“I
don’t understand why my government finances my state-owned enterprise
competitors in foreign countries. . . .” Thus spoke Richard Anderson, CEO of
Delta Airlines…..Anderson’s prime target is the Export-Import Bank, which was
created 80 years ago to promote American exports through subsidies to help with
financing. But if Delta Airlines has to buy its Boeing planes at retail, and
other countries get them at discounts (through loans or gifts from Ex-Im), then
American taxpayers are putting their own airlines at a disadvantage to help
Boeing and various foreign countries.
The
issue of whether or not to continue funding the Ex-Im Bank is supposed to come
to a vote in the House in less than two weeks—but the vote is so politically
charged it may be delayed until next year. Either way, it will be an excellent
test of whether Republican congressmen are more loyal to corporate donors, who
often want Ex-Im loans, or to helping tax payers and abiding by the
Constitution…..Throughout the 80 year history of the Ex-Im Bank, it has usually
been more swayed by politics than by sound economics.,,,Under President Obama,
Boeing’s share of the Ex-Im pot has increased even more. In 2012, for example,
Boeing grabbed 82.7 percent of all loan guarantees awarded by Ex-Im–$12.2
billion out of Ex-Im’s $14.7 billion total went to subsidize Boeing’s sales…….To Read More……
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