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Live Webcast Of Greenspan Testimony Before The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission

Tyler Durden's picture




 

The delusional Mr. Greenspan testifies this morning before the FCIC. The hearing can be seen live and commercial free here.

Below are the testimonies of all participants at today's hearing.

  • Session 1: The Federal Reserve

    Mr. Alan Greenspan
    Former Chairman
    Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
  • Session 2: Subprime Origination and Securitization

    Mr. Richard Bitner
    Managing Director of Housingwire.com
    Author, "Confessions of a Subprime Lender: An Insider's Tale of Greed, Fraud & Ignorance"
    Mr. Richard Bowen
    Former Senior Vice President and Business Chief Underwriter

    CitiMortgage Inc.
    Ms. Patricia Lindsay
    Former Vice President, Corporate Risk

    New Century Financial Corporation
    Ms. Susan Mills
    Managing Director of Mortgage Finance

    Citi Markets & Banking, Global Securitized Markets
  • Session 3: Citigroup Subprime-Related Structured Products and Risk Management

    Mr. Murray C. Barnes
    Former Managing Director, Independent Risk
    Citigroup, Inc.
    Mr. David C. Bushnell
    Former Chief Risk Officer

    Citigroup, Inc.
    Mr. Nestor Dominguez
    Former Co-Head, Global Collateralized Debt Obligations
    Citi Markets & Banking, Global Structured Credit Products
    Mr. Thomas G. Maheras
    Former Co-Chief Executive Officer

    Citi Markets & Banking
 

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Wed, 04/07/2010 - 09:27 | 289549 colonial
colonial's picture

Where's Stan O'Neal?  His brilliant "all-in" on toxic mortgage paper sank Mother Merrill

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:32 | 289720 strike for retu...
strike for return to reality's picture

There is one pretty easy to draw conclusion from listening to Greenspan.

If the Federal Reserve didn't exist, the US economy probably wouldn't be a disaster.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 09:33 | 289555 Marvin_M
Marvin_M's picture

one questions the motivation of any sincere government committee in asking Mr. Greenspan to testify on a subject of meaningful concern.  Of late it seems that he is much better left to lawn bowling and other gentle acivities enjoyed by his peers...

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 09:48 | 289572 Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance's picture

Exactly.

Emphasis on "sincere". The insanity continues. Politicians call on Greenspan because there is little downside. They can say they wanted to hear his explanation of how's he's innocent if the politician is in that camp or they can say they asked him there to grill him if the politician is in the camp that Greenspan is a fool. Everyone wins, which is how the politician sees the world, where the correct choice always has a lower probability of a negative outcome.

It's easy to understand life as a turd when you hang around assholes long enough.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:01 | 289594 Marvin_M
Marvin_M's picture

trust you will forgive the sarcastic use of the oxymoronic adjective preceding "government committee" in my comment...

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:08 | 289602 Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance's picture

No forgiving needed. The sarcasm jumped off the screen and slapped me in the face. It was why I built my reply around the word.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:13 | 289687 Marvin_M
Marvin_M's picture

that Mr. Greenspan continues to offer himself as a sacrificial diversion for public inquisition proceedings in Washington (instead of devoting his declining years to lawn bowling) speaks volumes of his undying devotion to the ultimate survival of the fanatic disciples of his faith... whether defender or persecutor of this hapless, declining gentleman; all conspire in the perpetuation of the misguided religion he founded...

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:31 | 289717 Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance's picture

The king ain't dead, long live the king.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 13:34 | 290096 BoeingSpaceliner797
BoeingSpaceliner797's picture

Exactly, exactly.  The FCIC and their hearings are about as sincere and not cynical as the SEC in voting 5-0 to require IBs to retain 5% of CDO offerings so they have "skin" in the game.  Isn't FASB 157 suspended, at least in part, because too many of these rapists got caught with significant amounts of "skin" in the game? 

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_SEC_RULES_FOR_NEW_MARKET?SITE=ORROS&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT 

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:47 | 289651 DaveyJones
DaveyJones's picture

Mr. Chairman, in retrospect would you place more of the blame squarely upon the regulator or the banker? Depends. Depends on what? No, my Depends, its full, I need another one.  

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 14:15 | 290197 Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance's picture

DaveyJones,

I laughed so hard I had a little....er.....leakage. Time for some Depends myself.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 14:27 | 290226 DaveyJones
DaveyJones's picture

they're all moral infants anyways

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:56 | 289665 Ripped Chunk
Ripped Chunk's picture

It is kabuki theater.

High drama portrayed through over emphasised speech and motion.

Nothing will happen.  Something for the stupid drones to write about and comment on.

 

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:18 | 289608 I am a Man I am...
I am a Man I am Forty's picture

"The Big Short" by Michael Lewis discusses this in his book.  A good read.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:47 | 289614 Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance's picture

I was a bit disappointed with the book. It was a good read but it was intended for the layman so it focused upon personalities and not so much about the Ponzi, though it did try. I felt the book had a chance to do both equally well but it played the situation as a wild, crazy, insane aberration that only a few people saw AND who then played the opposite side, making a ton of money. 

It really did play up a few brave and hardy souls who bucked the trend and placed their money where thei mouth was. Thus it could be seen as a one off by a public that wishes to believe it can't happen again.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:53 | 289658 I am a Man I am...
I am a Man I am Forty's picture

I don't disagree CD, I did think he painted a pretty good picture of how AIG, Goldman, DB, and the CDS buyers interacted.  His intent for the book was a character study of the people that saw the subprime mess coming, so I knew that going in.  

The book didn't leave me with the impression that something like this couldn't happen again, but I've seen many interviews with Lewis so that may be impacting my perception.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:06 | 289678 Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance's picture

I try to see these books from the point of view of the average reader. You are clearly aware that things are worse than they appear or that you are being told lies based just upon the fact that you are on ZH. So you are reading the book from that basis.

The average Joe, who suspects something is very wrong BUT the market is up (and thus their 401(k) and IRA) the banks are making money, the TV and newspapers, while concerned, say things are improving etc. Yeah, unemployment is bad but at least I'm working. Besides, they say this was caused by some bad apples and I don't really want to know too much more because what the hell would I do anyway?

So with that mindset the book reads like a who done it with some knights in shinning armour who were rewarded for their whistle blowing by profiting from the other side of the trade. And there were some very bad apples who fooled nearly everybody else, including some very sharp people on Wall Street. But in a strange way, this is perceived as good by many because if everyone else was fooled, I don't feel bad at all for being the same fool. This actually reinforces herd mentality.

A person exercises very selective memory and selective reading when absorbing stuff that is extremely disturbing. This is hard to see when you have moved past this point. A few of my clients have read the book. These clients heard me warning of this mess way back in 2004. Yet the common impression they got from the book was exactly as I described. When I mentioned a few factoids from the book that did point out that the basic issues weren't resolved and more may be coming around the corner, they did not remember them. I showed the section of the book to one client, who was in my office, and he didn't remember reading it at all.

Denial and ego are supremely powerful forces and they both play upon our desire to avoid ugly truths.  

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:32 | 289719 I am a Man I am...
I am a Man I am Forty's picture

About your client, that doesn't surprise me at all.  Enjoy your posts CD.  I read a lot more than I type, but have been around here for a long time.

The average American is financially illiterate and has the memory of a gold fish.  They will continue to get steamrolled until they are broke or decide to learn something.  I have no financial background (engineering degree) but make a serious effort to learn everything I can because the majority that I have come across in the financial industry are crooks and intentionally mislead.  

Damn, late for a tennis match, cheers!

 

 

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 09:43 | 289566 knukles
knukles's picture

Grallumph, murrflomp, remmsahumble, subprime, haruumph.  Hah hah hah.

Not on my watch.
Not my legacy.
Never is or was too much credit. 
Was Volcker's fault.
Is Ben's fault.
You guys are OK
Need more regulation.
Mumblearffalot.

The Lady doth protesteth too much, Methinks.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 09:58 | 289586 tip e. canoe
tip e. canoe's picture

she is a bit of a queen isn't she?

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:36 | 289626 DaveyJones
DaveyJones's picture

we must do something about this immediately, haruumph

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JN99jshaQbY

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:12 | 289684 Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance's picture

Mel Brooks at his finest.

"I didn't get a harummph out of that guy. You watch your ass."

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:06 | 289597 wyosteven
wyosteven's picture

Allow me to summarize Greenspans testimony:

"It wasn't my fault, we don't enable lies and fraud, the Fed's mission statement is honesty and integrity.  When we fail we really win because we print money and you don't.  Now, who's got my check?"

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:07 | 289601 Selah
Selah's picture

Is he going to remind them when his time has expired and he has blessed them with a few extra minutes of his wisdom/denial?

 

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 12:05 | 289834 Selah
Selah's picture

Sorry I underestimated the maestro.

Some lacky throws a circuit breaker this time...

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 12:07 | 289845 Selah
Selah's picture

PS: Gold loves the move!

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:46 | 289650 chumbawamba
chumbawamba's picture

My version goes something like this:

Greenspan: It wasn't my fault.  I was once hailed as a Wizard.  What have you people ever done?

I am Chumbawamba.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:22 | 289697 Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance's picture

chumbawamba,

Sometimes you're like a heat seeker missile, driving straight to the target with no distractions at all. Bravo!

The ego is easily flattered and hard (pun intended) to deflate once inflated by way of the manual inflation nozzle at the belt-line, aka the penis.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vm7i2825dg8

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 15:29 | 290384 bbbilly1326
bbbilly1326's picture

that is FUNNY !

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:26 | 289711 Ripped Chunk
Ripped Chunk's picture

Greenspan has no fear of Congress. He is well north of any of them in the power structure.

I mean the guy invented "Fedspeak" to recite as his testimony to Congress. He has no respect for Congress or any thing else except for his dark overlords.

Fuck this old bastard.

 

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:06 | 289599 BorisTheBlade
BorisTheBlade's picture

Greenspan is a mister What a F*ck. In a sense that you can listen to him for a long time and then suddenly "What a f*ck did he just say?".

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:25 | 289615 whydtinogo
whydtinogo's picture

My favourite so far: "... it is my experience that the banks making the loans are far better at judging the risk of the borrowers than we at the Fed could ever be."

He's probably correct cos the Fed is so piss poor, but given the sheer size of the losses taken so far and likely to come, I can not imagine that he is in any way serious.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:45 | 289647 whydtinogo
whydtinogo's picture

Its the rating agencies fault now - good grief

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:25 | 289617 Amsterdammer
Amsterdammer's picture

A view from Europe

What is amazing is the power of self-denial

of the guys like H.Paulson and A.Greenspan:

I did not see the bubble because I spent most

of my time....When you know that there are said

to employ 500 economists at the FED, blowing soapbubbles,lol

See: the man nobody wanted to hear: William White

http://www.spiegel.de/international/business/0,1518,635051,00.html

Michael Burry: I saw the crisis coming, so why didn't the Fed ?

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/04/opinion/04burry.html

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:37 | 289629 Amsterdammer
Amsterdammer's picture

Now he has it about the accounting rules

"mark to market", blahblah, what does a sane manager

do

1) when 67% of the mortgages had been

securitized ?

2 ) When Commercial banks had: 26: 1 Leverage ratio ?

3) When Investment banks had 40: 1 Leverage ratio ?

 

 

 

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:43 | 289642 sweet ebony diamond
sweet ebony diamond's picture

greenspan couldn't see the problem because he didn't leave his cubicle.

maybe there should be a requirement for the fed chairman to spend a couple of days with jose in california or spechelle in chicago or bubba in alabama each year.

ask a few questions while he is there.

 

 

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:50 | 289654 whydtinogo
whydtinogo's picture

They wont understand him and he wont understand them - check out the beige book - those clowns are supposed to ask questions and form a view on the state of the economy in their regions. Regional Fed: How's things going on the job front. Man on the Street: Im unemployed and have been for 26 weeks. Regional Fed: So things are stable over there in buttfck Iowa, thanks for yr time.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:54 | 289660 hedgeless_horseman
hedgeless_horseman's picture

I think they should force at least one of their economists to make 50% of their salary flipping houses in Vegas.  When he or she drives a new BMW they will know there is a RE bubble.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:55 | 289661 Gimp
Gimp's picture

Greenspan's legacey will be his ability to speak in long winded parables and not actually say a F**king thing.

His script today includes the following parable:

It was a cold and windy night,

Three men sat round a camp fire,

When one said to the other,

"Tell us a story Ben",

He said "Alright" and it began like this,

It was a cold and windy night....

 

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:01 | 289667 Ripped Chunk
Ripped Chunk's picture

Greenspan has openly admitted that he created and rehearsed "Fedspeak".  The prepared testimony that he would recite at these affairs. 

A non logical argument with economic phrases that went in circles and said absolutely nothing. So he really does not take Congress seriously. He is above it in power rank. He knows it and they know it.

Yet he was hailed for years by media and government as an economic genius. 

We see now when it is too late the nature of the forces we are up against.

 

 

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:04 | 289673 whydtinogo
whydtinogo's picture

Really? I could have sworn he said it wasnt his fault ;-)

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 10:59 | 289666 dcb
dcb's picture

He belongs in jail, trial then execution for treason. did more damage then bin laden ever did and we are hunting him with troops half way across the world. Yet we have bigger crooks and terrorists at home and they remain rich and free.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:04 | 289674 Cookie
Cookie's picture

+1

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:00 | 289668 Gimp
Gimp's picture

+10000

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:03 | 289670 anony
anony's picture

No thanks. The LAST person in the universe I want to see or hear, or think about is Alan Greenspan, the twit.

I'd rather watch re-reuns of PeeWee Herman.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:09 | 289682 Selah
Selah's picture

Watch this and you will see that you are getting your wish...

It's like a senile, rambling, Pee Wee with a lot of culpability to obfuscate.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:15 | 289691 whydtinogo
whydtinogo's picture

Brooksley's up - this exchange should rock

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:24 | 289707 whydtinogo
whydtinogo's picture

so far not, sadly.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:33 | 289724 Dr. No
Dr. No's picture

Why isnt the market up with this news? wait.. there it goes!

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:41 | 289744 zombiebank
zombiebank's picture

William Black did an excellent interview on the Real News Network (google it) where he basically says all of the people who created the crisis are still in charge.  Those people being: Bernanke, Geithner, Dodd, Frank and a few lesser knowns.  He argues that we should give those who saw the crisis coming a chance to make changes.  I think this is an excellent idea.  Black also points out that over 1000 people went to jail in the S&L fraud in the 1980's - no one has gone to jail for this current round of fraud.  It is outrageous!  I have been e-mailing my Senators asking when we will "stop the looting and start the prosecuting."  Surprisingly I have gotten no response.  But that is fine with me because when I go vote in November my senators will not get my vote. 

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 15:33 | 290398 bbbilly1326
bbbilly1326's picture

 

correction zombiebank, that should be "unsurprisingly"..............

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:43 | 289748 SayTabserb
SayTabserb's picture

This whole thing with constant TV appearances by Greenspan, 4 years after he was put out to pasture, is acquiring the quality of bear baiting. He's useful to politicians for a couple of reasons, so they can be seen in the company of the former eminence grise of the financial world, and then dump all the blame on a guy who clearly is now a senile idiot who blathers on like a Yoda speaking German run through a bad Google translator. How can they lose? It's getting pathetic to keep going over and over the same tired truisms.

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 15:35 | 290407 bbbilly1326
bbbilly1326's picture

 

     +100 SayTabserb, for using "eminence grise".........ya don't see that every day.......

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:50 | 289772 bbbilly1326
bbbilly1326's picture

Ms. Born got some of her revenge, it looked sweet.

 

Now there's a "power outage" !  

What sleazeballs...........

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:50 | 289773 Selah
Selah's picture

POWER OUTAGE!!!???

Hate to be skeptical, but GOLD BITCHES!!!

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:52 | 289777 Selah
Selah's picture

Back on, but it just makes this crap more surreal...

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:54 | 289792 MarketTruth
MarketTruth's picture

+1

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 13:20 | 290053 tip e. canoe
tip e. canoe's picture

"Turn out the lights
The party's over
They say that
All good things must end
Call it tonight
The party's over
And tomorrow starts
The same old thing again"

-willie nelson

willie's testimony on the roots of the financial crisis here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddlrESWYWEo

(WARNING: 2nd half of video goes off into bonghit territory with big jesse & fat alex.)

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 11:54 | 289790 Whats that smell
Whats that smell's picture

Why are they wasting time on this?
Is there any solution in talking to this man?
I listened to it for 15 minutes, that was all I could take.
What a bunch of double talk & B.S.

We need to clean house in DC, sitting politicians need to go,
There are only a couple fit to stay- throw them all out!

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 12:03 | 289828 SayTabserb
SayTabserb's picture

That's it right there.  The 535 Plan. This November, vote all Reps out and 1/3 of the Senators. In 6 years, All New People, and the lobbyists will have to work like frats during Pledge Week. But the new CongressClowns will live in fear of being thrown out the same way. Nothing else has a chance of changing things. Vote for your brother-in-law, your cleaning lady, your local butcher, yourself. Get rid of these people!

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 13:29 | 290087 lins216
lins216's picture

no irony in the fact that every participant (with the exception of 1) is a "former"

Wed, 04/07/2010 - 14:06 | 290181 fUny1
fUny1's picture

The Fed, through its carnal cretins such as Alan Greenspan, has been busy trying to crash the US economy. Their stooge “maestro” was the facade puppet in an orchestrated effort to use housing to bring us to economic Armageddon.

http://funy1.blogspot.com/2010/04/if-you-ever-thought-fed-was-pulling.html

Fri, 04/09/2010 - 03:36 | 292763 mark456
mark456's picture

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