Neel Kashkari, Bailout Czar, Not A Fan Of Public Questions

When it came time for questions, the former Goldman Sachs executive told the eager audience that he had time for just "two or three."

In response to the first question, about the government's latest lifeline for beleaguered insurance company American International Group, Kashkari gave a clipped response before quickly moving on.

"This morning's action at AIG was a one-off event" that was necessary for the financial stability of the markets, he said. "He didn't say anything that I couldn't have learned from going to the Web site," griped one mortgage entrepreneur. Treasury spokeswoman Jennifer Zuccarelli said it's not unusual for public officials to answer a few questions before moving on. Kashkari's impatient tone comes amid a growing desire for openness about how government agencies, including the Treasury, are handling billions of taxpayer dollars being used to prop up Wall Street.

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Read up on Neel Kashkari, the former Goldman Sachs exec and current Assistant Secretary of Treasury

Comments

[psch]

It seems these likes of Kashkari have been successful at making lots of money, because they know how to be arrogant bullies, and now getting a cushy government job is just icing on the cake. First the big money, now the prestige. We should not be intimidated by these bullies. Look were they have gotten us. There are plenty of brains out there with a healthy ambitions and ego, without the arrogance.
Talking about compensation - didn't the Europeans (or was it just the Germans?) manage to cap exec pay at Euros 500,000 for institutions that want to benefit from the bailout?

[Gifts]

This guy has way to much power!

[plages]

Skin heads in high places, really should think all about prison!

[synergie]

what the heck does that even mean?

[Mybunchofgrapes]

How did this man missed the 40 billion necessary to buy into AIG , for it was understanding that the money we gave was for that purpose and what about that 2 trillion dollar bail out that was done illegally

[dessertsfirst]

Yeah, no wonder he doesn't want to answer questions.­..
how did the $700 Billion bail out swell to 2 trillion? How DID that happen? And they refuse to tell us??? How can that be?

[Revolt916]

Like i have stated before and will state this again. There is nothing better than putting the wolf in the chicken coop

[Revolt916]

What did you expected that's Paulson's boy. The one who wanted no oversight. I think we need to get Barney back to the table and find out just in God's name is going on and review that bailout deal again because someone has gone rogue.

[CrackerJacker]

Or better yet, put Bill O' Reilly in the room, then have him go on Barney Frank's show to talk about why he failed.

[RoveRoveRoveYourBoat]

Dear Nesferatu,
...when sucking the life blood from your human victims,
show some deferance for their silly sence of entitlement.
The less they thrash the dryer you may drain them.
Count Paulson

[research]

looks like a James Bond Villain.

[BrettnCalgary]

He reminds me of the egyptian priest dude monster in "The Mummy", since he is a republican tool, that's probably not far off the mark.

[research]

Yes! Perfect!

[Clare53]

Exactly.

[yesyesyes]

No concern for you. I'm the man you see.

[hey0there]

he's got an intense set of peepers on him doesnt he?

[tililek]

Where is the oversight promised? Maybe the Congress ought to make the signing of checks contingent on regular, and daily reports?

Also where are the supposed watchdogs of government? I speak here of the Press, the Wall Street Journal, the NY Times, the Washington Post, the mcLatchey papers, aren't they supposed to have investigative teams. Oh, where, oh where is Izzy Stone when he is so badly needed?

[OB-GYN]

As I understand it, Bloomberg News has just filed FOI paperwork as well as a lawsuit naming Bernancke on the issue of accountability of the two trillion dollars.

I don't think this was done out of the goodness of their heart,btw, rather to get in on where the action is.

[Plank]

Most of the people in charge of this bailout are connected to the finance world (ex executives of major institutions) starting with Paulson. This is like asking the arsonists to put out the fire.

[Marlowe22]

I heard much of this press conference today. I've never heard so many inarticulate people trying to speak coherently. It seemed to be all self-promotion B.S. Each presenter introduced another presenter so everyone got a chance to say what heroes they are. Not much substantive information was given and I got the impression (incorrect as it turns out) that the 'mortgage modification' plan would help everyone with a problem paying their mortgage. It turns out that only certain mortgages were eligible, only certain people were eligible, and so on. Very misleading and badly presented. Our government in action. It's very distressing.

[Ducandy]

Anyone, in the US that still pays income tax is a fool.

[tbone99]

We shuld STOP , until we get answers.

[CrackerJacker]

I'm still waiting for someone to explain to me why the bailout measures were passed without any conditions stipulating either a temporary ban, or reduction in the bonuses the banks and traders regularly get paid. Bearing in mind everyone else is having to change their own ways to fit around the mess that is the financial market, I'm not sure why the financial sector, whose recklessness prompted the mess, should be exempt.

[CrackerJacker]

Actually, I should say nobody has explained to me why it passed without the above conditions, but then only passed at all because of the quite frankly ludicrous amount of earmarks for local pork that was piled on. Last I heard, that drove it from an immense $700bn, up to around $835bn. Madness.

[dessertsfirst]

...despite the fact that the white house, all our senators and everybody else we could think of, got inundated by our phone calls, emails etc, to tell them we didn't want them to spend our money in the bailout in the first place. But they did it anyway... and here we are... worse off than as if we would have done nothing. Remember it was such an emergency, but yet as time went on before the bailout was passed and actually put into action, nothing bad happened in those -- what, about 3-4 wks? Yet senators and representatives bought the plan hook, line and sinker, and passed the thing. Bush refused to look at any plan than what Paulson proposed. The American taxpayer has been shafted once again by those who declare "country first".

[tbone99]

They are saying they are not using taxpayer $ for the bonuses and to insist they don't is interfering in the policies of a private company.

Just the reason why Bushco has pushed to privatize everthing in sight from prisons to voting machines - it is a way to decrease accountability to the taxpayer. With that little rule , they don't have to answer to anybody.

[jcranman]

and then blame it on the government and their lax regulation

[jcranman]

What Neel is trying to say is "quite frankly, this is none of your business. Congress gave us the money and we will do with it what we please."

His statement about AIG is astounding. How do we know when these guys are bluffing that if this or that company goes down the whole system will become unstable. Even if that were to be true, there is absolutely no reason why we, the entire public, should not get to see on a spreadsheet updated daily where every last cent was spent. They'd make each of us do it under audit. Demand it of your congresstoads, don't let Neel and Hank decide how to spend another quarter trillion next month.

[who38]

The whole system remains unstable despite the bail-out.