It is frightening to some that the US government can potentially control Bank fo America and Citigroup among other banking insititutions. Yet right now the government is a major stockholder in this banks as it tried to clean up the banking mess. The White House insists when the banks are healthy they will get out and sell their shares back to the public.
It's worth pointing out that there is a precedent here. Those who remember the Savings and Loan scandal of the 80's and 90's will recall the failure of over 700 insitiutions.
Back then the government also got involved, in a mess that accordign to the Government Accounting Office cost more than half a trillion dollars and cost taxpayers 130 billion dollars. Those were shocking numbers not too long ago.

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