DId Chrysler "Really" repay their TARP Loan?

Using Obama math (48 States + 2 States = 57 States), the Treasury Department is claiming Chrysler has repaid their TARP loans....

From Congressman Westmoreland (GA-3) --

Washington, May 26 -

 

Earlier this week, the Treasury Department announced Chrysler had repaid its outstanding Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) loans.  According to this announcement, the Treasury Department paid a total of $12.5 billion to Chrysler – yet only received $10.6 back.  So let’s do the math:

$12.5B Loan
-$10.6B Repayment
$1.9B Still Outstanding

Is this what the Treasury Department considers repayment of a loan?  I was always under the impression that it involved paying the entire loan off – not just a portion of it.

Further down the announcement, comes the truth hidden amongst the rhetoric lauding this early ‘repayment.’ 

“Treasury continues to hold a 6.6 percent common equity stake in Chrysler. As previously stated, however, Treasury is unlikely to fully recover its remaining outstanding investment of $1.9 billion in Chrysler.”

So what they really should have announced was that Chrysler repaid some of its loans and the federal government decided to excuse almost $2 billion in outstanding loans in exchange for continuing to own a portion of the company.  I, for one, am appalled at this announcement.  Not only does the Treasury try to take the fact that Chrysler has failed to repay its loans as something positive, they have also decided that almost two billion dollars is not worth trying to recoup.  I think the Treasury Department and I have a very different idea of what success is.

David Asman with Fox Business had an interesting take on the situation as well.