Senator Orrin Hatch Drops a Bombshell at Jack Lew’s Confirmation Hearing [View all]

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http://wallstreetonparade.com/2013/02/senator-orrin-hatch-drops-a-bombshell-at-jack-lew%E2%80%99s-confirmation-hearing/

Senator Orrin Hatch Drops a Bombshell at Jack Lew’s Confirmation Hearing
By Pam Martens: February 14, 2013

At last we know how the grease is funneled to that revolving door between Wall Street and Washington. One only gets a $940,000 bonus from Wall Street’s Citigroup if you can land a “full time high level position with the United States Government or a regulatory body.” It can’t be just a part-time job, mind you; and you can’t be rank and file. Citigroup’s dangling carrot will only pay $940,000 if the company can add a “high level” government mover and shaker to their gold-plated Rolodex.

This was the bombshell dropped by Senator Orrin Hatch yesterday in Jack Lew’s confirmation hearing for one of the highest offices in the land – Secretary of the U.S. Treasury who will also head the body that makes critical decisions impacting Citigroup – the Financial Stability Oversight Council. (Lew held an executive position with Citigroup at the time of its collapse.)

~snip~

Public shame has clearly lost its utility as a deterrent to repugnant behavior when it comes to Wall Street. Jack Lew proved the point yesterday. Without offering an apology or the return of the $940,000 bonus paid with taxpayer’s funds, the unflappable Lew calmly and politely answered the questions.

Unfortunately, his answers lacked both substance and credibility. One of Lew’s many jobs at the collapsing division of Citigroup he headed was overseeing the Human Resources Department. But on the topic of his own personal performance assessment, this is what he told the Senate chambers: