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I like to pile up on Wilbur Ross as much as the next guy but I’m genuinely curious about that one. I understand that many people involved will be paid once the situation is resolved and that no one expects the US government to crumble in the near time.

Surely, an enterprising bank manager would love to offer (Federally?) guaranteed loans given the circumstances. There has been an explosion of peer-to-peer lending in the last decade, often supported by social bonds from professional relations; they could step up in theory. Charities give, but surely many Americans (less bleeding-heart) would love to make 1% over they spare savings the next weeks if it meant supporting deserving worker, and it came supported by a reassuring institution. Surely make-a-buck-when-you-can is more American than the American Dream itself.

I know very little about lending; I’ve never been in the US for longer than ten days at a time; I’ve never experienced financial hardship and I’ve never managed a bank, so I’m very willing to say that I’m not qualified to know.

What is preventing all those initiatives from unblocking the situation?



The loans wouldn't be federally guaranteed, for any meaningful definition of the phrase.

If you're deemed to be credit-worthy it doesn't really matter, and if you're not it doesn't really matter if you have a federal job. The federal government won't be paying back the banks if the employees fail to pay the loans back.




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