It's recently been revealed that the Senate Democrats, in a parting gift to Chris Dodd, the resigning Democrat from Connecticut, covered up just how many sweetheart mortgage loans he received as a "Friend of Angelo" Mozillo.
It's been known for some time that Dodd and Kent Conrad received such loans, though both continually denied knowing so.
Now, it's become public that Dodd received, according to the Wall Street Journal,
"as many as six VIP loans, including refinancings, from Countrywide Financial, not just the two in 2003 that triggered the investigation."
We apparently won't know whether Kent Conrad was similarly favored, because the ethically-challenged Republican Senate leadership made a deal to submarine any more details of the Countrywide VIP program.
As much as many of us loathe the Democrats in Congress, this deal makes it clear why we also have plenty of that hatred left for Mitch McConnell and John Boehner, too.
Showing posts with label Christopher Dodd. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christopher Dodd. Show all posts
Monday, August 23, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
FINREG Put On Hold
Thank God for small miracles.
Yesterday's attempt by Senate Democrats to rush corrupt retiring Senator Chris Dodd's badly-written FINREG bill to debate and subsequent passage failed, 57-41.
Senate Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell succeeded in keeping his party together, and even added Democrat Ben Nelson, in opposition to this mistaken attempt to pass flawed legislation before Congress' own appointed outside panel delivers its verdict on what happened in the financial sector to cause the market crisis of two years ago.
Sometimes, it seems, the right thing does happen in politics. Even in the Senate.
Yesterday's attempt by Senate Democrats to rush corrupt retiring Senator Chris Dodd's badly-written FINREG bill to debate and subsequent passage failed, 57-41.
Senate Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell succeeded in keeping his party together, and even added Democrat Ben Nelson, in opposition to this mistaken attempt to pass flawed legislation before Congress' own appointed outside panel delivers its verdict on what happened in the financial sector to cause the market crisis of two years ago.
Sometimes, it seems, the right thing does happen in politics. Even in the Senate.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
The Incredible Folly of Chris Dodd 'Reforming' Anything
It was enough to make you vomit.
Yesterday, 'doddering' Chris Dodd, chased into retiring from the Senate for both his ethics violations and inept handling of his chairmanship of the Senate committee overseeing the financial sector, was bloviating about his newly-released bill to overhaul regulation of the financial services sector.
Here's a very simple way to view this joke.
Why should a guy who botched the oversight of this sector be in any way involved in its so-called 'reform?'
In fact, why should any Democrat or Republican who served on the committee over term from, say, 2000-2007 be involved? Why are any of those nitwits even still on the committee?
Yes, including Richard Shelby. After all, Greenspan's initial mistakes in maintaining the low interest rates which stoked the mortgage boom which led to the crisis occurred during a period of Republican majority in the Senate.
In the private sector, you generally fire the failed CEO or functional executive, then bring in someone more competent to fix problems.
In the Congress, you make the idiot chairman and let him try to pass his own stupid ideas.
In Dodd's case, the moron isn't even returning to the Senate next year! Who actually takes any of his moronic ideas seriously? He's one of the idiots who let himself be bribed by sweetheart mortgages from Angelo Mozillo at Countrywide to look the other way as poor quality mortgages were orginated and fed into Fannie and Freddie.
Rather than cover his self-important press conference on the matter, then have him on air this morning, gushing worshipful tones at the jerk, CNBC should have instead announced yesterday,
'Senator Dodd, who is resigning after this term ahead of a thrashing from his GOP opponent in November, is releasing a bill he authored on financial sector reform. However, our network has decided, in view of Dodd's disastrous oversight of the sector, that he could not possibly have anything of value to express on the topic. So we won't be bothering to cover his announcement.'
It's an insult to the American voters that Dodd is even proposing this bill, let alone that any media outlet would actually cover it.
Yesterday, 'doddering' Chris Dodd, chased into retiring from the Senate for both his ethics violations and inept handling of his chairmanship of the Senate committee overseeing the financial sector, was bloviating about his newly-released bill to overhaul regulation of the financial services sector.
Here's a very simple way to view this joke.
Why should a guy who botched the oversight of this sector be in any way involved in its so-called 'reform?'
In fact, why should any Democrat or Republican who served on the committee over term from, say, 2000-2007 be involved? Why are any of those nitwits even still on the committee?
Yes, including Richard Shelby. After all, Greenspan's initial mistakes in maintaining the low interest rates which stoked the mortgage boom which led to the crisis occurred during a period of Republican majority in the Senate.
In the private sector, you generally fire the failed CEO or functional executive, then bring in someone more competent to fix problems.
In the Congress, you make the idiot chairman and let him try to pass his own stupid ideas.
In Dodd's case, the moron isn't even returning to the Senate next year! Who actually takes any of his moronic ideas seriously? He's one of the idiots who let himself be bribed by sweetheart mortgages from Angelo Mozillo at Countrywide to look the other way as poor quality mortgages were orginated and fed into Fannie and Freddie.
Rather than cover his self-important press conference on the matter, then have him on air this morning, gushing worshipful tones at the jerk, CNBC should have instead announced yesterday,
'Senator Dodd, who is resigning after this term ahead of a thrashing from his GOP opponent in November, is releasing a bill he authored on financial sector reform. However, our network has decided, in view of Dodd's disastrous oversight of the sector, that he could not possibly have anything of value to express on the topic. So we won't be bothering to cover his announcement.'
It's an insult to the American voters that Dodd is even proposing this bill, let alone that any media outlet would actually cover it.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Lame Duck Chris Dodd Goes It Alone
Ready for some rich political humor?
Lame ducky Democratic Senator Chris Dodd is attracting all sorts of media attention as he attempts to push a massive, comprehensive financial sector regulatory bill through the chamber.
In an election year, when he isn't even running, having been effectively driven from office by scandals involving his lax oversight of the very sector he presumes to know how to re-regulate, does anyone really believe the pig in question will pass?
It's been criticized for being too sweeping, too naive in assuming that scrambling regulatory chairs will make a difference, and including simply wrong-headed remedies which will, in time, constrict consumer access to credit.
Yesterday, Republican Senator Bob Corker called a press conference to lament that health care issues had supplanted financial regulatory reform in importance. That the bill died a few yards' of consensus.
Dodd then trotted out and declared the bill not to be dead. On the other hand, sources generally reported that the garbage Dodd will present on Monday is not a bi-partisan product.
So let me get this straight. The Democrats now have only 59 votes in a Senate that requires 60 to pass legislation. Dodd is retiring and has no more pull. He's been disgraced by his own inept performance on the Committee he now chairs.
He has no Republican allies co-sponsoring the bill.
It's a tumultuous election year that could quite possibly see both Houses changing party majorities.
And Chris Dodd thinks he has a bill, all on his own, that can pass?
Now, that's funny.
Lame ducky Democratic Senator Chris Dodd is attracting all sorts of media attention as he attempts to push a massive, comprehensive financial sector regulatory bill through the chamber.
In an election year, when he isn't even running, having been effectively driven from office by scandals involving his lax oversight of the very sector he presumes to know how to re-regulate, does anyone really believe the pig in question will pass?
It's been criticized for being too sweeping, too naive in assuming that scrambling regulatory chairs will make a difference, and including simply wrong-headed remedies which will, in time, constrict consumer access to credit.
Yesterday, Republican Senator Bob Corker called a press conference to lament that health care issues had supplanted financial regulatory reform in importance. That the bill died a few yards' of consensus.
Dodd then trotted out and declared the bill not to be dead. On the other hand, sources generally reported that the garbage Dodd will present on Monday is not a bi-partisan product.
So let me get this straight. The Democrats now have only 59 votes in a Senate that requires 60 to pass legislation. Dodd is retiring and has no more pull. He's been disgraced by his own inept performance on the Committee he now chairs.
He has no Republican allies co-sponsoring the bill.
It's a tumultuous election year that could quite possibly see both Houses changing party majorities.
And Chris Dodd thinks he has a bill, all on his own, that can pass?
Now, that's funny.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
What Democrats Like Kent Conrad Don't Get
This morning held some big political news if you are a conservative. Two of the most-hated most liberal Democratic Senators, Dodd of CT and Dornigan of ND, announced their retirement.
Dornigan's fellow Democratic Senator from ND, Kent Conrad, made an absolute fool of himself this morning on CNBC, waxing on about how great a loss for the country it is that Doddering Chris Dodd, bribe-taker extraordinaire, is leaving the Senate.
Now, Conrad himself is also implicated in the 'Friends of Angelo' Countrywide sweetheart mortgage loans. But it was stomach-turning to listen to him extol Dodd's "institutional memory" and being so crucial to the financial sector.
Honestly, if it weren't for Dodd, perhaps we wouldn't have even had the financial meltdown. Dodd was key in letting Fannie and Freddie loose to bulk up by securitizing risky mortgages.
That Conrad can't see Dodd, or himself, as the problem, and actually thinks Dodd added value while in the Senate, shows how big a problem we have in Washington.
Conrad is so clueless as to fail to see how Dodd's own constituents have finally had enough of him. He's only "retiring," of course, because he faced a pasting from the wife of the owner of the World Wrestling Federation.
I guess that was going to be too much for Dodd to handle.
Dornigan's fellow Democratic Senator from ND, Kent Conrad, made an absolute fool of himself this morning on CNBC, waxing on about how great a loss for the country it is that Doddering Chris Dodd, bribe-taker extraordinaire, is leaving the Senate.
Now, Conrad himself is also implicated in the 'Friends of Angelo' Countrywide sweetheart mortgage loans. But it was stomach-turning to listen to him extol Dodd's "institutional memory" and being so crucial to the financial sector.
Honestly, if it weren't for Dodd, perhaps we wouldn't have even had the financial meltdown. Dodd was key in letting Fannie and Freddie loose to bulk up by securitizing risky mortgages.
That Conrad can't see Dodd, or himself, as the problem, and actually thinks Dodd added value while in the Senate, shows how big a problem we have in Washington.
Conrad is so clueless as to fail to see how Dodd's own constituents have finally had enough of him. He's only "retiring," of course, because he faced a pasting from the wife of the owner of the World Wrestling Federation.
I guess that was going to be too much for Dodd to handle.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Inmates Redesign The Asylum- Barney Frank & Chris Dodd's Bogus New Financial Regulatory Vision
I recently wrote this post discussing the stealth approach that House and Senate Democrats are taking with their financial sector regulatory "reform" bills.
What I didn't adequately touch on in that piece is the very perverse prospect of two of the major architects of the recent US financial services sector's crisis claiming to be capable of redesigning regulatory and related elements to prevent future occurrences of such problems.
Let's recall the facts. Barney Frank personally drove Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase higher proportions of option ARM, low-doc, no-doc and, generally, poorer-quality mortgages from the private sector. Chris Dodd and fellow Democratic Senator and Finance Committee member Kent Conrad both accepted sweetheart loans from Countrywide, Angelo Mozillo's mortgage finance company, while failing to adequately supervise and rein in the growth of poor quality, often improperly documented mortgage loans. Both also failed to act on Bush administration concerns regarding the explosive growth of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac through guarantees of bonds backed by the poor quality loans.
Oh, and, by the way, Barney Frank, to my knowledge, has never addressed the contetion that a person with whom he was romantically involved was a lobbyist involved with Fannie Mae. I'm sure it's irrelevant.
Now, these Congressional worthies would have us believe that, having been instrumental in wrecking the residential finance sector and, by extension, the entire US finance sector, they are in a position to tell us how to organize, supervise and regulate the sector in the future to avoid similar calamities.
Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, they overlook the rather simpler, more obvious solution, i.e., fewer government guarantees and less inept regulation.
If Fed, FDIC, OCC and other regulators had done their job in the first place, Frank's and Dodd's judgemental errors and political favoritism would have been stopped in their tracks. Unfortunately, our vast, overmanned and overly-complicated bank regulatory system failed in its primary mission.
Shouldn't that have triggered a more cold-eyed look at how the current players failed in their regulatory oversight jobs, rather than simply layering on more and more complicated rules, classifications and regulations?
How many people believe that, if someone failed to do their job in the first place, the right solution is to give them increased responsibilities and hope for a better outcome next time around?
Well, evidently, at least two- Frank and Dodd.
What I didn't adequately touch on in that piece is the very perverse prospect of two of the major architects of the recent US financial services sector's crisis claiming to be capable of redesigning regulatory and related elements to prevent future occurrences of such problems.
Let's recall the facts. Barney Frank personally drove Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase higher proportions of option ARM, low-doc, no-doc and, generally, poorer-quality mortgages from the private sector. Chris Dodd and fellow Democratic Senator and Finance Committee member Kent Conrad both accepted sweetheart loans from Countrywide, Angelo Mozillo's mortgage finance company, while failing to adequately supervise and rein in the growth of poor quality, often improperly documented mortgage loans. Both also failed to act on Bush administration concerns regarding the explosive growth of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac through guarantees of bonds backed by the poor quality loans.
Oh, and, by the way, Barney Frank, to my knowledge, has never addressed the contetion that a person with whom he was romantically involved was a lobbyist involved with Fannie Mae. I'm sure it's irrelevant.
Now, these Congressional worthies would have us believe that, having been instrumental in wrecking the residential finance sector and, by extension, the entire US finance sector, they are in a position to tell us how to organize, supervise and regulate the sector in the future to avoid similar calamities.
Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, they overlook the rather simpler, more obvious solution, i.e., fewer government guarantees and less inept regulation.
If Fed, FDIC, OCC and other regulators had done their job in the first place, Frank's and Dodd's judgemental errors and political favoritism would have been stopped in their tracks. Unfortunately, our vast, overmanned and overly-complicated bank regulatory system failed in its primary mission.
Shouldn't that have triggered a more cold-eyed look at how the current players failed in their regulatory oversight jobs, rather than simply layering on more and more complicated rules, classifications and regulations?
How many people believe that, if someone failed to do their job in the first place, the right solution is to give them increased responsibilities and hope for a better outcome next time around?
Well, evidently, at least two- Frank and Dodd.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Chris Dodd's Lies
Last week's furor over how the government mishandled retention bonuses promised, contractually, to AIG personnel, provided a lot of entertainment and some very revealing activity.
Perhaps the most damaged two liberals are Doddering Chris Dodd, Countrywide favor-taking and embattled Democratic Senator from Connecticut, and Treasury Secretary and tax cheat Tim Geithner.
Dodd has now been caught in a flat out lie, as has Geithner.
Here's a video clip from Sean Hannity's Fox News program providing evidence of the lies.
Pretty damning evidence, is it not? Dodd lied about his efforts in a major bill. Geithner lied about what he did and knew, both from his stint as NY Fed President, when he led the government takeover of AIG, and then his recent comments as Treasury Secretary. He apparently intentionally failed to warn his boss of the coming bonus furor for two days last week.
Maybe Tim was too busy stamping parking validations for Treasury visitors at the department's reception desk?
Dodd is now in trouble in his own state, with poll numbers showing him now slightly behind his expected Republican challenger.
It's just incredible that, having either ineptly ignored the bonuses, or deliberately lied about them, Dodd and Geithner are attempting to escape any responsibility whatsoever, now that public furor has been ignited over the relatively minuscule, by Federal spending standards, amount.
You also don't see Congress admitting that most of its members failed to read the bill which they passed that allowed the bonuses.
Perhaps the most damaged two liberals are Doddering Chris Dodd, Countrywide favor-taking and embattled Democratic Senator from Connecticut, and Treasury Secretary and tax cheat Tim Geithner.
Dodd has now been caught in a flat out lie, as has Geithner.
Here's a video clip from Sean Hannity's Fox News program providing evidence of the lies.
Pretty damning evidence, is it not? Dodd lied about his efforts in a major bill. Geithner lied about what he did and knew, both from his stint as NY Fed President, when he led the government takeover of AIG, and then his recent comments as Treasury Secretary. He apparently intentionally failed to warn his boss of the coming bonus furor for two days last week.
Maybe Tim was too busy stamping parking validations for Treasury visitors at the department's reception desk?
Dodd is now in trouble in his own state, with poll numbers showing him now slightly behind his expected Republican challenger.
It's just incredible that, having either ineptly ignored the bonuses, or deliberately lied about them, Dodd and Geithner are attempting to escape any responsibility whatsoever, now that public furor has been ignited over the relatively minuscule, by Federal spending standards, amount.
You also don't see Congress admitting that most of its members failed to read the bill which they passed that allowed the bonuses.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Chris Dodd's Lies On Countrywide Loan Disclosures
Connecticut Senator Chris Dodd half-heartedly came forth with information about his sweetheart loans from failed mortgage originator Countrywide a few days ago.
As I mentioned in this post last October, Dodd had been told he was a 'friend of Angelo' Mozilla, and accorded special, favorable treatment on two mortgage loans. Dodd was, and is, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and, as such, holds sway over matters important to Countrywide.
When the whistle blew on his shameful bribe-taking, Dodd promised to make public documents pertaining to the affair.
He lied.
What Dodd did, since mid-summer, is to have stalled the process. He hid behind a Senate ethics panel for a while. Then claimed to be conferring with his attorney.
Earlier this week, Dodd's minions laid out some papers involving the Countrywide matter in a single room in the Senator's offices in Hartford, CT. Selected reporters were allowed to read, but not copy, nor take, the material.
That's it. That is Dodd's version of full disclosure.
The man should be strung up in the public square in Hartford and pelted with rotten fruit, then forbidden to hold public office ever again.
Coming in a week when Wonderboy's cabinet was being stuffed with tax cheats, Dodd seems of a piece with this approach of the Democratic party.
Basically, if you can get power, you can rise above the law and violate it with impunity.
As I mentioned in this post last October, Dodd had been told he was a 'friend of Angelo' Mozilla, and accorded special, favorable treatment on two mortgage loans. Dodd was, and is, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and, as such, holds sway over matters important to Countrywide.
When the whistle blew on his shameful bribe-taking, Dodd promised to make public documents pertaining to the affair.
He lied.
What Dodd did, since mid-summer, is to have stalled the process. He hid behind a Senate ethics panel for a while. Then claimed to be conferring with his attorney.
Earlier this week, Dodd's minions laid out some papers involving the Countrywide matter in a single room in the Senator's offices in Hartford, CT. Selected reporters were allowed to read, but not copy, nor take, the material.
That's it. That is Dodd's version of full disclosure.
The man should be strung up in the public square in Hartford and pelted with rotten fruit, then forbidden to hold public office ever again.
Coming in a week when Wonderboy's cabinet was being stuffed with tax cheats, Dodd seems of a piece with this approach of the Democratic party.
Basically, if you can get power, you can rise above the law and violate it with impunity.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
The Politics of The Auto Maker Bailout
The politics of the multi-billion dollar bailout that US auto maker CEOs Wagoner, Mulally and Nardelli are requesting on their return visit to Capitol Hill today are getting quite interesting.
This morning's festivities began with doddering Chris Dodd's (D-CT) inaccurate, myopic and generally stupid opening remarks. I know that Dodd is a grafter and totally corrupt, since he took special favors in the form of sweetheart loans from now-defunct Countrywide Finance. He was a 'friend of Angelo,' calling each day to shepherd his and his wife's special loan through processing, then claiming to never have known about the special deal he received.
Mind you, he chaired the panel that regulated this failed institution.
It remains to be seen what kind of graft Comrade Chris expects from the US auto makers. Maybe a free Volt from GM, or hybrid Eclipse from Ford? How about a special share of Cerebrus' profits if he directs a fire hose of cash toward Chrysler?
But until this morning, I don't think I fully realized how dumb Dodd is. He actually began his remarks by attempting to portray Bernanke's and Paulson's rescue of the US banking system as favoritism. Announcing that he had invited both financial mavens to testify this morning, Dodd actually thinks everyone else is as stupid as he is about what Paulson and Bernanke would have to say about the auto maker case.
The answer is, nothing. Ah, that would be Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez, Chris. Do you have his phone number? I thought not.
In any case, Dodd went on to excoriate the Fed and Treasury over saving the nation's banking system, which is a hybrid of the Federal government and various chartered, heavily regulated national banks, while not jumping in to rescue a totally different type of company- industrial firms engaged in the manufacture of cars and trucks.
It's almost comical to see Dodd struggle to force his completely incorrect views on a sceptical nation. If he really can't understand why the nation's banking system is a qualitatively different case than a few already-failed vehicle producers, he needs to find another line of 'work.'
Immediately after doddering Dodd's remarks, Republican Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama provided a stunning contrast with his introductory comments. Shelby noted that the auto makers had already been failing prior to the financial crisis of this year, and, even now, are touting excessively optimistic sales and profit targets. Shelby observed that they have no Plan B if those plans are wrong, other than to return to Washington for more money.
However, this isn't the entire story on the auto maker's desired bailout. I've alluded to this in these posts here and here. In the former linked post, written in mid-November, within a day of the last visit of the auto makers' CEOs to the Hill, I noted,
""It's official. The Democratic Congress and its new partner, the inexperienced President-elect from Illinois, are going to ram a GM rescue bill through Congress ASAP.
This may be a record for the shortest time period in which a newly-elected President ran away from his most prominent campaign promises and morphed into someone else entirely.
"Trouble is, current President, George W. Bush, and the Congressional GOP members, aren't playing ball.
Boo Hoo!
Looks like GM is going to actually have to try to run its business until January 21st, 2009, without Federal aid. How shocking!Treasury Secretary Paulson has announced, long and loud, that the TARP will not be used to lend to GM for ordinary operations. President Bush isn't budging on the issue, either. No executive orders or special spending actions will be coming from him.
It seems, too, that most business press and a groundswell of ordinary American opinion is against selective aid to GM without a bankruptcy filing and, probably, the head of Rick Wagoner as the price for any Federal help."
Yes, that's the rub. Anything that Frisco Nan and Harry Reid pass can, and likely will be vetoed by the President....that is, the current, sitting President. The one who currently sits in the Oval Office. Not the one doing all the photo ops from Chicago.
And today's Congressional Republicans are already smarter and more positively disposed than their brethren of just a few months ago.
Look for Eric Cantor and Paul Ryan to brace House Minority Leader John Boehner, forcing him to withhold support for any Democratic bailout of the Detroit auto makers which does not first require their filing Chapter 11. Look for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to do the same, while President Bush cites Republican Congressional preference for a bill that includes that requirement.
Bush, Boehner and McConnell, standing in front of the White House, will make an effective team as the President gives his full support to the Republican leaders' version of a bill to help auto workers, via a DIP loan to those auto makers which file for bankruptcy, while steadfastly refusing to engage in corporate welfare and government picking winners and losers in the free market.
Citing the banking system as a vital national interest which had to be protected, Bush will draw a distinction between prior aid to the financial sector, and the Democrats' attempt to ladle out billions to failed US companies.
That veto is key. The Illinois rookie, regardless of what he has the press believing, is powerless until 12:01PM on January 20, 2009. Until that moment, anything Congress passes must be signed by President Bush.
GM's Wagoner has shot himself in the foot by insisting that, without Federal aid, his company will go bankrupt by the end of this month.
If that is not an invitation for the Republicans to push him into Chapter 11 to get access to a DIP loan, what is?
Moreover, public sentiment is broadly against a straight bailout of Detroit, sans bankruptcy filings.
This is one case in which American-style government comes to our rescue. Between 47 and 48 states don't rely on unionized labor working in GM, Ford or Chrysler factories to sustain their economies. This mass of American voters and workers realize that they are being asked to pay tax dollars to fund UAW benefits for current and retired workers which far exceed what they, themselves, enjoy.
That's why Frisco Nan, Harry Reid and even the New Messiah from Illinois have seriously miscalculated this issue. Americans are against a non-bankruptcy bailout of GM, Ford or Chrysler.
I believe that, if somehow, a bailout is effected without the bankruptcy requirement, you could see the President-elect's honeymoon cut to only a few months, and the Democrats lose either or both the House and Senate in 2010.
This is becoming a highly visible issue. And one on which most Americans' gut instincts are correct- that UAW members do not deserve a bailout, via GM, Ford and Chrysler, in order to preserve benefits that few others in the country enjoy.
This morning's festivities began with doddering Chris Dodd's (D-CT) inaccurate, myopic and generally stupid opening remarks. I know that Dodd is a grafter and totally corrupt, since he took special favors in the form of sweetheart loans from now-defunct Countrywide Finance. He was a 'friend of Angelo,' calling each day to shepherd his and his wife's special loan through processing, then claiming to never have known about the special deal he received.
Mind you, he chaired the panel that regulated this failed institution.
It remains to be seen what kind of graft Comrade Chris expects from the US auto makers. Maybe a free Volt from GM, or hybrid Eclipse from Ford? How about a special share of Cerebrus' profits if he directs a fire hose of cash toward Chrysler?
But until this morning, I don't think I fully realized how dumb Dodd is. He actually began his remarks by attempting to portray Bernanke's and Paulson's rescue of the US banking system as favoritism. Announcing that he had invited both financial mavens to testify this morning, Dodd actually thinks everyone else is as stupid as he is about what Paulson and Bernanke would have to say about the auto maker case.
The answer is, nothing. Ah, that would be Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez, Chris. Do you have his phone number? I thought not.
In any case, Dodd went on to excoriate the Fed and Treasury over saving the nation's banking system, which is a hybrid of the Federal government and various chartered, heavily regulated national banks, while not jumping in to rescue a totally different type of company- industrial firms engaged in the manufacture of cars and trucks.
It's almost comical to see Dodd struggle to force his completely incorrect views on a sceptical nation. If he really can't understand why the nation's banking system is a qualitatively different case than a few already-failed vehicle producers, he needs to find another line of 'work.'
Immediately after doddering Dodd's remarks, Republican Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama provided a stunning contrast with his introductory comments. Shelby noted that the auto makers had already been failing prior to the financial crisis of this year, and, even now, are touting excessively optimistic sales and profit targets. Shelby observed that they have no Plan B if those plans are wrong, other than to return to Washington for more money.
However, this isn't the entire story on the auto maker's desired bailout. I've alluded to this in these posts here and here. In the former linked post, written in mid-November, within a day of the last visit of the auto makers' CEOs to the Hill, I noted,
""It's official. The Democratic Congress and its new partner, the inexperienced President-elect from Illinois, are going to ram a GM rescue bill through Congress ASAP.
This may be a record for the shortest time period in which a newly-elected President ran away from his most prominent campaign promises and morphed into someone else entirely.
"Trouble is, current President, George W. Bush, and the Congressional GOP members, aren't playing ball.
Boo Hoo!
Looks like GM is going to actually have to try to run its business until January 21st, 2009, without Federal aid. How shocking!Treasury Secretary Paulson has announced, long and loud, that the TARP will not be used to lend to GM for ordinary operations. President Bush isn't budging on the issue, either. No executive orders or special spending actions will be coming from him.
It seems, too, that most business press and a groundswell of ordinary American opinion is against selective aid to GM without a bankruptcy filing and, probably, the head of Rick Wagoner as the price for any Federal help."
Yes, that's the rub. Anything that Frisco Nan and Harry Reid pass can, and likely will be vetoed by the President....that is, the current, sitting President. The one who currently sits in the Oval Office. Not the one doing all the photo ops from Chicago.
And today's Congressional Republicans are already smarter and more positively disposed than their brethren of just a few months ago.
Look for Eric Cantor and Paul Ryan to brace House Minority Leader John Boehner, forcing him to withhold support for any Democratic bailout of the Detroit auto makers which does not first require their filing Chapter 11. Look for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to do the same, while President Bush cites Republican Congressional preference for a bill that includes that requirement.
Bush, Boehner and McConnell, standing in front of the White House, will make an effective team as the President gives his full support to the Republican leaders' version of a bill to help auto workers, via a DIP loan to those auto makers which file for bankruptcy, while steadfastly refusing to engage in corporate welfare and government picking winners and losers in the free market.
Citing the banking system as a vital national interest which had to be protected, Bush will draw a distinction between prior aid to the financial sector, and the Democrats' attempt to ladle out billions to failed US companies.
That veto is key. The Illinois rookie, regardless of what he has the press believing, is powerless until 12:01PM on January 20, 2009. Until that moment, anything Congress passes must be signed by President Bush.
GM's Wagoner has shot himself in the foot by insisting that, without Federal aid, his company will go bankrupt by the end of this month.
If that is not an invitation for the Republicans to push him into Chapter 11 to get access to a DIP loan, what is?
Moreover, public sentiment is broadly against a straight bailout of Detroit, sans bankruptcy filings.
This is one case in which American-style government comes to our rescue. Between 47 and 48 states don't rely on unionized labor working in GM, Ford or Chrysler factories to sustain their economies. This mass of American voters and workers realize that they are being asked to pay tax dollars to fund UAW benefits for current and retired workers which far exceed what they, themselves, enjoy.
That's why Frisco Nan, Harry Reid and even the New Messiah from Illinois have seriously miscalculated this issue. Americans are against a non-bankruptcy bailout of GM, Ford or Chrysler.
I believe that, if somehow, a bailout is effected without the bankruptcy requirement, you could see the President-elect's honeymoon cut to only a few months, and the Democrats lose either or both the House and Senate in 2010.
This is becoming a highly visible issue. And one on which most Americans' gut instincts are correct- that UAW members do not deserve a bailout, via GM, Ford and Chrysler, in order to preserve benefits that few others in the country enjoy.
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Bill O'Reilly Confronts "Coward" Barney Frank
Somebody finally confronted Congressional liar and all-around misfit Barney Frank. Here's the video clip of Fox News' Bill O'Reilly daring Frank to admit that he claimed Fannie and Freddie were in great shape and had bright futures, within the last two months.
Frank can't lie his way out of this one. Sadly, his behavior, and that of Chris Dodd and Barack Obama, the two Senators who received the most in cash contributions from Fannie, were prime causes of the current financial debacle.
As one pundit noted, it took Dodd over a decade to make #1 on Fannie's contribution list. It took the rookie Illinois Senator only 2 years!
Frank can't lie his way out of this one. Sadly, his behavior, and that of Chris Dodd and Barack Obama, the two Senators who received the most in cash contributions from Fannie, were prime causes of the current financial debacle.
As one pundit noted, it took Dodd over a decade to make #1 on Fannie's contribution list. It took the rookie Illinois Senator only 2 years!
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Congress & The Upcoming Elections
This week has revealed the naked truth about Congressional Democrats. We see Chris Dodd all puffed up and acting important, just months after being fingered for accepting an improper mortgage loan from Countrywide, the nation's large, failed residential lender.
Barney Frank, the hapless, idiotic head of the House Banking Committee, has developed amnesia when asked about his pushing Fannie and Freddie to be ever-larger, as well as mandating them to securitize risky, low-income-earner mortgages.
All the Democrats seem to forget their zest and appetite for forcing US commercial banks to comply with the Community Reinvestment Act, which forced them to make many of the very subprime and alt-A mortgages for which they are now blamed.
And let's not forget how often Congress allowed Acorn to hold up necessary, productive, excess-capacity-reducing mergers of US commercial banks, unless more low-income mortgage lending was promised.
But the winner, by far, in this past week's contest for stupidity and bone-headed misleadership has to go to Frisco Nan- Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.
With passage of the financial rescue bill looking certain, Frisco Nan released many of her own party members to vote against the bill, including many committee chairs, freshmen representatives in tight races in the Midwest, and others to whom she chose to grant favors. In all, 90 Democrats were allowed to vote 'no' on the bill.
Then Nan took the floor to expound on her version of the genesis of the need for the bill, giving one of the most vitriolic, partisan speeches of its kind, and certainly during a key, close vote.
When a handful of GOP members therefore voted 'no,' they were blamed for the bill's failure. By no less than Frisco Nan and Barney Frank. Both of whom chose to overlook their own party members' joining with the Republicans.
If you needed proof of what an abysmal, untalented and moronic Speaker Frisco Nan is, this little episode is all you need to know.
Perhaps we Americans will get lucky, and smart, and just sweep all 435 of these clowns out of office come November.
Could we really do any worse with all new faces than this crew has done for us?
Barney Frank, the hapless, idiotic head of the House Banking Committee, has developed amnesia when asked about his pushing Fannie and Freddie to be ever-larger, as well as mandating them to securitize risky, low-income-earner mortgages.
All the Democrats seem to forget their zest and appetite for forcing US commercial banks to comply with the Community Reinvestment Act, which forced them to make many of the very subprime and alt-A mortgages for which they are now blamed.
And let's not forget how often Congress allowed Acorn to hold up necessary, productive, excess-capacity-reducing mergers of US commercial banks, unless more low-income mortgage lending was promised.
But the winner, by far, in this past week's contest for stupidity and bone-headed misleadership has to go to Frisco Nan- Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.
With passage of the financial rescue bill looking certain, Frisco Nan released many of her own party members to vote against the bill, including many committee chairs, freshmen representatives in tight races in the Midwest, and others to whom she chose to grant favors. In all, 90 Democrats were allowed to vote 'no' on the bill.
Then Nan took the floor to expound on her version of the genesis of the need for the bill, giving one of the most vitriolic, partisan speeches of its kind, and certainly during a key, close vote.
When a handful of GOP members therefore voted 'no,' they were blamed for the bill's failure. By no less than Frisco Nan and Barney Frank. Both of whom chose to overlook their own party members' joining with the Republicans.
If you needed proof of what an abysmal, untalented and moronic Speaker Frisco Nan is, this little episode is all you need to know.
Perhaps we Americans will get lucky, and smart, and just sweep all 435 of these clowns out of office come November.
Could we really do any worse with all new faces than this crew has done for us?
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Doddering Chris Dodd On The Electronic Stump Today
As I write this, I am listening to CNBC's coverage of doddering Senator (D-CT), and Presidential candidate Chris Dodd, demagogue the current mortgage finance situation as only a liberal can.
Dodd had taken a meeting this morning with Treasury Secretary Paulson and Fed Chair Ben Bernanke, due to his role as Senate Banking Committee chair.
While inserting the odd, but incorrect, statement that the current Bush administration has 'run up more debt than all the previous 42 administrations combined,' Dodd is trying his best to look like a populist.
He's for forgiving some of the borrowers who, being adults, freely borrowed money for housing using rather dangerous sub-prime loans. Dodd is on the warpath against the ratings agencies, as if they are the only sources of information on the creditworthiness of borrowers or debt instruments. He's also clearly pushing for easy money, via a Fed rate cut.
On his way by the Fed, he also lashed out at what he implied has been lax regulatory oversight of banks, by the Fed, in the area of home loans. Too bad Chris doesn't realize that many of the institutions now lending in the mortgage market are not supervised by the Fed.
Time to go back to school, Chris, and learn something about the sector which is the focus of the Senate Banking Committee which you so ineptly chair.
Lastly, he's putting heavy pressure on Bush's administration to allow the inept and poorly-run Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac organizations into the jumbo loan business. This is, of course, in answer to those institutions blithely offering to buy jumbo loans in the marketplace, thus setting a precedent for them to begin crowding out private lenders, and moving into the jumbo origination business.
It's unfortunate that Dodd, as chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, is being so totally political in his reactions to the current fixed income markets turbulence.
If you need any evidence of Dodd's unfitness for the Presidency, this act of playing politics, and inciting more worry and panic among homeowners and investors over current the housing finance situation, ought to be sufficient.
Dodd had taken a meeting this morning with Treasury Secretary Paulson and Fed Chair Ben Bernanke, due to his role as Senate Banking Committee chair.
While inserting the odd, but incorrect, statement that the current Bush administration has 'run up more debt than all the previous 42 administrations combined,' Dodd is trying his best to look like a populist.
He's for forgiving some of the borrowers who, being adults, freely borrowed money for housing using rather dangerous sub-prime loans. Dodd is on the warpath against the ratings agencies, as if they are the only sources of information on the creditworthiness of borrowers or debt instruments. He's also clearly pushing for easy money, via a Fed rate cut.
On his way by the Fed, he also lashed out at what he implied has been lax regulatory oversight of banks, by the Fed, in the area of home loans. Too bad Chris doesn't realize that many of the institutions now lending in the mortgage market are not supervised by the Fed.
Time to go back to school, Chris, and learn something about the sector which is the focus of the Senate Banking Committee which you so ineptly chair.
Lastly, he's putting heavy pressure on Bush's administration to allow the inept and poorly-run Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac organizations into the jumbo loan business. This is, of course, in answer to those institutions blithely offering to buy jumbo loans in the marketplace, thus setting a precedent for them to begin crowding out private lenders, and moving into the jumbo origination business.
It's unfortunate that Dodd, as chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, is being so totally political in his reactions to the current fixed income markets turbulence.
If you need any evidence of Dodd's unfitness for the Presidency, this act of playing politics, and inciting more worry and panic among homeowners and investors over current the housing finance situation, ought to be sufficient.
Friday, February 9, 2007
Campaign Embezzlement and Candidate Judgment
Thursday's WSJ featured an article on candidates who have had their treasurers embezzle their campaign chests. Two names which caught my attention were Joe Biden and John Boehner.
The story opens with the tale of the Florida candidate who ultimately lost her race for a House seat, because, in part, opponents played-up her appallingly lax choice of a treasurer with a history of mental illness. He absconded with her entire campaign account on the eve of the election registration date, and, ultimately, became an issue in her campaign for the US House seat formerly held by Catherine Harris.
The article mentions that some candidates never publicize the occurrences of this sort of crime, and don't even bring charges. They rightly feel it reflects on their judgment in choice of personnel, etc.
You bet it does! You want Biden running the government, knowing his campaign treasurer took him for $400,000 in 2004? Boehner's treasurer gambled away $600,000 that same year. It turns out that the treasurers in these two cases went to prison. Still, this was the first I'd ever heard to the campaign fund thefts.
It's an incredible tale, regarding Biden's snafu. I hope this comes up more prominently in his race for the White House.
On a related note, I was in error when I mentioned recently (February 1st post) that Chris Dodd is risking financial ruin by running for President. This week, I learned that Dodd is apparently running second only to Hillary, among Democrats, in fundraising.
Imagine that! It must be the Connecticut hedge-fund connection. All those financial billionaires want to be sure to be treated kindly, just in case doddering Dodd makes it through the primaries. Or retains the chairmanship of the Senate Finance Committee.
Will wonders never cease?
The story opens with the tale of the Florida candidate who ultimately lost her race for a House seat, because, in part, opponents played-up her appallingly lax choice of a treasurer with a history of mental illness. He absconded with her entire campaign account on the eve of the election registration date, and, ultimately, became an issue in her campaign for the US House seat formerly held by Catherine Harris.
The article mentions that some candidates never publicize the occurrences of this sort of crime, and don't even bring charges. They rightly feel it reflects on their judgment in choice of personnel, etc.
You bet it does! You want Biden running the government, knowing his campaign treasurer took him for $400,000 in 2004? Boehner's treasurer gambled away $600,000 that same year. It turns out that the treasurers in these two cases went to prison. Still, this was the first I'd ever heard to the campaign fund thefts.
It's an incredible tale, regarding Biden's snafu. I hope this comes up more prominently in his race for the White House.
On a related note, I was in error when I mentioned recently (February 1st post) that Chris Dodd is risking financial ruin by running for President. This week, I learned that Dodd is apparently running second only to Hillary, among Democrats, in fundraising.
Imagine that! It must be the Connecticut hedge-fund connection. All those financial billionaires want to be sure to be treated kindly, just in case doddering Dodd makes it through the primaries. Or retains the chairmanship of the Senate Finance Committee.
Will wonders never cease?
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