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T R E 4 5 O N

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

This fight is for everything.

Do not shrug your shoulders and accept the normalization of untruths.

Everybody saw this coming.

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

So it was an October Surprise A Day, like an Advent calendar but for crime.

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

If senate republicans had any shame, they’d die of it.

Teach a man to fish, and he’ll sit in a boat all day drinking beer.

Good lord, these people are nuts.

When your entire life is steeped in white supremacy, equality feels like discrimination.

Let there be snark.

Nothing worth doing is easy.

Shallow, uninformed, and lacking identity

A sufficient plurality of insane, greedy people can tank any democratic system ever devised, apparently.

“More of this”, i said to the dog.

The willow is too close to the house.

Sadly, there is no cure for stupid.

A thin legal pretext to veneer over their personal religious and political desires

Sitting here in limbo waiting for the dice to roll

In my day, never was longer.

You are here: Home / Economics / Free Markets Solve Everything / Garbage In, Garbage Out

Garbage In, Garbage Out

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And the DC/Wall Street revolving door for members of the money party continues:

If you missed the announcement late last week that Goldman Sachs hired former Republican Sen. Judd Gregg to be an international advisor, don’t blame yourself.

It came out Friday when most people were thinking more about the long holiday weekend ahead than the latest effort by the investment bank to add to its stable of worthies an influential former Capitol Hill lawmaker.

Anyway, the former senator from New Hampshire who, as you’ll recall, turned down President Obama’s offer of the Commerce Secretary’s job, will join Goldman’s board of international advisors, nearly 20 former corporate chief executives and government officials.

Their role is to use their smarts, experience and connections to help Goldman make as much money for its shareholders and clients as possible and to avoid situations like one The Wall Street Journal recounts in which Goldman, through bad financial bets, lost 98 percent of the value of a 2008 $1.3 billion investment by Libya then tried to make it up to the Libyans by offering them a large ownership interest in Goldman.

No shame. I guess Goldman and Gregg have decided that he has effectively avoided any charges related to the Abramoff scandal, so now his “connections” will be useful.

Reader Interactions

19Comments

  1. 1.

    Han's Solo

    I could see hiring these ex-Republican Senator types to manage a douche bag factory, but that is about all I can see them being good for.

  6. 6.

    Southern Beale

    It came out Friday when most people were thinking more about … Rep. Anthony Weiner’s weiner and Palin’s pizza summit with Donald Trump!

    Fixed your typo.

  8. 8.

    Southern Beale

    @ChrisNYC:

    Obama Admin. releases regs on for-profit “career college programs.”

    OMG our stupid wingnut governor just deregulated the for-profit education industry in Tennessee and now advertisements for online diploma mills are like the new viagra ads. You can’t turn the TV on and not hear how wonderful University of Phoenix … ITT Tech … etc. etc.

    Meanwhile, the new regs are seen as a big win for the diploma factories:

    “It’s a massive win,” said Bob Wetenhall, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets. “Many investors now believe that the sector is investible, due to a combination of reasonable valuations and the removal of the regulatory overhang. I think it’s definitely safe to swim.”
    __
    Most schools said they are still reviewing the regulation, which runs more than 400 pages.

    I’m just glad I’m old and rapidly approaching retirement age. The value of my own degree, which my parents invested many thousands of dollars on, has just plummeted.

  12. 12.

    beltane

    These are the special freedoms the French hated us for when they gifted us the Statute of Liberty as a warning for us to stand in line and protect our exceptional freedoms. Why do you hate us for our freedoms?

  13. 13.

    joeyess

    ……lost 98 percent of the value of a 2008 $1.3 billion investment by Libya then tried to make it up to the Libyans by offering them a large ownership interest in Goldman.

    Libyans. As in the Libyans that we’re currently trying to depose? So NATO is now fighting Wall Street’s battles for them? Wow. Now that’s some fucking juice. Just when I thought it couldn’t get more corrupt I read something like this and I’m doused in a fresh, steaming bath of awe and amazement.

  15. 15.

    Sentient Puddle

    In other financial news, Moody’s is indicating that it’s ready to lose it’s shit over the debt ceiling fight.

    Moody’s Investors Service said today that if there is no progress on increasing the statutory debt limit in coming weeks, it expects to place the US government’s rating under review for possible downgrade, due to the very small but rising risk of a short-lived default. If the debt limit is raised and default avoided, the Aaa rating will be maintained.

    They make some noise about there needing to be a “credible” deficit reduction package as well, but the main takeaway is that if the ceiling is raised, we still have the Aaa rating, which is what really matters.

    Also, that stuff you’re hearing about August 2 being the deadline? A load of bullshit and chips for this reason:

    Since the risk of continuing stalemate has grown, if progress in negotiations is not evident by the middle of July, such a rating action [downgrade from Aaa] is likely. The Secretary of the Treasury has indicated that the government will have to drastically reduce expenditure sometime around August 2 if the debt limit is not raised; the initiation of a rating review would precede this date.

    If there’s any sanity left in government, this would be seen as lighting a fire under Congress’ ass. But of course, assuming sanity is not exactly a safe bet these days.

  16. 16.

    Thoughtful Black Co-Citizen

    I could see hiring these ex-Republican Senator types to manage act as testers in a a douche bag factory, but that is about all I can see them being good for.

    Fxd.

    Allowing GOPers to manage a douche factor would result in regulations that require manufacturers to put microcameras in every batch so the government can monitor this country’s vajayjays for illegal activity.

  17. 17.

    Observer

    You don’t have the moral high ground to bitch about Judd Gregg *now* if you weren’t outraged/annoyed/disappointed at the POTUS when he was nominated for Comm Sec.

  18. 18.

    AAA Bonds

    Let’s be honest: it wouldn’t have been any more surprising if it had been his next move after Obama’s Cabinet.

  19. 19.

    AAA Bonds

    @ChrisNYC:

    They need to show their graduates can get jobs paying enough to cover loan repayments or they don’t get federal aid.

    Wow, imagine if that sort of standard were applied to law schools.

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