More Smoke ... as Atlas Frowns

John Derbyshire at NRO received an e-mail from a friend in the "hedge fund" business, the contents of which tie in directly to an earlier post here today. John's post is entitled, "Atlas Frowned," and it's definitely worth reading in full, but I couldn't resist posting a couple of excerpts:

This administration has made it quite clear that they can't be relied upon to honor contracts or legal precedents and if I can't know what the rules are before the game starts then I'm not going to play. Hedge funds aren't like the banks … we haven't failed. We aren't beholden to the taxpayer to make our way. We have contractual and fiduciary obligation which we will honor. People pay us to make them money not to meet a political goal.

[SNIP]

... Geithner and Obama have been saying that they plan on balancing the budget once the crisis is past. The press may believe that twaddle about how he'll do it by "making things more efficient," but we in the hedge fund industry aren't so stupid. We've looked at the numbers and know what he's planning to do. I know dozens of people who are already putting the legal structures in place to move their companies and themselves offshore and away from the grip of the tax man. These are some of the smartest most dynamic people in the world and they'll have no trouble staying ahead of the kids from the short bus over at the IRS.

So unless Obama wants to run out of "other people's money" a lot sooner than he expected, he had better keep some people around to pay the bills. And if he keeps demonizing the productive and saying that it's their responsibility to let him spend their money on the unproductive, then we'll all be gone. I'll be working my 14 hour days is Bahrain or Singapore, and Obama can go suck eggs.

You could call this "Going Galt 2009."

Don't let your antipathy toward hedge funds blind you to the very real damage that is taking place in our economic structures. Confidence is paramount, and it is teetering.

Where There's Smoke ...

When logic fails, resort to threats.

A leading bankruptcy attorney representing hedge funds and money managers told ABC News Saturday that Steve Rattner, the leader of the Obama administration's Auto Industry Task Force, threatened one of the firms, an investment bank, that if it continued to oppose the administration's Chrysler bankruptcy plan, the White House would use the White House press corps to destroy its reputation.

The White House and a spokesperson for the investment bank in question challenged the accuracy of the story.

"The charge is completely untrue," said White House deputy press secretary Bill Burton, "and there's obviously no evidence to suggest that this happened in any way."

No doubt there is no evidence. That's the Chicago way, unless you are stupid like the former Illinois governor and assume your telephone isn't tapped.

We keep hearing reports out of the White House, or administration circles, of various attempts at intimidation that, for the most part, appear to be working.

A meeting of bankers was told by President Obama to toe the line because “My administration ... is the only thing between you and the pitchforks.”

Mr. Obama fires the head of General Motors. Without the apparent authority to do so. Yet.

The president asks a group of Republican lawmakers to the White House to discuss their ideas for his stimulus package, and then dismisses their concerns. "I won," he said. Ultimately not a single GOP suggestion made it into the final bill.

There are others.

Here's how Jim Pfaff at Politico analyzes the latest incident:

Now that the Community Organizer in Chief is in the White House, the power to use not only laws he can influence Congress to pass, but the influence of the White House itself to bring pressure upon companies and individuals who dare to question his agenda.

President Obama said in the announcement of the Chrysler bankruptcy that “a group of investment firms and hedge funds decided to hold out for the prospect of an unjustified taxpayer-funded bailout.” That was a lie. Perella Weinberg Partners–apparently one of those firms–was opposed to the pennies on the dollar deal the White House wanted to enforce.

Now that Community Organizing has come to the White House, you had better watch your back if you find you have an investment in an industry Obama wants to target next.

Exactly right.

I have no money invested in the American economy right now. I can't even imagine getting back in as long as Mr. Obama is making threats to various industries. Sadly, I suspect that this "lack of confidence" is exactly the atmosphere he is trying to create so that there is more opportunity for federal "intervention" and bullying.

It's a Catch 22 situation for those of us who believe in free enterprise specifically because Mr. Obama, the guy who invented the ACORN template, is making sure that it is not free.

His words and actions violate the spirit of the Constitution, and some are unconstitutional, but when will the Court have an opportunity to intervene, or will it take an act of God?

I know that it's not fashionable right now to have any sympathy for corporations and investors, but please pay attention to this story thread and try to remember that if Mr. Obama can take out enough of the large players in the economic game, he can pick the rest of us off at his leisure.