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Guest Post: Why Keep Geithner?
Submitted by Dylan Ratigan
A year ago it was revealed to the American people that our banking
system was a legalized Ponzi scheme in which bank and insurance CEOs
paid themselves billions of dollars in personal compensation to lend
and insure assets with money they didn't have to customers who couldn't
pay back the loans.
In those dark days between the fall of Lehman Brothers and before
the presidential election, we were often carried through that time by
the small glimmer of hope in that at least we would soon have a new
leader who would hopefully fix this mess and punish those responsible.
Yet in the past 9 months, not only has the administration not fixed
anything, they have made things much worse for anyone who isn't a Wall Street banker.
Therefore, we are past the point where anyone in power still gets the
benefit of the doubt and the process of taking back our country for all
citizens must begin now.
This is why I think we must ask if U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy
Geithner is still the right person for the job. It has become clear
recently that back in his previous role as New York Federal Reserve
Governor, he unnecessarily gave billions of dollars of US tax money to
banks and insurance companies with few strings attached. And it is now
becoming clear that his lack of meaningful action is helping many of
these same banks steal more by legalizing their most economically dangerous, socially destructive and self-enriching practices.
Yesterday on NBC's Meet the Press, Secretary Geithner again endorsed House bank reform legislation
that would allow, by my calculations, as much as 80%, or $475 trillion,
of the bank's $600 trillion in crooked insurance schemes to still be
held in secret.
It was and is the secret risks held in this very market that led to our
collapse in the first place and continue to pose massive future risk to
the global economy.
He also continued to employ the bankers' favorite, and most ludicrous, lie :
that the taxpayer must somehow continue to pay executives at companies
like AIG ungodly sums of money under the threat that if we don't,
somehow the taxpayer will never make their money back. Well let me tell
you something, the taxpayer and our nation, will never get back the
lost wealth taken under these false circumstances and this colossal
breach of fiduciary duty.
The idea that we must somehow perpetuate this system with our tax money
and the future wealth of our children goes against the very American
ideal of failure, adaptation and innovation, not to mention of our
democracy.
Also last week, the Treasury Secretary endorsed a piece of legislation that instead of stopping a select few companies from profiting from the implicit taxpayer-guarantee of Too Big Too Fail seeks to officially condone
it. If the most prized skill in our society economically is a
competition to see who can lend and insure the most money without
consequences, you have doomed our nation's people to lose everything in
the world's largest ever betting parlor; and that is precisely the
system this Treasury Secretary -- Tim Geithner -- is seeking to
legalize in America today.
However, the smoking gun for
Secretary Geithner comes from a recent Bloomberg FOIA disclosure
regarding events from last November. It was then that New York Federal
Reserve Governor Tim Geithner decided to deliver 100 cents on the
dollar, in secret no less, to pay off the counter parties to the
world's largest (and still un-investigated) insurance fraud -- AIG.
This full payoff with taxpayer dollars was carried out by Geithner
after AIG's bank customers, such as Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank and
Societe Generale, had already previously agreed to taking as little as
40 cents on the dollar. Even after the GM autoworkers, bondholders and
vendors all received a government-enforced haircut on their contracts, he still had the audacity to claim the "sanctity of contracts" in the dealings with these companies like AIG.
None of us were in the rooms when these decisions were made, so I
don't pretend to know if Mr. Geithner was the one lone, sane voice of
reason fighting against mysterious forces or the primary proponent.
However, I fail to see the reasoning for why we continue to rely on
those who were in the room when these horrendous decisions took place
to be the same people that we choose to deal with their aftermath.
There are just certain situations that are not suited for continuity.
The best analogy I can think of is that it would be like asking Al
Cowlings to spearhead the Nicole Brown Simpson murder investigation
under the premise that he knows the layout and the "players" best.
The fact is that there are people who understand all of the
intricacies of finance and policy as well as Secretary Geithner, but
whose allegiances to the taxpayer are much clearer. People like Elizabeth Warren, Neil Barofsky, Rob Johnson, and Senator Maria Cantwell just to name a few.
To stop the theft from continuing, it requires that the most basic
rules of capitalism be applied to our banks and that our future
national wealth be safeguarded by the US Government. The current
custodian of America's wealth, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, is not
doing a good job of either. The time for corrective action is now.
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Agreed, Geithner needs to be replaced immediately.
Whats the point, Obama will replace Turbo Tim with another tax cheat....because hes got the knack for putting evaders into his circle of trust.
Great, so how do we get it done?
Yes, yes, yes - but how, how, how?
He is part of the bankstas coup d'etat.
"Why Keep Geithner?"
Duh....Because the banking oligarchs need to make sure their stooge Obama stays in line?
Future scenario...Geithner joins C as Ceo and sells it to GS...
Why Keep Geithner? Maybe because he is the best bullshitter in Obama's entire cabinet? I've yet to ever seem him answer a straight question with a straight answer.
If you read the transcript of yesterday's Meet the Press, Geithner ducked a bunch of direct questions, including "Is the banking system safe?"
Totally agree, he needs to be replaced, the man is representing Wall St. interests not the Taxpayer.
He won't be however. The same people who appointed him also appointed (YES, appointed) his boss.
Change you can believe in my ass !!!!!!
ghostfaceinvestah: I agree that Geithner needs to be replaced...but given how Congress are either oblivious or are on this farce..just what can we do about it? We need people like Dylan Ratigan in the media to not stop revealing the truth. In fact, I think we need to encourage and support him more.
It may be that Team O is actually delivering their promised change by intentionally undermining what remains of our financial stability.
Exactly. Not enough people need their socialist "change" yet, so they have the audacity to hope that they can undermine capitalism to motivate us to accept it.
The way things are going, we'll all be begging for "change" soon enough.
I agree totally and replace Summers with him.
Hey! Maybe he's the cleanest of the potential
candidates! Who would 0 replace him with? Would
0 be willing to go through that again (and again)?
No I think he's settled into his one termer screw you
guys mode.
I just hope Ratigan A) keeps banging the drum B) can keep his job. He has consistently been the lone voice of reason in the MSM.
The guy is an admitted federal income tax cheat and a habitual liar.
Like I said, Timmy's nose has been growing larger and larger as he continues to lie to the American Public on TV, reminds me of the story of Pinnochio...yes, Timmy also has a knack for ducking questions and ducking tax authorities.
One can only hope that bad policy will eventually translate into bad outcomes (less than expected economic growth, massive stock market losses, etc.)
I wish the process were to come easier, but the PMs are making it virtually impossible at this point. Sure, Tim must go... but it probably won't be quietly.
Corrective action?
Not seeing the pacified masses close to revolution. I can't see change without violence here, and I can't see violence without the proles being pushed quite a bit further.
In the last American Revolution, the masses were a fairly self sufficient, competent farming and working class who could operate devices more lethal than a nail file, with perhaps less fear of death.
A military coup is more likely - with ex-service people in the country playing a role. Without that why would the crooks change anything?
Agreed
It can't come soon enough. Like most Americans, I trust our armed forces a million times more than our federal government.
Was this submitted by Dylan directly to ZH or was it a general release? Either way, it is great stuff and I applaud every move he makes to sort through the muck and keep making noise.
I don't know the answer for sure Howard but it was on huffpo earlier this a.m. Though some disagree, I find Huffpo very aggressive towards in its anti wall street/banking/geithner/fed complex.
Geithner must go.
The only thing is I think he will be replaced with your future put buy guy lol!
Time will tell, DH. CRE will possibly make it difficult for the charade to continue anyway, no matter who is TS. Geithner is definitely part of the problem but the coming implosion will be just as severe as the last (IMHO) and it probably won't matter who is at the helm.
DH - We'll see. This goes back to the VP and his Minooka comment, my fluffernutter retort and the potential that there may be something else lurking in the background here. I am still hypothesizing of course.....
Hiya Howard..
i remember that retort actually...your fluffernutter fluffed my nutter into thinking you might be onto something.
reading this post right after janjuah's missive brought to mind an image of timmy & bennie as guardians of 2 closets with the initials PM & FS on the door, trying every trick in the book to keep the PS from peeking inside, because they know what's behind both doors -- mountains of skeletons.
i don't think it's any coincidence that the bailout of AIG was structured through the NY Fed. AIG is a Pandora's Box of secrets, a black box of information. open that up and all hell breaks loose as the skeletons come alive once again.
of course some of us realize that there are so many skeletons stored inside that it is only a matter of time until the hinges snap and timmy & bennie & the rest of em get buried in a mountain of bones.
so keep banging dylan, et al but don't expect any positive results until the final screws start popping off.
Quite apt
I agree with you DH, the HPost has been very critical of the Wall Street. I don't go there much, but when they are hammering the pigmen I do. The first time they had Arianna (however you spell it) on Squawk Box she was on their ass pretty good. I was really surprised, but I liked it, even though I don't agree with them much other than that.
But of course the creeps at CNBC made jokes about her right after she left and in the days after. They are more than creeps, they are phucking creeps!
I check tons of sources several times a day....huffpo is the best in that they are absolutely the home of the obama worshippers....no question about that and i'l bet rahm and david a check it all day long.
they have been brutal on cheat st and the banks and obama knows it.....
I guess that's why I post all relevant articles from ZH at Huffpo. There's a lot of people who get it, and I wanted people to have some semblance of the truth...I've followed Tyler since the March/April timeframe, from Seeking Alpha to Blogspot and now this. Never a dull moment! When Huffpo actually posted an article by ZH on their business section that linked here, I thought my browser was getting screwy on me! It's all good.
" The time for corrective action is now."
Good luck with your corrective action, aint gonna happen.
Ha, we don't even enforce the Prompt Corrective Action law.
(We being the financial elite/oligarchs/your real boss)
People like Elizabeth Warren, Neil Barofsky, Rob Johnson, and Senator Maria Cantwell just to name a few.
and dylan ratigan. :))
woohoo..dylan ratigan for treasury secretary. luv ya dude!!
heck of a job geithner......
( DJ ) 11/02 11:54AM *DJ Chrysler Needs $54.8B Mkt Cap For Treasury To Break Even -GAO
( DJ ) 11/02 11:55AM *DJ GM Needs $66.9B Market Cap For Treasury To Break Even -GAO
( DJ ) 11/02 11:55AM *DJ GM Needs $66.9B Market Cap For Treasury To Break Even -GAO
( DJ ) 11/02 11:50AM *DJ Chrysler, GM Will Attract Investor Interest So Treasury Can Sell Its Equity - GAO
Lizzy, you left out "US Taxpayer Stake in CIT Likely Wiped Out in Bankruptcy"
And; "US Taxpayer Stake in Citi Likely to Follow CIT Stake In Resolution".
lizzy....coffee up my nose!
i could see bush and brownie in new orleans with that one.
very, very funny. you are always able to say so much with few words, which i consider brilliance. thanks and i always look for your thoughts!
With the Turbo Tax scandal of last year and the 150% derivatives bailout of GS/DB/SG and others from AIG, Geithner maybe a great BS'r but he's leaving a trail that the powers of be can't be too happy with. I agree it's time to replace the Kiebler Elf, but with who?
My sources say Jamie Dimon. Dimon is far more ruthless and far more intelligent than Elf. And he has the respect of the finance community.
Will Dylan Ratigan, Tyler Durden, or others be happy with that?
Be careful what you wish for.
"When you see that trading is done, not by consent, but by compulsion — when you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing - when you see money flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors - when you see that men get richer by graft and pull than by work, and your laws don't protect you against them, but protect them against you - when you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a self-sacrifice - you may know that your society is doomed."
—Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged (1957)
When the fuck did this guy find religion?
And yes, little little Timmy must go, but we all new that when he threw turbo tax under the bus.
"When you see that trading is done, not by consent, but by compulsion — when you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing - when you see money flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors - when you see that men get richer by graft and pull than by work, and your laws don't protect you against them, but protect them against you - when you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a self-sacrifice - you may know that your society is doomed."
—Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged (1957)
Alright Ratigan!! Career suicide though.
Euclid
Why do I need to trade one ex-GS employee for another? Whats the point?
Is the Banking system safe??? HA HA..
Not when the Banks are sitting on 100's of billion dollars of CA$H...
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aQokWJUKo2d0&pos=3
They are getting ready for Crisis phase 2
Does Timothy Geithner have the association to Wall Street as Meyer Lansky had to the Mob?
Why stop with Turbo Timmy? Mary Shapiro, Larry Summers, Ben Bernanke also come to mind.
Geithner was never the right choice for the American people, but he's one helluva fudgepacker for the administration.
Some people are making moves it seems. There are already some protests going on:
http://blogs.wsj.com/deals/2009/10/28/the-coming-tea-parties-against-jp-...
http://www.alternet.org/workplace/143547/thousands_march_in_3-day_showdo...
President Obama fails to go after those responsible for the financial meltdown
And there's another, more pertinent reason: The top federal law enforcement establishment is simply not in the mood. People who expect President Obama's Department of Justice to take the lead will be severely disappointed — not necessarily because the task is difficult, but because the Obama administration is showing it lacks the will.
Instead, the new administration is putting its energy into creating what it believes will be a meltdown-proof new system of elite "too-big-to-fail" banks, regulated by a beefed-up Federal Reserve.
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/2009-10-29/news/president-obama-fails-to-go...
TG is the tool box lackey of the banking elite.
His appearance on TV yesterday affirms what is widely known.
Regardless of whether or not he actually wrote that, Ratigan's got guts - I like him.
It amazes me that he is still employed by The Empire (i.e., GE).
-Rick Blaine
start writing your con-gress people demanding that they represent the american people, or they'll be voted out!
i'm for turning our congress & house of reps upside down. I'd rather have a rather have a dim wit make mistakes, than the fraud we're paying them peices of**** we've got now!
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
Too many safe seats. Congress critters could care less about any; "We will throw the bums out" talk. Waste of effort fellow citizen. Better to organize your community and march, demonstrate & petition peaceably. Remember:
First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win. - Gandhi
"i'm for turning our congress & house of reps upside down."
if you are really serious about this, you should start thinking of ideas on how to get someone elected in your district for as little money as possible.
don't just change the players, change the game.
you may want to watch this interview with fritz hollings on the $ knot in politics:
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07252008/watch3.html
[Guest Post: Why Keep Geithner?]
Because he is a sharp dresser?
[Guest Post: Why Keep Geithner?]
Because he is a sharp dresser?
Silly question. Simple answer.
If Timmie is not there who will protect GS, BAC, JPM, etc.?
Fire him, and Summers.
Timothy Franz Geitner will go down as one of the most if not the most successful and effective Treasury Secretaries in the sum history of the United States. For not one of the previous seventy-four secretaries has single-handedly delivered such cumulatively fatal blows as the $700 billion Unwind-the-Dollar TARP Plan, the $787 Stimulus Dollar Rape Plan, guaranteed $13 billion government infusion directly to Goldman Sachs, falsified "stress-test, $1.4 trillion deficit, telling our dollar creditors to go "fuck themselves" and that "they need to come to the U.S. to learn how to run and manage a complex modern financial economy," and last-but-my-personal-favorite: singularly leading the charge for eliminating the world dollar reserve currency status and US sovereignty in favor of an IMF special drawing rights (SDR) mixed basket of currencies including the Chinese Yuan.
An more effective "inside man" for the permanent and irrevocable destruction of the US dollar and our national sovereignty has not been interposed on the apathetic dollar denominated Amerikan masses since Nicolas Biddle.
Geithner burns billions on CIT:
http://finance.yahoo.com/tech-ticker/article/364593/Geithner-%22Burned-B...
Someone should organize a movement where everyone that has an account at a TARP bank closes it on a certain date. I know I'm dreaming but if you could get that to happen on a massive scale it would be satisfying to see.
The whole political system works like that - you make a show, you get two candidates up there. Both paid and laid by you. Then , after the false promise that "The CHANGE" is coming, you actually can control the nation. Total obedience, because actually the good people just don't care. So after 4 years - another show, with 2 more pupets that get enough money to run their campaign from the rich.
So to answer your question "Why we still keep those people up there ..." - well what choice do we have. In this system all we can do is to moan to the moon and sharpen the forks. Someday streets will erupt, the change will not come with logic, it will come when we try every other possibility. Might be tomorrow :)
further k-y for the us taxpayer.........
( DJ ) 11/02 05:13PM *DJ GM Received $16.4B Deposit In Escrow From US Treasury.
anyone want to guess what percentage of that (if any) gets paid back to the us taxpayer?
With respect to replacing Geithner, my question is why get rid of him? He is carrying out the wishes of this administration. I believe he doesn't go to the bathroom unless Emanuel and Summers give him the thumbs up. Getting rid of him accomplishes nothing, he just becomes the fall guy for people like Summers, Bernanke, Emanuel and most of all Obama.
Does anyone doubt that Rahm, Summers and Obama weren't aware of what went on with the NY Fed and AIG last year, at the time Geithner was tapped to become Treasury Secretary? Seriously?
You begin by writing the white house, your senators, and congressman and ask why this man still has his job. I included the bloomberg article. You ask folks like zero hedge and other sites to start petition drives to get signatures so they can be forwarded to the appropriate people.
Instead of just writing on blogs all day you use some of that energy and write people who may perhaps do something.
I of course pray nut case takes matters in his own hands.
This shouldn't come as a surprise. You do not get to be head of the NY FEd without being a crook. the selection process insures it. therefore by being head of NY fed you knew he didn't belong as Treasury Secretary. It really was a great example of the banks getting their lap dog into the highest position.
They would never let an honest person become the head of NY fed. they can't afford to take that chance. The NY fed is absolutely the most corrupt of the organizations. they have no oversight body, they heads are chosen by the banks they are charged with regulating. If someone from the Ny fed suggests something I can almost state with 100% certainty that is is bad for america as a whole
The country, or at least the administration, thought violence was the only possible answer in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Today, we face a more immediate and real threat from our own leaders. Why is violence not the answer for us?
Thank you, Mr. Ratigan!