankruptcy during 2005 and when Heartland sold Metaldyne to Asahi Tec Corp. during 2006, Heartland lost most of the $340 million-plus of equity it had invested in the business.[14]

Collins & Aikman Corp.

During August 2003, Stockman installed himself as CEO of Collins & Aikman Corporation, a Detroit-based manufacturer of automotive interior components. He was ousted from that job days before a Chapter 11 filing on May 17, 2005.

Criminal and civil charges

On March 26, 2007, federal prosecutors in Manhattan indicted Stockman in "a scheme ... to defraud [Collins & Aikman]'s investors, banks and creditors by manipulating C&A's reported revenues and earnings." At the same time, the Securities and Exchange Commission brought civil charges against Stockman related to actions he performed while CEO of Collins & Aikman.[15] Stockman suffered a personal financial loss, estimated at $13 million, along with losses suffered by as many as 15,000 Collins & Aikman employees worldwide. Stockman said in a statement posted on his law company's website that the company's end was the consequence of an industry decline, not fraud.[16] On January 9, 2009, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced that it did not intend to prosecute Stockman for this case.

JackBauer

So nothing of substance to add?

khayos

LOL what substance is there to add to an opinion piece other than look at whose opinion it is?

So more snarky fail comments?

JackBauer

Uh, you could at least make an attempt to argue the substance of the article. Which points made by the author do you agree/disagree with, and why?

I know that's a little out of your wheelhouse, but you could at least give it the ole' college try.

patsfaninpittsburgh

He doesn't need to.

If you have zero clue who David Stockman is......you might want to actually give it the "ole' college try" and figure out who the cretin is.

Obviously, the guy tells you what you want to hear. Outside of that, there is zero point in reading the guy's work.

JackBauer

I'm well aware who David Stockman is. It's not like he's the first or last person to make these and related criticisms of the Ryan plan.

It is pretty amusing to see how difficult it is for you guys to muster up a defense of your golden boy's work.

DocHoliday

Can't believe how some people equate business record with ability to comment on politics and economics.

We've had captains of industry be treasury and fed chiefs and **** up constantly.

Anyway if his advice was so bad why did Reagan keep him?

__________________

Wolfpack

So some guy none of us ever heard of wrote an opinion piece for one of the most liberal newspapers in the country.

And this is noteworthy because........?

JackBauer

If the responses in here are any indication, Romney et. al are going to have quite the difficulty defending their odious policies to the public. Even their most ardent defenders can't muster up a cogent rationale.