Summers Suspends Citigroup Ties as Obama Weighs Fed Nominee

[Eugene]

Source: Bloomberg Businessweek

Summers Suspends Citigroup Ties as Obama Weighs Fed Nominee (1)

By Craig Torres and Dakin Campbell September 14, 2013

Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers has suspended ties with Citigroup Inc. (C:US) while the White House considers nominating him to serve as the Federal Reserve’s next chairman, the company said.

“Mr. Summers has withdrawn from participation in all Citi events while he is under consideration to be chairman of the Federal Reserve,” Danielle Romero-Apsilos, a spokeswoman for the firm, said yesterday in an e-mailed statement.

Summers, a Harvard University Professor and former top economic adviser to President Barack Obama, was to give the keynote address on challenges to the global economy at a Citigroup research seminar Oct. 13, according to an invitation on the website for the firm, the third-biggest U.S. lender. The Washington event coincides with the annual meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

Citigroup hired Summers, 58, “for small private-bank client and institutional client meetings,” Romero-Apsilos said in an earlier e-mailed statement. He provided “insight on a broad range of topics including the global and domestic economy.”

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Read more: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2013-09-13/summers-suspends-ties-with-citigroup-while-considered-for-fed

[bajamary]

1. oh, nooooooooo

Poor Barack, he must have his boy Larry at the helm of the Fed. And it is looking like Larry-boy will be O's nominee.

oh, nooooooooo

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. I don't care who he suspends his ties with.

He should not be the next Chairman of the Fed.

PERIOD.

[BootinUp]

3. Clearly, he wants the job.

I am interested in why.

[liberal_at_heart]

4. oh, that's not transparent.

[NV Whino]

5. Honest to gawd

If Summers is nominated, I'm heading o Washington with armed bears.

[DefenseLawyer]

6. Meet the new Boss

Same as the old Boss

[KoKo]

7. Uh OH...Maybe Summers thinks he so entitled he's got Fed Chair..

and his ego had him do this....

But, does look like he's "gotten the word" and that the Senate will confirm him in spite of what we Dems who care about this have heard to the contrary about the 4 Dem Senators opposing him so that his nomination would not be approved.

Of course it could also be a trial balloon that Summers is putting up...saying "SEE THAT!...I'm not with Citigroup anymore...!" just hoping that makes a difference with the 4 Senate votes.

[Raksha]

8. If Summers is made head of the Fed, I am through with the Democratic Party forever.

I'm already through with Obama, and nothing's going to change that. There really isn't a whole lot left I can threaten with. The Obama administration has alienated me about as much as I CAN be alienated.

[Triana]

9. Jesus Effin Christmas. Obama can do better than this flea.

Seriously.

[roamer65]

10. Dream on, Larry.

I don't think Obama wants the knock-down, bruising battle in Congress over your nomination.

I expect Tim Geithner will take the job for one term.

[seabeckind]

13. That's comforting as hell. n/t

[Oilwellian]

11. Suspends?

1: to debar temporarily especially from a privilege, office, or function
2a: to cause to stop temporarily
b: to set aside or make temporarily inoperative
3: to defer to a later time on specified conditions
4: to hold in an undetermined or undecided state awaiting further information

Can we hope for more transparency like this?

[alp227]

12. HOPE? CHANGE? The song "Turn out the lights, the party's over" was a LONG time ago. nt

[BootinUp]

14. Judging by the replies to this thread

the Democratic Party will no longer be in existence after Summers is confirmed ( if he is confirmed). Because a significant majority of Democrats will abandon the party.

I will bet 1000 deniros that the Democratic Party would still be basically the same as today even if Summers is confirmed as Fed Chair.

Any takers? I need the money. lol.

[liberal_at_heart]

15. oh, many people are already done with the Democratic Party. I know I am. I am an independent.

[BootinUp]

17. So basically, anything you post

should be read with the knowledge that you are not even a Democrat.

[liberal_at_heart]

18. If I just had to describe myself I'd say I'm a socialist, and neither the republicans nor the

democrats have good social programs. The republicans want to do away with social programs and the democrats just want to whittle away at it little by little. I love politicians like Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders who also just happens to be an independent. But you are not the first person today who has wanted to paint me with a negative brush so go ahead brush away.

[BootinUp]

19. These are tough times

I just want to know who is fighting with me or against me.

[liberal_at_heart]

20. I know there are conservative trolls on here so I understand.

[RC]

24. Depends on which side of the real Center you are on.

[liberal_at_heart]

25. I love that illustration. There is indeed a huge vacuum just waiting to be filled.

[RC]

26. Thanks.

You are welcome to steal and it.

[nadinbrzezinski]

27. Nope, not quite

The Democratic Party is now a business party. The Republican Party is a far right regional party.

We call these historic realignments. They happen every three generations or so. The old democratic coalition is pretty much broken, and I became an indie before I became a reporter. The fastest growing affiliation in California is the decline to state voter, otherwise known as independent.

Very much off the record...both parties in California fear a voter revolt. I see that as healthy. We need it. I mean that as a political system which is pretty stagnant, and in death spiral.

[truebluegreen]

16. He does this NOW? Fuck Summers.

[Jack Rabbit]

21. Summers will have to do a lot more than cut his ties to Citigroup to satisfy me

He'd have to sut his ties to his past, which would be a neat trick if he could do it.

[snot]

22. Obama, FREE yourself from your corporate masters!! You can't be re-elected again, remember??

[RC]

23. He has a family to think of.

Besides the money is good.

[TorchTheWitch]

29. he can't and he won't

He was bought. They all were. Take corporate money and you're owned. He'll follow through just as they all do. That decision is made when they take that money. This is why the single biggest problem with our system of government is private money for campaigns and the need for so damn much of it.

We the working class are NEVER going to have our needs met until either the bulk of the money comes from the working class like it used to with union money or we get the private money out of politics. The politicians making the working class slay each other with the R vs. D game has worked in keeping us from doing anything effective to bring together all workers and make it a Labor vs. Elite fight again by rebuilding the huge unions Reagan killed and getting Labor money back in the game so they HAVE a choice anymore of who to get their money from and thus who to work for. R vs. D is a manufactured distraction so that workers can't get it together and get back to the only fight that matters and that works - Labor vs. Elite. It's NOT NOT NOT an R vs. D problem, it's a Labor vs. Elite problem, and the sooner we realize the workers have been purposely divided between two parties doing the same Elite economic shit and get back to the REAL fight of Labor vs. Elite the better. Both R and D voters - the vast majority of which are workers - want the same economic outcome but have listened to the lies from both R and D politicians who are working for the Elite because that's where their vast treasure of campaign money comes from on how to get there. The ONLY way to get there is to be in a position where workers through unions can offer campaign money that is just as green and plentiful as Elite money, and if neither party will take it then back a Labor party that will. Keep playing the R vs. D game that they encouraged us to play instead of Labor vs. Elite and we'll NEVER EVER EVER have a party that works for workers.

The name of the game of politics in this country is MONEY, and either that has to magically change or we need to go BACK to workers being able to provide enough of it for a party to WANT to take it thus be beholden to workers needs. The only reason the Dem party was ever a party of the worker was because they got the bulk of their campaign money from the workers, and the very moment they threw in the towel on trying to compete with Elite money vs. dwindling Labor money and went in for the Elite money was the same very moment the Dem party also threw in the towel on workers' needs and switched from working for Labor to working for Elite.

[Chan790]

28. There is no way I'd support Summers for Fed Chair.

Toonces is a goddamned moron and with his track record, he's lucky they're not repealing his Ph.D in economics.