The Market Ticker

This one is definitely worth a read folks.

It appears that Representative Cummings, along with a half-dozen other Representatives, have had enough of The Fed's games.

They are now calling for a FULL CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW of THE ENTIRE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM, including A FULL PUBLIC AUDIT.

To this I say:

It's about damn time.

(click for larger images)

GET ON THE PHONE NOW TO YOUR REP AND RAISE HELL.  MOMENTUM ON THIS IS BUILDING, AND IT IS UP TO **US** TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

An amendment offered by Representative Speier to the FSIA bill currently under markup:

Jerry Brown is crowing about the most-recent "Auction Rate" security settlement:

"Wells Fargo convinced thousands of investors to purchase auction-rate securities with promises of robust returns and liquidity, but when the market collapsed, investors were left out in the cold," Brown said. "Based on misleading advice, investors bought these risky securities. Now, retail investors and small businesses are finally getting their money back."

Uh huh.  That's the good part.

Now here's the bad part:

The lawsuit contended that Wells Fargo ignored clear industry and internal warnings about risk and previous auction failure. In March 2005, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the "Big 4" accounting firms, and the Financial Accounting Standards Board all determined that auction-rate securities should not be considered "cash equivalents."

Despite these warnings, Wells Fargo continued to aggressively sell and falsely market auction-rate securities as safe, liquid, cash-like investments until the nationwide auction markets froze in early 2008.

In marketing and selling these investments, Wells Fargo failed to inform investors about how auction-rate securities or the auction process worked, as well as the risks and consequences of auction failure.

Fraud defined:

A false representation of a matter of fact—whether by words or by conduct, by false or misleading allegations, or by concealment of what should have been disclosed—that deceives and is intended to deceive another so that the individual will act upon it to her or his legal injury.

Racketeering defined:

(n) Racketeering is defined as the process of forming or running an organization to operate or commit or otherwise execute ongoing criminal activities.

Perhaps the question we should be asking is why we keep seeing "settlements" instead of prosecutions.

From The Hill....

Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) said Wednesday that he and other liberal House members are becoming increasingly tired of Obama administration economic policies that they say are too focused on maintaining the stability of Wall Street firms and largely ignore "Main Street."

"A growing consensus in the caucus [believe that Geithner should be removed]," DeFazio said on MSNBC this evening, adding that some lawmakers are "considering questions regarding him and other economic advisers."

No, really?

What was your first hint Peter?

Was it that Timmy couldn't be bothered to pay his taxes?  Was it that he was the Wall Street stooge who handed out billions of taxpayer money to the big banks through AIG via what I'd argue was a fraudulent scheme to pay off those CDS at par?  Or is it Timmy's incessant prattling on about a "strong dollar"?

One has to wonder, given that there's really nothing different about any of Geithner's views and actions than Paulson's - except for the blatant tax cheating (that we know of.)  Then again, being a tax cheat seems to be a requirement to be a Democrat official - shall we toll up the list both in the Obama Administration and Congress?

(The Dishonorable Chuck Rangel anyone?)

I find the faux populism of the Democratic Party particularly offensive.  There is absolutely nothing in the Obama Administration's record to indicate that they have ever intended to proceed from any such viewpoint - not now, not ever.

The veteran congressman specifically mentioned last year's bank bailouts and the Geithner's handling of the collapse of insurance giant AIG. At the time, Geithner was head of the New York Fed in the Bush administration. 

"We may have to sacrifice just two more jobs to get millions back for Americans," the congressman added.

This, of course, is why The Democrats were all for Geithner last winter.  Remember that Peter?  Where was your outrage at his appointment then?

Here's one of the articles I wrote at the time - just post-election.

How about you Tim (Geithner, at the NY Fed)?  Is everything on the up-and-up over there in NY?  If so, why don't you "bare all" and let us have a look-see?

Since it's our money you're playing with, in that we the taxpayer are the source of the wealth you shuffle around, we have every right to know what the hell you're doing with it and so does Congress.

If you refuse then I believe Congress should revoke your charter and subpoena everyone involved, including the Treasury Secretary's and both Bernanke's and Geithner's notes, phone records and meeting minutes, along with the details of every transaction taken by any of the above since August of 2007.  Publish it all in The Federal Register and online via the web.

Funny how only now, after the looting has taken place, after the banks have rate-jacked Americans' credit cards to 29.9%, after Timmy funneled over $100 billion of taxpayer money through AIG to banks both foreign and domestic, and after Timmy has repeatedly refused to put a limit on what authority he wants to keep under TARP, now you bleat.

Here's reality:

This Administration, just as with the Bush Administration, is kneeling before Zod - the banksters that infest Wall Street - and selling out Americans.

Washington may be starting to panic about jobs - as well they should be.  They should be in panic about the budget too - it has grown 30% in the last couple of years, and the claimed "5% reduction" that is being whispered around on The Hill will do exactly nothing.

Politically the reduction of government spending has simply never happened.  We call it a "cut" when the rate of increase declines - and the lapdog American Public, most of whom failed 3rd Grade Math, nod in agreement.  We then ladle on more public entitlement program spending, as was done with Medicare Part "D", which was sold as a sop to Seniors but which was really a sop to drug companies like Pfizer - who, I remind you, has pled guilty twice in the last few years to criminal felony charges for off-label marketing practices.  Oh, and their putative head at the time then got a Federal Reserve Bank of NY Board seat.  You Democrats wrote that bill (yes, I know, Bush signed it, fool that he was) but in fact it was not intended to benefit the public - it was simply (another) rip-off of Americans for the benefit of a handful of big pharmaceutical companies, who are one step (and only one step!) behind the banks when it comes to how badly they've screwed ordinary Americans.

Sacking Geithner would be a good first step, but only a first step.  We also have to sack the entire OCC and OTS staff and tell Sheila Bair that the next bank she seizes - after a short grace period to go in and close ALL of the bankrupt banks NOW - that has more than a 5% loss on assets to the deposit fund better be accompanied by her resignation or she will be sacked as well.

The entire operation of The Fed needs to be examined by Congress and all of it peeled back in the open for all of America.  Foreign exchange swaps, lending, improper buying of non-full-faith-and-credit "assets", circumvention of the rules through setting up LLCs like Maiden Lane(s), all of it.

Every financial firm that has lied to investors, regulators and buyers of their trash over the last decade must be investigated and, when appropriate, indicted.  If convicted their charters must be revoked.

We need to either ban securitization entirely, impose strict liability for every transaction enclosed in a securitized loan package, or set a federal usury limit at some reasonable level over Fed Funds - not more than 10%.  If you can't loan profitably at a 10% interest  rate over Fed Funds, you're cheating - you're making loans you have every expectation will not be paid.

ALL off-balance sheet games must be stopped.  Period.  Hiding things off balance sheet should get you 20 years in "pound-me-in-the-butt" Federal Prison, not a fat bonus.

ALL lending in excess of collateral value (that is, "unsecured") must be backed by one dollar of capital for each dollar of loan outstanding.  Oh, and it's a loan when you write a "credit default swap" (whether on interest rates or anything else) where you do not have hard reserves behind your commitment.  The writing of CDS by AIGFP with no reserves was not one illegitimate act, it was two - first by AIGFP in claiming these policies were "good", and again by the banks who bought them and claimed to be "hedged" when their counterparty had no ability to pay.

The ugly reality is that we've wasted more than two years on trash "programs" and "fixes" that have done nothing more than blow over a trillion dollars of taxpayer money, enriching Wall Street (again) while millions of Americans lost their homes and jobs.   Only the American consumer has been forced to eat the bad loans they took out - the lenders have been protected at taxpayer expense.  The disincentive to make a loan you know or have reason to know won't be paid back only exists if making bad loans bankrupts BOTH the lender AND borrower.

Talk will no longer cut it.

Americans are a patient people, but it is my sense that the collective patience of this nation is nearing exhaustion.

Trust me on this Mr. DeFazio - if you and your ilk don't cut the theatrics and BS games you're going to eventually piss off the American public to a sufficient degree that they will spend their last $20 on this:

That day may be a lot closer than you think.

America used to mistreat her land and water like this.

This sort of thing, by the way, is how you manage to produce things with a wage of $1 or $2/day and undercut first-world producers.

When we have "free trade" with China, this is what we are supporting.  This is what we're serving up on their people.  This is what our government and corporations all say is ok - so long as it is hidden from us, and happens "over there."

Make all the excuses you want America, this is what you're supporting every time you buy anything made in China or containing Chinese componets.

Go walk around your house and pick up 10 random items.  Look for the "made in" tag on the back or bottom.  What's it say?  Now consider this - it is virtually impossible today to buy a piece of consumer electronics, a toy, an automobile or even a toaster without some part of it coming from China.

YOU are why this is happening.

These are not old photos, or someone's Photoshop experiment.

They're real, they're current, and they are what our hedonism, demand for $20 DVD players and "cheaper and faster" from everyone has resulted in, all so our "corporations" can report "record profits."

Those "great earnings" the last two quarters were in fact generated by firing Americans and shifting yet more production over to China, where they poison their air, water and ground with wild abandon, all so we can have a "strong" stock market and our banksters can loot us some more.

This is just one example.... head to the original article to read and see the rest.

You lost your job so she can bathe in industrial waste, and you are not only consenting to all of it, you're actively supporting it.

Any questions?