I can’t believe Bank Of America caved to public pressure over the laid off workers who staged a sit-in in Illinois.

The Republic Windows & Doors factory suddenly closed last week and the workers were laid off without their severance or health insurance.

Believing Republic was in violation of their contracts and state employment law, the workers staged a sit-in at the factory and refused to leave the premises until they got their money.

The reason Republic had to close was because Bank Of America refused to give them a loan. The reason they refused is because Republic is broke and can’t pay it back — which is how this whole financial mess started to begin with. Giving people loans who cannot pay them back is absurd.

Yesterday, Gov. Blagojevich visited the plant and the outraged workers. Afterwords, he called on Bank of America to “do the right thing” and give Republic some money. He then went further and called for all state agencies to refuse to do business with B of A until they extend credit to the failing business.

Incredibly, B of A announced today that it’s caving to the workers and will extend credit to a business that can’t pay it back. Which means it’s not actually credit but instead a gift.

What really brings this whole episode into razor sharp clarity is this morning’s arrest of Gov. Blagojevich on corruption and bribery charges. We now know the reason he gave such full-throated and absurd support to the workers — he was hoping to get a cushy job with a labor union in return for Obama’s vacated senate seat.

He was trying to show he was a union man by calling for a boycott of B of A, but in reality the governor is just a corrupt scumbag who’s looking at serious prison time.

Obviously, I feel bad for the workers. Nobody wants to lose their job — I certainly don’t. However, when a business fails — it fails. When did it become a rule that regardless of how your business performs — you have a right to keep that business operating? Even if your business can’t make money, the government will keep you in business just for the sake of keeping you in business?

I don’t know what that’s about, but what I do know is that Bank of America set a dangerous presidence by caving to Republic Windows & Doors.