Morning Bell: An Offer BP Couldn’t Refuse

[cavegal]

http://blog.heritage.org/?p=36346 

. BP is not handing over a $20 billion novelty check tomorrow. Instead they are set to pay $3 billion in the third quarter of this year, $2 billion in the fourth, and then $1.25 billion per quarter thereafter. In the meantime, BP has identified $20 billion worth of assets in the United States that the federal government now has a lien on. In the event of a bankruptcy, guess who gets to jump in line and have their claims honored first? Still guessing? Then ask Chrysler’s secured creditors.

Yesterday’s “voluntary” deal between BP and the Obama administration was nothing less than a continuation of President Barack Obama’s ongoing assault on the rule of law. Capitalism only succeeds if it is a profit and LOSS system. Well-managed firms should have every right to keep their profits, but mismanaged firms must be allowed to suffer losses. By all accounts of what transpired on the Deepwater Horizon, BP is a terribly mismanaged firm. If the damage they caused is great enough, they should be allowed to fail. Failure is a necessary component of capitalism. But this administration refuses to allow the rule of law to work. From Fannie Mae to Freddie Mac, from GM to Chrysler, from AIG to Citibank, our government continues to subvert the established rule of law. This lawlessness creates uncertainty in the business environment, and it is a huge reason why our economy is not recovering as it sho