President Trump had not yet decided whether to rescue Spirit Airlines when two of his cabinet secretaries argued the case in front of him, with one side pitching a bailout as a midterm political win and the other warning it would look like a costly rescue of a failing company. The striking part is not just that the White House is weighing a $500 million loan and a potential 90% ownership stake, but that there is still no plausible legal authority for the federal government to do it.