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Geithner’s All Ears for Debt Cartel
Months ago, a former chief economist at the IMF called it mind control. Talking to Simon Johnson of the Atlantic Monthly, he explained that one of the most alarming truths laid bare by the economic crash was that the finance industry had effectively captured the thinking of government.
“That’s going too far,” said reasonable people. “This is no Banana Republic run by crony cartels.”
That was before we read Tim Geithner’s phone records.
Thursday’s AP report shows executives at a handful of companies — Citigroup Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs — had not just the ear, but both ears of the Treasury Secretary to the exclusion of other even bigger and more troubled banks, and legislators.
As AP points out, Geithner had more contacts with Citigroup than he did with Barney Frank, D-Mass., the lawmaker leading the effort to approve Geithner’s financial overhaul plan. And Geithner’s contacts with Lloyd Blankfein, the chairman and CEO at Goldman, way outnumber his contacts with Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., chairman of the Senate Banking Committee.
After the week this May when GM almost went bankrupt and the government was considering a federal takeover, the treasury secretary called Blankfein, then Jamie Dimon, the boss at JPMorgan. Then Obama called and as soon as they hung up, Geithner was back on the phone with Dimon. Poor California Democrat Xavier Becerra — who handles silly stuff like taxes and budgets. He had to leave a voice-mail message. And Geithner wasn’t talking to all bankers — mostly with people he served on nonprofit boards with, and hung out with socially.
So. . . where others have drug cartels, we have a debt cartel? It’d be clear by now if Geithner was just listening to his friends to hone his arguments against greater bank consolidation, debt securitization and finance over industry but Geithner has yet to show any sign of breaking with his Wall Street pushers.
In a Banana Republic we’d pay out protection money. Oh, but I forgot, we did that already.
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the most telling part about this debacle is that only certain firms were bailed out. Only the banks that geitner et al wanted to save were bailed out. While their competitors went down in flames and then were bought out for dimes on the dollar by the exact firms causing the debacle. So we have the federal gov taking sides on the economy.(nothing new - except the level of greed manipulation) AND siding w/ the most destructive bank out there. The "great bubble machine" Goldman Sachs. If Obama had ANY courage or ethics he would bring down the sherman anti-trust act on goldman. That fascist Geitner IS Obama's man - making Obama - in the words of dylan ratigan a "corporate communist" or fascist - whatever word pleases you more. I don't believe we can come to any other conclusion at this late date. I now get damn near sick to my stomach whenever I hear Obama speak because I know it's all BULLSHIT LIES.
Unfortunately the US electorate appears to have an unlimited appetite for BS and lies. If Americans were connecting the dots Obama's approval rating would be in the single digits.
what's funny is that Obama seems to think that by turning to the right he'll grab a whole bunch of republican voters to replace the progressives like me that can't - in good conscience - vote for him again unless he stops his corporate communism at the expense of WE THE PEOPLE.
I wouldn't consider voting for Obama, ever, no matter what he does.
He's one smooth talking son of a bitch who can't be trusted at all.
A very appropriate figure for the US. He does the exact opposite of what he pretends to want. Obama's the greatest bullshit artist since PT Barnum, who coined the phrase, "there's a sucker born every day."
1st people need to disconnect the TV.
Anyone know who appointed Geithner to his recent position?
Apparently a topic that is taboo when it comes to Flander's perpetual apologetic.
A "war criminal" isn't simply one who wages aggressive war in the commonly held sense we are experiencing in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Geithner is a war criminal for his major part in the financial blitzkrieg destroying the United States. He should be tried and hung along with any number of others.
Tried and HUNG??? HA !!! His boss wont even consider removing him from the central roll he plays in our (their) treasury dept. And everyone knows it. Just another piece of the farce pie.
Mammon rules.
Obama calculates that he will gain the "independent" segment of the vote by tacking rightward. He thinks he can hold on to the left because it has nowhere to go. If Obama goes further right we have to show him even more defections toward the left. The left has to have somewhere to go and become a defined voting block. Yes, I mean leaving the Democratic party. How else will these oafs learn. How else will they respect us.
Despite all the dissapointment in what Obama has done I still hear how much we still like him, how much we think he can be encouraged to do the right thing if we just support him. It's a mantra. The Democratic party elites hear it too and think Obama's charisma might be enough to carry the day. I believe that this is why they think they can move further right without consequence. Maybe they are correct or maybe they are bumping up against the limits of a charisma based movement.
It is time to read Edward Herman's "Dirty Twenty,"(written in 1998) and perhaps update it. There are many names to add to "War Crimes, Economic Division."
http://www.zmag.org/zmag/viewArticle/17826