Pecora Commission

The 10-member commission appointed by Congress to investigate the causes of the nation’s financial meltdown holds its first meeting this morning. But with momentum for stronger regulation of Wall Street slowing and New York emerging as the center of bailout accountability, the commission may have to forgo Washington’s traditional deliberative instinct in order to succeed.
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Now that it looks like Congress will create a commission to investigate the causes of the financial crisis after all, the big question is who will be chosen for the heavy lifting. Pack an investigative commission with people who aren’t likely to aggressively dig into what went wrong, and you haven’t really done much, beyond [...]

In the wake of the Great Depression, a Congressional panel known as the Pecora Commission investigated Wall Street’s actions and set the stage for financial regulation that lasted for decades. Last week, we noted that despite calls from some on the left, a new Pecora-style probe would be unlikely, given that Congress itself undid many [...]

Mike’s piece today on the failure of Congress to pass a mortgage cramdown bill — which would allow bankruptcy judges to modify loans and is a major element of the Obama administration’s plan to deal with the foreclosure crisis –clearly demonstrates the continued clout of banks and the cowardice of politicians who regularly mouth their [...]