The Man Paying the Bill Gets to Determine Who's for Dinner

In this case, it is Rep. Barney Frank. Of Wall Street bonuses, he says, "There should be a moratorium on bonuses." Just who is Barney Frank to tell private American businesses how much to pay their employees?

Well, he is the spokesman for their new minority owner, the federal government. As Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, he gets to tell these companies what to do. So does any other politically ambitious petty bureaucrat and tyrant who wants to loudly score political points at these companies' -- and the American economy's -- expense.

What unleashed these ignorant clown-bullies on America's leading corporations is their partial nationalization orchestrated by President Bush, Treasury Secretary Paulson, and endorsed by Republicans and Democrats in Congress.

The real price of the $250 billion partial nationalization of America's leading financial firms will be much larger than just this dollar amount. We are only seeing the first signs of it now. Barney Frank and his minions are just fashioning the bibs to their bellies. Their feasting on America's leading banks and investment banks -- starting with Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan, and Citibank -- has just begun.

Barney Frank claims to pay the bill for this dinner, but it is all of us who will pick up the tab. How much will it cost, not just in money, but in terms of our freedom?