Judge lambastes deal in Wall Street fraud case
It always drives me nuts to see stories to the effect that “Corporation X agreed Thursday to pay a $500 gazillion penalty to settle federal fraud charges, but the company admitted no wrongdoing.”
Apparently, U.S. District Court Judge Jed Rakoff of the Southern District of New York agrees with me.
In a sharp rebuke to such deals, Rakoff this week rejected a $285 million proposed settlement between Citigroup and the Securities and Exchange Commission, calling the deal “neither fair, nor reasonable, nor adequate, nor in the public interest.”
As Rakoff lays out the allegations against Citigroup in his opinion:
“… after Citigroup realized in 2007 that the market for mortgage-backed securities was beginning to weaken, Citigroup created a billion-dollar fund that allowed it to dump some dubious assets on misinformed investors. This was accomplished by Citigroup’s misrepresenting that the fund’s assets were attractive investments rigorously selected by an independent investment adviser, whereas in fact Citigroup had arranged to include in the portfolio a substantial percentage of negative projected assets and had then taken a short position in those very assets it had helped select.”
In other words, it knowingly created and peddled a bad investment to its clients, and then bet against those clients that the investment would fail.
Which of course it did.
Investors lost $700 million in the deal, while Citigroup made a tidy profit of $160 million. Under the settlement negotiated with the SEC but rejected by Rakoff, the company would have to cough up the profits it earned and pay an additional $95 million fine to make it all go away.
Amazingly, the SEC chose to charge Citigroup only with negligence, rather than outright fraud. Not only was the fine it proposed insufficient, Rakoff wrote, the deal ensures that the American public “is deprived of ever knowing the truth in a matter of obvious public importance.”
“In any case like this that touches on the transparency of financial markets whose gyrations have so depressed our economy and debilitated our lives,” Rakoff wrote in his opinion, “there is an overriding public interest in knowing the truth. In much of the world, propaganda reigns, and truth is confined to secretive, fearful whispers. Even in our nation, apologists for suppressing or obscuring the truth may always be found. But the SEC, of all agencies, has a duty, inherent in its statutory mission, to see that the truth emerges.”
Rakoff went on to note that it was hard to determine what the SEC was getting from the settlement “other than a quick headline.” Citigroup was a repeat offender in such cases, “and yet, in terms of deterrence, the $95 million civil penalty that the Consent Judgment proposes is pocket change to any entity as large as Citigroup.”
To some degree, I can sympathize with the SEC’s position. The agency is grossly underfunded and has to deploy its limited resources carefully. Getting involved in a lengthy court fight with a deep-pockets defendant such as Citigroup would eat up a lot of staff time. The temptation is to cut a deal and move on.
And while the Obama administration has requested additional funding for the SEC and its sister agency, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, House Republicans have refused to approve that request, preferring to keep the Wall Street watchdogs toothless and on a short leash.
Personally, I think we ought to consider solving the funding problem by giving the SEC and CFTC a cut of the money that they recover, just as other law-enforcement agencies get a cut of what they recover in drug-trafficking cases. That’s “running government like a business,” right? If you want them to do a good job, you give them a financial incentive to do their job more aggressively.
Furthermore, since the money being recovered would by definition come from law-breakers rather than those who do business honestly, it could hardly be considered a tax increase.
But as we all know — Judge Rakoff included — that isn’t going to happen.
– Jay Bookman
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275 comments Add your comment
Jm
November 30th, 2011
2:36 pm
Adam 2:33
Blame democrats who passed the repeal and didn’t reinstate it when they had full control
Your blinders are on so tight you can’t even open your eyes
Kamchak
November 30th, 2011
2:39 pm
Unions — SQUIRREL!
GT/MIT
November 30th, 2011
2:40 pm
Adam
November 30th, 2011
2:18 pm
“Quiz time! What law was passed and then later repealed that allowed this to happen? Anyone?”
My friend the only protection in market trading is, “Caveat emptor”. One would reasonably believe that somewhere in the process business ethics would kick in, but when you’re dealing in money forget it. It has been my experience that information is the only safeguard, and only then if you’re lucky. Best advice I’ve ever had, “if you can’t afford to lose the money, keep it buried.”
HDB
November 30th, 2011
2:41 pm
Jm
November 30th, 2011
2:28 pm
From the Dallas Morning News:
AMR came close to filing for bankruptcy in early 2003, but stepped back after employees gave the company $1.6 billion in annual pay cuts and other concessions. We asked Arpey in a June interview if he wishes iAMR had filed for bankruptcy. His immediate answer: “Never.”
As to competitive advantages by once-bankrupt competitors, “I don’t feel those companies have achieved permanent competitive advantage by going bankrupt. They clearly have advantages today, but those advantages I don’t believe are sustainable over the long run.”
http://aviationblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2011/11/amr-american-airlines-are-fili.html
American’s labor costs DECLINED in 2003…….better recheck your sources!!!
Normal
November 30th, 2011
2:42 pm
“Blame democrats who passed the repeal and didn’t reinstate it when they had full control”
Incredibly partisan statement…The Democrats never had full control. If they had, there would have been no record filibusters from the Republicans. Even “Obama Care” had to be passed with the help of three Republicans.
jm, get real man
Finn McCool
November 30th, 2011
2:43 pm
And what a lot of people can’t comprehend that the investors which lost money – those who were defrauded – included their own 401k’s. That’s why they can’t connect the blame to banks.
They would rather blame poor people buying houses they couldn’t afford for the state of our economy and their own 401k’s.
Adam
November 30th, 2011
2:44 pm
Jm looks for any excuse to be against Democrats and for Republicans. Sure, Democrats HELPED to pass a repeal, but didn’t do it all by themselves and you know it.
TaxPayer
November 30th, 2011
2:44 pm
jm,
Singapore Airlines wants you to know that you can fly on one of their union-free flights whenever you are ready to depart for your oriental destination. Why wait. Book your flight today.
Jm
November 30th, 2011
2:45 pm
HDB is loco and illogical
Finn McCool
November 30th, 2011
2:47 pm
Did someone mention “caveat emptor” – buyer beware? That’s a ridiculous response to this.
Banks have rating agencies that were put in place to grade these offerings so investors/consumers knew what risk they were taking. When the rating agencies are in cahoots with the banks in covering up the depth of negative risk in these products, this is pure fraud and should be punished to the full extent of the law.
That’s why we have a legal system, a penal code and all that. That stuff isn’t just there to keep the minorities out of your yard.
Adam
November 30th, 2011
2:47 pm
Jm: HDB is loco and illogical
This is what they call “projection”
Kamchak
November 30th, 2011
2:48 pm
HDB has provided supporting links to back up his assertions.
Jm only has his mouth.
Jm
November 30th, 2011
2:49 pm
Hdb
Just go google “American airlines $800 million”
Also. Adding solar panels or wind does not reduce your electricity consumption
Jm
November 30th, 2011
2:50 pm
Adam
Clinton signed it
Own it
willie lynch
November 30th, 2011
2:50 pm
Let’s see…you admit no wrongdoing yet you agree to a settlement. Sounds familiar. For the life of me I Cain’t understand.
Adam
November 30th, 2011
2:51 pm
Jm: Just go google “American airlines $800 million”
If only I could get at least THAT MUCH out of you on other issues you run your mouth about…. I might believe you more if you actually presented AT LEAST that much when you make certain statements.
USMC
November 30th, 2011
2:51 pm
“Your blinders are on so tight you can’t even open your eyes”–jm
No, he is just weak-minded, ignorant, and full of bluster.
Jm
November 30th, 2011
2:52 pm
Adam
Rubin pushed it
Own it
Welcome to the Occupation
November 30th, 2011
2:52 pm
Jm: “Blame democrats who passed the repeal and didn’t reinstate it when they had full control”
No, let’s not.
Instead let’s blame the corrupt two-party “good cop-bad cop” coalition of Republicans and Democrats who pushed through the key deregulatory changes in the 90s. When Bill Clinton’s DLC-poster boy Robert Rubin joined with Phil Gramm for the Glas Steagall repeal, he was just continuing in a tradition of Democratic administration officials going back to the Carter administration to prove their conservative credentials.
Oh, wait, you’re not comfortable with this line of thinking?
Why is that, Jm? Why do you get off so much on perpetuating the myth that there’s some huge difference between Democrats and Republicans? Is it one of the main pillars that holds up your mental architecture, without which it might crash in, is that it?
Adam
November 30th, 2011
2:52 pm
USMC: No, he is just weak-minded, ignorant, and full of bluster.
This is, again, what they call PROJECTION
stands for decibels
November 30th, 2011
2:54 pm
“American airlines $800 million” nets you company-sponsored whingeing that only a corporate skank like Jm would take at face value.
Jm
November 30th, 2011
2:54 pm
Adam I generally ignore you not because I can’t back something up
I ignore you because you have nothing of value to say and when presented with countervailing facts you ignore them
Grow up
Adam
November 30th, 2011
2:55 pm
stands: Hush, I’m trying to guide him into presenting evidence more often before ripping him apart on substance. It might lead to actual consideration of facts before making an argument.
Adam
November 30th, 2011
2:56 pm
Jm: Doesn’t look like you’re ignoring me at all, dude.
Welcome to the Occupation
November 30th, 2011
2:56 pm
Jm 2:52 “Rubin pushed it”.
Exactly! As I just wrote, Democratic administration officials have been working dutifully since Jimmy Carter to erase any significant differences between themselves and the Republican party. The Gramm Leach Bliley affair was just the maraschino cherry on top of those efforts.
So why do you cite the fact that Rubin was a Democrat as though that ends the argument?
In fact, it just proves the fact that your argument is a pseudo-argument.
Jm
November 30th, 2011
2:57 pm
Caveat emptor is not a ridiculous response in business to business dealings
Which the citi situation likely was buy I’m not privy to the facts of the case
Normal
November 30th, 2011
2:57 pm
jm-”I generally ignore you not because I can’t back something up”… Yeah, Right.
Adam
November 30th, 2011
2:58 pm
Jm: Name check Clinton and Rubin all you want, you still haven’t made your case that Democrats, alone, passed a repeal of Glass–Steagall
Jm
November 30th, 2011
2:59 pm
Adam
I decided to flick the flea today
Go away
Adam
November 30th, 2011
3:00 pm
Jm: Go away
You first
Kamchak
November 30th, 2011
3:01 pm
…and when presented with and when presented with countervailing facts you ignore them you ignore them
If you ever present “countervailing facts”, it will be your first time to do so.
Strawman
November 30th, 2011
3:01 pm
“Personally, I think we ought to consider solving the funding problem by giving the SEC and CFTC a cut of the money that they recover, just as other law-enforcement agencies get a cut of what they recover in drug-trafficking cases. That’s “running government like a business,” right? If you want them to do a good job, you give them a financial incentive to do their job more aggressively.”
I agree, Jay. I think government in general needs to become a lot smarter about how it gets and spends money. There probably needs to be some strong safeguards (in the form of criminal liability) to prevent these agencies from extortion-like activities.
Jm
November 30th, 2011
3:01 pm
Trotsky
I don’t think there are HUGE differences
But I do think there are meaningful distinctions between the two parties
Union
November 30th, 2011
3:04 pm
stands for decibels
November 30th, 2011
2:54 pm
“American airlines $800 million” nets you company-sponsored whingeing that only a corporate skank like Jm would take at face value.
labor costs.. should never be an issue…
“In a bleak assessment delivered to members of the City Council, City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana said pensions and health benefits for current and future retirees would jump from $1.4 billion next year to at least $2.2 billion in 2015.”
“Once civilian employees are factored in, nearly a third of the city’s general fund could be consumed by retirement costs by 2015, Santana said.”
“Shortly after Santana’s presentation, the council voted to study the possibility of using employee-managed 401(k) investment plans — long favored by private industry — to provide a portion of the city’s retirement benefits.”
“Representatives of the city’s public safety unions warned officials not to rush to judgment on fixes to the pension problem.” of course they did…
USMC
November 30th, 2011
3:04 pm
Not only has Obama traveled to 57 states… now this:
Obama Does it Again Calling British Embassy English Embassy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfcY_m6tyhc
Obama is a mental midget!
Welcome to the Occupation
November 30th, 2011
3:05 pm
Jm needs to believe he lives in a world where there exists such a thing as a “liberal” which he can neatly tuck under the heading “Democratic” (never mind that 98% percent of Democrats in Washington and Georgia believe in 98% of what he believes in, he still has to have them as a scarecrow “liberal” threat).
To the rube mind, there has to exist an Other that is an imminent threat (Communist, Jew, “liberal”, Sharia-thumping Muslim). If the rubes were forced to fact the fact that things in reality don’t line up like they fantasizes that they do, their entire world would crash in.
Adam
November 30th, 2011
3:05 pm
USMC: Obama Does it Again Calling British Embassy English Embassy
Oh just post something about how he left GOD out of his Thanksgiving address why don’t you…
Strawman
November 30th, 2011
3:05 pm
Oh…and thank you for not publishing yet another column on Gingrich. Broken records are an anachronism in the present world of MP3s
kayaker 71
November 30th, 2011
3:05 pm
Citigroup…… Is that the same Citigroup that gave Bozo 736,771 dollars in contributions to his 2008 campaign? Oh, those evil Wall Street crooks, those horrible money lenders…. the Wall Street protestors go so far as to call them evil Jews. But when the rubber meets the road and some politician needs campaign funds, both parties kiss the arses of every Wall Street donor on the list, including Goldman Sachs who gave Bozo over a million dollars in 2008.
HDB
November 30th, 2011
3:07 pm
Jm
November 30th, 2011
2:49 pm
Going solar/wind decreases my energy consumption from UTILITIES……in fact, the utilities would pay ME!! Because I’d be OFF THE GRID, that is a net REDUCATION in energy usage!!!
As you referred to Bloomberg….hope that you also noted that the unions GAVE $1.6B in CONCESSIONS in 2003….so you can’t blame the UNIONS!! Management should shoulder a preponderance of the blame!!!
BTW – it’s not illogical to refer to personal experience…nor is it loco……but it’s MUY STUPIDO to attempt to marginalize someone else’s experience….as you and many conservatives attempt to do!!!
Welcome to the Occupation
November 30th, 2011
3:08 pm
Jm: “But I do think there are meaningful distinctions between the two parties”
Ok, well, needless to say, I disagree.
When you have a Charles Schumer on tv this week couching his statement about the need for more taxes with “I’m not one of those people who runs around saying ‘the rich are evil’”, then that’s a great barometer of a certain cowardice and fear.
Schumer and Democrats like him are just as much in the pocket of big finance as their counterparts on the GOP side.
Jm
November 30th, 2011
3:09 pm
Usmc
Obama is worse than that
He doesn’t know how to lead. And he doesn’t understand the real world
He is very ill suited to the job of president
USMC
November 30th, 2011
3:10 pm
Obama Admin Seals Records of Murdered Border Patrol Agent Implicated in Fast and Furious
http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/obama-admin-seals-records-murdered-border-patrol-agent-implicated-fast-and-furious_610783.html
Obama: Transparency Will Be Touchstone
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72g7qmeP1dE
TaxPayer
November 30th, 2011
3:11 pm
206,000 private sector jobs added in November. That can’t be good for Republicans.
USMC
November 30th, 2011
3:12 pm
Obama Is Less Popular Than Jimmy Carter….
http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/obama-poll-numbers-history-6604120
Jm
November 30th, 2011
3:13 pm
Hdb
Chew on this then tree hugger.
Bank of America just agrees to finance $1 billion in new residential solar projects through SolarCity
Evil evil criminal bankers……
Jefferson
November 30th, 2011
3:14 pm
So far he will be re elected because, other than hate the GOP brings no solutions to the table, they tried policies only create problems, never solve any. Why can’t you folks get someone who won’t lie and cheat on their wives ?
WAW
November 30th, 2011
3:14 pm
Couple of things: 1. The oversight of the SEC is a responsibility of Congress. 2. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act altered the 1934 rules.
Also (from wikipedia): Section 13(b)(3)(A) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 provides that “with respect to matters concerning the national security of the United States,” the President or the head of an Executive Branch agency may exempt companies from certain critical legal obligations. These obligations include keeping accurate “books, records, and accounts” and maintaining “a system of internal accounting controls sufficient” to ensure the propriety of financial transactions and the preparation of financial statements in compliance with “generally accepted accounting principles.”
On May 5, 2006, in a notice in the Federal Register, President Bush delegated authority under this section to John Negroponte, the Director of National Intelligence. Administration officials told Business Week that they believe this is the first time a President has ever delegated the authority to someone outside the Oval Office.
The Federal Reserve Bank is a private institution. The New York Stock Exchange (and now all banks, since there is no difference between an investment and commercial bank) is a SRO – Self Regulating Organization. The watered down SEC is a joke. Reinstate the Depression Era (field tested) regulations or this crap ain’t gonna go ‘way.
kayaker 71
November 30th, 2011
3:16 pm
Taxpayer,
We need 186,000 new jobs/month just to keep the present unemployment percentage that we have at 9%. We have a total of 13.1M people out of work. 206K jobs is pocket change.
Kamchak
November 30th, 2011
3:18 pm
Ooooooh, spammed twice with the same Weakly Standard story!
More cool beans!
USMC
November 30th, 2011
3:19 pm
JM
I hope Florida is suiting you well.
(glad you are down there to cancel out Mick’s marxist/socialist vote)
(Mick, I just jabbing at you, bro, totally kidding.)
Obama is the least intelligent President in U.S. history; furthermore, to add to your point, Obama has NO leadership qualities.
Obama is clearly an EMPTY suit who is in way over his head, and I hope Jay Bookman’s boyfriend, Newt Gingrich, cleans Obama’s clock in 2012.
TaxPayer
November 30th, 2011
3:20 pm
206K jobs is pocket change.
Tell that to the 206,000. I’m sure you’ll win them over with your rhetoric. Then you can share the Republican jobs plan with them. What was it again.
nelsonh
November 30th, 2011
3:20 pm
really, the judge lambasted wall street, what on earth for. I think that wall street is above reproach
USMC
November 30th, 2011
3:21 pm
How does the President of the United States confuse the British Embassy for the “ENGLISH” embassy???
Only an incompetent knuckle-dragger like Obama wouldn’t know the difference. LOL!
TaxPayer
November 30th, 2011
3:21 pm
This just in. Obama has offered the Newt a position in back of the White House, cleaning clocks.
HDB
November 30th, 2011
3:22 pm
Jm
November 30th, 2011
3:13 pm
Have you considered that B of A is looking at a possible BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY that could be a win-win for all concerned??
The problem that I have with the banks is that after the government bailed them out, they DIDN’T lend money to consumers….nor did they work with consumers on mortgages!!! Did you note how Deustche Bank attempted to evict a 103-year old woman and her 83-year old daughter from their HOME?? THAT’S the image bankers have to change!!!
kayaker 71
November 30th, 2011
3:23 pm
Out of the top ten richest people in the US, seven of them are Democrats. Gates, Buffet, Ellison, Soros and three Waltons….. Only three are Republicans, the Koch bros and Adellson from Las Vagas. Just like the evil rich Wall Street bankers, these seven contribute generously to the Democratic party. But it’s only the evil Koch brothers who get the most liberal press. Democrats of all stripes would suffer, if not for much of this big money coming to them from those evil rich people, a paragon of the dreaded 1%. Corporate jets, “not paying their fair share”, a typical liberal rant until it comes time to pay some politician’s bills. Hypocrites all.
mm
November 30th, 2011
3:23 pm
USMC,
“Obama Does it Again Calling British Embassy English Embassy”
Wow, your life must be boring. I could fill up 10 pages of this blog with the idiotic things Bush said.
Jm,
“He doesn’t know how to lead. And he doesn’t understand the real world
He is very ill suited to the job of president”
Can’t you righties find some new material?
USMC
November 30th, 2011
3:24 pm
“This just in. Obama has offered the Newt a position in back of the White House, cleaning clocks.”
Taxpayer, that was just plain funny as He!!. seriously. Thanks for the good laugh.
USMC
November 30th, 2011
3:25 pm
“Wow, your life must be boring. I could fill up 10 pages of this blog with the idiotic things Bush said.”-m&m
-you mean like 57 states??? or Corpse man???
Jm
November 30th, 2011
3:26 pm
Usmc
I’m hoping Mick will stay home.
Not likely though
mm
November 30th, 2011
3:27 pm
K71,
“But it’s only the evil Koch brothers who get the most liberal press.”
Maybe because they have private meetings with rightwing congress critters, mayors, governors, and supreme court justices.
kayaker 71
November 30th, 2011
3:30 pm
mm,
And you think the seven Democrats don’t? Man, are you out of the loop. Influence peddling is influence peddling, whether or not it is done by Ds or Rs. I don’t like any of it.
Jm
November 30th, 2011
3:31 pm
Hdb
Banks aren’t perfect
But they provide an important and great service to this country
mm
November 30th, 2011
3:33 pm
“you mean like 57 states??? or Corpse man??? ”
No, much worse. I had a calendar a couple of years ago with each day having a Bushism. Everyday started with a laugh.
Normal
November 30th, 2011
3:34 pm
“Banks aren’t perfect
But they provide an important and great service to this country”
GAWD, I hope you get paid for that prostitution…
mm
November 30th, 2011
3:35 pm
k27
You know the Kochs’ are off the chart with their shenanigans. It’s not even close.
Jm
November 30th, 2011
3:38 pm
Normal
If you understood the nature of progress and prosperity, you would better appreciate the job of banks
HDB
November 30th, 2011
3:38 pm
Jm
November 30th, 2011
3:31 pm
As I stated……banks have a major image problem……from getting bailed out by taxpayers…and NOT LENDING to taxpayers….by desiring to CHARGE $5.00/month for use of debit cards to access THEIR OWN MONEY…….
Banks….you got some ’splainin’ to do!!!
Brosephus
November 30th, 2011
3:39 pm
USMC
Glad to see you here and actively participating today. Maybe I can get an answer from you that I’ve been trying to get since the 23rd.
So Jay Bookman’s lack of Critical Thinking and entrenched hatred of Republicans and Conservatives deter him from distinguishing the difference between giving ILLEGAL ALIENS and Lazy Americans WELFARE checks and other entitlements and subsidizing NUCLEAR powered energy for the masses.
What is the difference between giving illegal aliens and lazy Americans welfare checks and giving the nuclear energy groups subisidies? If nuclear is viable, why does it need government assistance?
Brosephus
November 30th, 2011
3:39 pm
I’ll wait for an answer, although I figure we’ll have flying cars with hypersonic drive before you give one.
Kamchak
November 30th, 2011
3:41 pm
GAWD, I hope you get paid for that prostitution…
Paid?
I think that just being in the presence of their Galtian overlords is payment enough for all padawans.
Normal
November 30th, 2011
3:43 pm
jm,
Quit trying to make yourself out to be the all wise, all knowing Oz. Makes you just look silly.
Jm
November 30th, 2011
3:45 pm
Hdb
Nothing is free
And that’s a good thing
Mad Max
November 30th, 2011
3:45 pm
TaxPayer
November 30th, 2011
3:20 pm
how about building the pipeline, opening the Gulf to offshore drilling and letting Boeing put their plant in South Carolina for starters instead of trying to falsely prop up government workers by “redistribution”.
kayaker 71
November 30th, 2011
3:46 pm
Brocephus,
If you can’t see the difference between the two….. Illegals should not even be here, much less getting any kind of government assistance. But they are breaking CA…. close to 30B in the tank and much of it from subsidizing a group that has entered this country illegally. Subsidizing nuclear power plants helps everyone who uses electrical power, those that work for a living and those who don’t and reaches a much more broad base than just the hangers on. If it came to a choice between the two, I would cease both.
USMC
November 30th, 2011
3:47 pm
“I’m hoping Mick will stay home.”–JM
Don’t count on it. The DemocRats get bused in by the unions with promise of a free meal, etc.
Adam
November 30th, 2011
3:51 pm
USMC: The DemocRats get bused in by the unions with promise of a free meal, etc.
Really? Where do I sign up?
USMC
November 30th, 2011
3:51 pm
GINGRICH 45 OBAMA 43
Union
November 30th, 2011
3:53 pm
mm
November 30th, 2011
3:23 pm
“Can’t you righties find some new material?”
you mean like this?……
“While President Barack Obama’s 43 percent job-approval rating on the poll results Gallup released Tuesday shows an improvement over the 40 percent score he got a few weeks earlier, his shot at winning re-election looks uncertain considering that at this point in his term, even presidential pariah Jimmy Carter did better.”
Normal
November 30th, 2011
3:53 pm
USMC@ 3:47,
Are you trying to compete with jm for the most inane statement of the day?
Kamchak
November 30th, 2011
3:54 pm
This just in: Bookman’s blog is being spammed by gooey Drudgey goodness again. Multiple times.
Strawman
November 30th, 2011
3:55 pm
“What is the difference between giving illegal aliens and lazy Americans welfare checks and giving the nuclear energy groups subisidies?”
Not that I am in favor of subsidizing nuclear energy (or solar energy or GM or any other business) , but it should be evident that this would potentially benefit all people rather than a few. So if you are going to give away money, might as well do it equitably. But to your point, both forms of subsidies reinforce bad behavior and that is the main problem, as I see it, with government as it now exists: inefficiency and waste everywhere.
TaxPayer
November 30th, 2011
3:55 pm
how about building the pipeline, opening the Gulf to offshore drilling and letting Boeing put their plant in South Carolina for starters instead of trying to falsely prop up government workers by “redistribution”.
There are pipelines all over the place, even Alaska — I think BP operates that one. Then, there is offshore drilling going on all over the Gulf (I think there are thousands of wells out there) as well as other places. Finally, who is preventing Boeing from building a plant in South Carolina. Do you have a name.
Steve - USA
November 30th, 2011
3:55 pm
Good lord….just seeing Gingrich vs. Obama makes me nauseous. Two equally incompetent jokes.
TaxPayer
November 30th, 2011
3:57 pm
Jm,
That stuff you post better be free because no one is going to pay you for it.
Peadawg
November 30th, 2011
3:58 pm
“Good lord….just seeing Gingrich vs. Obama makes me nauseous. Two equally incompetent jokes.”
Amen.
kayaker 71
November 30th, 2011
3:58 pm
USMC,
That same Gallup pol also stated that Bozo had gone from a 40% Independent voter approval to a 30% voter approval in the last month. That’s the folks that elect presidents. He is presently lower than Carter’s all time average of 45.5%, at 43%, his lowest since he took office.
TaxPayer
November 30th, 2011
4:00 pm
What is that House approval rating under Boehner. Now there’s something for him to cry about.
HDB
November 30th, 2011
4:03 pm
Jm
November 30th, 2011
3:45 pm
AIR is free…..SUNLIGHT is free…..RAIN is free!! Without these free things, humans can’t exist…for rain, sunlight and air help create the FOOD we eat!! Certain things in life ARE free……
Steve - USA
November 30th, 2011
4:07 pm
HDB,
Damn BP charged me a $1 to fill my tires with air yesterday.
BTW – Have you done the solar or just looking into it? You going to buy a system or build your own?
PS – I hope you are not going to use those evil Federal Tax Credits that the rich use.
Recon 0311 2533
November 30th, 2011
4:08 pm
He is presently lower than Carter’s all time average of 45.5%, at 43%, his lowest since he took office.
He could get lower than a starving snake and the left on here will still say that he’ll win in 012.
What is that House approval rating under Boehner. Now there’s something for him to cry about.
Check out Rasmussen…The majority of voters trust Republicans more with the economy than they do Democrats.
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TaxPayer
November 30th, 2011
4:09 pm
Congress Approval Rating Lower Than Porn, Polygamy, BP Oil Spill, ‘U.S. Going Communist’
Adam
November 30th, 2011
4:10 pm
I’m out for the day. Peace.
carlosgvv
November 30th, 2011
4:11 pm
When I started to read this, it seemed certain that the Republicans were somehow involved. When I read, near the end, that the Obama administration has requested additional funding for the SEC but “House Republicans have refused to approve that request” my suspicions were confirmed. There is a reason the Republican Party is known as the party of the rich. It makes sense to support those who fund your election and re-election campaigns. What makes no sense is how, even though they openly and brazenly support only the rich, they have so much middle-class support.
Jm
November 30th, 2011
4:15 pm
Jay
Who were the Investors?
Retail or institutional?
Stevie Ray
November 30th, 2011
4:15 pm
JM,
I appreciate the jobs of banks but am of the opinion that we got gloriously screwed by the bail-outs and turning a blind eye to the idiotic risk taking these folks assumed with non-qualified mortgages. The taxpayers got no agreement for a % of the bailouts to be guaranteed to be put into commerce. The only reason the loans were issued was that the banks knew they could lay them off with the malpractice of Standards and Moody’s and/or insure them as a short via AIG and the like.
Banks, unions, pharma, defense contractors et al are simply too close to government…so much so that our interests are well subordinated to the financial interests (including re-election) of our corruptresentatives and these powerful lobbyists…
Paul
November 30th, 2011
4:20 pm
Jay
A judge with character who puts the public interest ahead of corporate interests. Refreshing.
And it’s a fine idea on how to supplement funding for the agencies. You are correct – it is a business model. So why won’t Republicans go along? Hmmm… must want to protect someone.
Only one criticism of the judge, Jay. Nowhere did he take the opportunity to lambast Barney Frank for forcing Citigroup to buy those securities. Such an ignorant oversight…. sigh…
TaxPayer
November 30th, 2011
4:20 pm
Generic Congressional vote has the Dem getting elected over the Republican. How many other Republicans is McConnell willing to sacrifice to get rid of Obama.
GT/MIT
November 30th, 2011
4:23 pm
Finn McCool
November 30th, 2011
2:47 pm
“Did someone mention “caveat emptor” – buyer beware? That’s a ridiculous response to this.”
Finn ole buddy, the only ridiculous thing involved here, might be that you really think the market is otherwise. My advice to you is, invest your money in canned goods. That way you’ll at least have something to eat for a little while.