Louis Uchitelle of The New York Times got many of the financial industry’s former (and current) titans to speak on the record about their support of the Volcker rule, and why it would be good for the banking industry and America. What he didn’t mention is that their support More…
It’s a rare day in America that the government, economists and members of the media establishment will come together and tell Americans that, actually, they’re all screwed. But since today is one of those days, let’s count the ways this recession has permanently altered the American economy for the worse. More…
Gretchen Morgenson and Louise Story’s New York Times piece yesterday was a thorough explanation of Goldman Sachs’ machinations that contributed to the collapse of AIG and the government’s perceived need to jump in and pay for everything without negotiating prices.
But unless you’re well-versed in the modern minutiae More…
Sam Stein nabs a memo written by Frank Luntz — whose influence among Republican strategists is as strong as ever, given his presence at the House GOP retreat — telling conservatives how they can talk about financial reform while killing the reforms on the table right now. The gist, More…
A big statement from the senior senator from Arizona, who famously floundered at the start of the financial crisis in September 2008 by — among other things — demanding the resignation of then-SEC Chairman Chris Cox.
Our country is still facing an economic crisis and while I appreciate the service
Easily the most curious aspect of the AIG bonus scandal that captivated the country last March was that Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), who’d proposed to stop payment of those bonuses, took the fall when Treasury officials, behind Secretary Tim Geithner, swept onto the scene and altered More…
Bloomberg takes a hard look at the lobbying fight over financial regulatory overhaul and concludes that despite last week’s passage of a financial regulatory overhaul package by the House, the banks won — simply by not losing as badly as they once thought they might. Their aggressive lobbying More…
President Obama’s attempts to shame top bankers on Monday did little to make anyone think lending will suddenly flow freely and financial institutions will quit lobbying to undermine regulatory reform. And the fact that three of the nation’s top bankers literally phoned it in from New York because of early More…
It looks like the problem of banks walking away from distressed properties is finally getting some serious attention. Federal Reserve Board Governor Elizabeth Duke tackled the subject in a recent speech, Housing Wire reports. She detailed a disturbing trend TWI has been following since January 2008: More…
President Obama announced his $150 billion job creation initiative on Tuesday, which includes everything from new spending for highway and bridge construction, to small business tax cuts, to retrofitting millions of homes to make them more energy-efficient. It’s the sort of news that probably would have gotten More…
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