CIT's Rescue Is Good News

Not only was the Treasury/FDIC/Fed right in letting CIT (CIT - commentary - Trade Now) go under, but the private sector actually has a solution, albeit a short-term one, that shows we aren't totally dependent upon the government.

Of course, I think there was a private solution for Lehman, too. There were bidders for Lehman. You could regard them as stupid and ultimately troubled, a la Bank of America (BAC - commentary - Trade Now), which bought Merrill. But there were buyers.

It was the decision to not advance Lehman money from the Fed, even though Lehman was within the Fed's purview, that led to the disaster.

I am cognizant that many of the mom-and-pop competitors to the big-box retailers -- Lowe's (LOW - commentary - Trade Now), Home Depot (HD - commentary - Trade Now), Best Buy (BBY - commentary - Trade Now), Bed, Bath & Beyond (BBBY - commentary - Trade Now), Costco (COST - commentary - Trade Now), Target (TGT - commentary - Trade Now), Kohl's (KSS - commentary - Trade Now) and, of course, Wal-Mart (WMT - commentary - Trade Now) -- received CIT financing.

I know that many of these mom-and-pop retailers probably may not be good credits now but could have a long history with CIT that makes them seem less risky. I know that these are the firms that are most on the firing line right now, that are the most stretched, with lots of personal property pledged against the loans. I know that these companies are vital to the American economy.

So I am thrilled that CIT is getting financing. But the real good news is that others, albeit others who might be on the hook in some way, shape or form to CIT, saw opportunity here.

This made me feel that things aren't so bad after all.

At the time of publication, Cramer was long Bank of America and Home Depot.

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