Bill Clinton says Glass-Steagall was irrelevant....

[Postman]

http://turcopolier.typepad.com/sic_semper_tyrannis/2009/02/bill-clinton-i-should-have-better-regulated-derivatives.html

...if was not part of the problem, why was it necessary to have it repealed under Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act?

[truebrit71]

1. Yeah, sorry about that Big Dog but you are full of shit on this one...

...it wasn't THE cause of this mess....but it sure helped...

[JTFrog]

2. Worried bout his legacy much lately?

Can't own up to his part of any of the deregulation disasters.

Shocker. :eyes:

[mmonk]

3. Bill Clinton is being dishonest to protect his legacy.

[blm]

12. yeah...and he was 'against' the Iraq war during Hillary's primary run hoping no one would remember

that he is the one who urged Tony Blair and Dem lawmakers to support Bush's decisions on Iraq, and even used his summer2004 book tour to vigorously defend Bush publicly throughout his 3 weeks of high profile interviews.

[madrchsod]

4. he`s a coward for not owning up to his signature...

repealing the last new deal banking reform act. clinton knew what he was doing when he signed it.

so a big fuck you bill

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

5. Have to agree that Bill is wrong and would be more impressed if he fessed up

He's smart guy - he knows better.

[bvar22]

28. "Knowing better".....

...never stopped "The Big Dog".

[Captain Hilts]

6. The complete absence of oversight and negligence of basic regulation 2000-08 was the real problem.

I don't like it either and I saw an article cited here where he did express regret, as well he should.

But if Gore had been prez, this wouldn't have happened.

I remember discussing this 'reform' with my financial adviser at the time.

[mmonk]

9. It was a timebomb eroding the system. No matter who was President,

consequences were forthcoming. Bush just added the final blow with expansion of crony capitalism but systemic problems were already in the system.

[Ichingcarpenter]

14. Nobel Laureate disagrees- three things happened under Clinton on his list

Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz adds other culprits as crucial to the making of the current economic crisis. Among them:

1) the April 1998, decision of President Clinton's Working Group on Financial Markets to quash a proposal by Brooksley E. Born, head of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, to regulate derivatives;
(happened under Clinton)

2) enactment of Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act on November 12, 1999 allowing consolidation of commercial and investment banks;(Clinton)

3) passage of the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000 removing derivatives from federal oversight;
Clinton's term


4) the Bush tax cuts of 2001 and 2003;

5) the failure of the Federal Reserve to take responsibility for regulating derivatives; and

6) the Securities and Exchange Commission decision in April, 2004, to allow large investment banks to increase their debt-to-capital ratio from 12 to 1 to 30 to 1, or higher.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/19/alan-greenspan-the-oracle_n_168168.html

[karynnj]

20. Thanks for this - it is a really good summary of complex causes nt

[Captain Hilts]

22. I'm a Stiglitz fan too.

It wasn't quite a 'perfect storm', but close. And, I am just not ready to let the Bush Admin - knowing their complete lack of interest in managing ANYTHING regulatory - so easily off the hook.

I mean, do we really think the same thing would have happened under Prez. Gore?

I'll have to find the reference I saw here about Clinton expressing regret.

[karynnj]

19. He made it easier and possible

Removing that wall was one of the big first steps in creating the problem. The Commodity Futures Modernization which was also backed by Clinton and added to an appropriations bill was a second problem - it kept swaps and derivatives from being regulated. (In fairness, Greenspan, Gramm and Rubin all advised him to do these things.)

It is true though that Cox by allowing leverage to go to ratios like 1:44 (from 1:12) exasperated this - and it is true that the oversight was awful.

Clinton's comment is analogous to someone leaving the door to a house, that was robbed 12 hours later, wide open - saying that he was not responsible. It is true that others could have closed it in the intervening hours or that someone else could have caught the thief - and of course, the door opener had no relationship to the thief - but he set up the conditions that enabled things that couldn't have happened otherwise.

[2Design]

7. bull shit - maybe all presidents can't see the errors of their ways or

how they impact things with their narrow focus

[Greyhound]

8. Afraid people will catch on before he dies?

Think of it, allowed health care to continue to disintegrate, finalized media consolidation, destroyed the final remnants of what remained of our welfare system, allowed the financial sector to escape any oversight, crippled the burgeoning technology sector.

Hell, all Idiot frat boy had to do was reverse his tax increase and throw a little more money at the parasites to finish destroying the nation.

[izquierdista]

10. You forgot NAFTA

He was proud that he got that passed.

[Greyhound]

11. You're right, I did.

Continuing and accelerating the policies that had already failed twice in twelve years before he came to office doesn't seem like such a great idea anymore, does it Bill?

[Captain Hilts]

23. All those jobs we lost to China because of NAFTA! nt

[Romulox]

30. Er, Clinton also signed the bill that gave "permanent normal trade" relations with China. FYI. nt

[bvar22]

31. Not NAFTA, those jobs went to Mexico first, and THEN to Asia.

Granting China MFN status is what sent our jobs to China. (Bill Clinton, 1994)

[OHdem10]

13. The names GRAMM and BLILEY tell you everything you need to

know.

To think that if the GOP had won this election, Gramm was being
considered for Sec.Treasury.

[originalpckelly]

15. So when did he start taking money from the bankers?

:shrug:

I wonder how many Clinton Global Initiative donations are from rich NY investment bankers?

[Ichingcarpenter]

18. Citigroup and Bill Clinton

citigroup and the Clinton:
http://www.indusbusinessjournal.com/ME2/Audiences/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=Publishing&mod=Publications%3A%3AArticle&mid=8F3A7027421841978F18BE895F87F791&tier=4&id=8AD746E94F2542AB843205CE3F788002&AudID=0AD64D9611024CD8A69EAA84C4AF124A

How Clinton help make Citigroup possible
http://www.progressivehistorians.com/2007/11/bill-clintons-role-in-mortgage-crisis.html


speaking fees and Citigroup:
http://www.reddit.com/r/reddit.com/comments/7ewt5/bailedout_citigroup_paid_bill_clinton_700000for/

[karynnj]

16. Clinton is wrong - and he likely knows it

Removing that wall was one of the big first steps in creating the problem. The Commodity Futures Modernization which was also backed by Clinton and added to an appropriations bill was a second problem - it kept swaps and derivatives from being regulated. (In fairness, Greenspan, Gramm and Rubin all advised him to do these things.)

This is just a case of "hot potato" where no one wants to end up holding any of the blame. These two actions by Clinton, both of which reflect a view that regulation is not needed hurt. It is true though that Cox by allowing leverage to go to ratios like 1:44 (from 1:12) exasperated this.

Clinton's comment is analogous to someone leaving the door to a house, that was robbed 12 hours later, wide open- saying that he was not responsible. It is true that others could have closed it in the intervening hours or that someone else could have caught the thief - and of course, the door opener had no relationship to the thief - but he set up the conditions that enabled things that couldn't have happened otherwise.

[G_j]

26. of course he knows it. He is a smart guy

and dishonest....

[karynnj]

27. I agree - on both counts

[Veritas_et_Aequitas]

17. Eh, not quite.

Yes, Reagan and Bush I did a good job hacking away at the bill during their administrations, but Clinton's repeal of it certainly didn't help things.

[EndElectoral]

21. Clinton's wrong on this one. I stil ldon't know why Congress doesn't reinstitute it.

[Canuckistanian]

24. I'll bet Thom Hartmann will have a thing or two to say about this

I'll be sure to listen today.

[Froward69]

25. THIS is worse than an extra marital Blowjob

any day!!!

Fuck You Bill... Glass/Seagall was there to PREVENT this mess.

Aiding and abetting greed, looking out for your role... shameful

[kentuck]

29. Bill is covering his own ass again.

Irrelevant? Hardly!