@SeanDuffyWI, author of PROMESA, chides the @FOMBPR for restructuring less than 30% of Puerto Rico's debt in over 3 years. I get it. I share his frustration and I hope he shares mine as well. Begin 🧵
realclearmarkets.com/articles/2020/…
I am frustrated that the recommendations made by the Congressional Task Force on Economic Growth in Puerto Rico-a task force mandated by PROMESA and to which Mr. Duffy belonged-were ignored by a GOP Congress for 2 yrs and by a GOP Senate for the remainder.
finance.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/…
I am frustrated that Mr. Duffy's column makes no mention of Hurricane Maria, nor of Trump's slow response which cost the lives of over 3,000 American citizens and shattered an already fragile economy.
politico.com/story/2018/03/…
I am also frustrated that Mr. Duffy ignored the 2020 earthquakes and the assistance package wish Trump threatened to veto.
washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2020…
I am frustrated that Mr. Duffy thinks it's an "illogical assertion" for the @FOMBPR to think that COVID may impact Puerto Rico's ability to pay the debt. Up to 25% of small/medium businesses could disappear for starters, but maybe he thinks it's a hoax.
noticel.com/gobierno/top-s…
I am frustrated that the economy that had started to grow in 2019 is now expected to contract in 2021.
Mr. Duffy is frustrated because Puerto Rico’s government has approximately $20 billion in cash after not paying debt service for more than three years.Yup, I get it. I too am frustrated because HUD is sitting on almost $20 billion in reconstruction funds 3 years after Maria.
I♥️ Mr. Duffy's recommendation that Puerto Rico become a pharma hub. Too bad it had such little traction in the Trump Administration beyond catchy slogans - China fired, Puerto Rico hired! - and a $10M contract for a COVID testing swab manufacturer in Aguadilla. So frustrating!
I am very frustrated that Mr. Duffy says debt reduction is key to reignite the economy but fails to explain how Puerto Ricans are supposed to grow their economy with austerity measures, no Federal investment, and a declining/aging population.
But more than anything I am frustrated by Mr. Duffy's mendacious insistence that ending bankruptcy and returning to capital markets is ALL PUERTO RICO NEEDS TO RECOVER.
A more truthful column would be titled "Creditors Have a Once-In-A-Generation Opportunity to Get Paid." The rest is someone else's problem.
