Sheila Bair, Brooksley Born: JFK Award Recipients For Predicting Crisis

BOSTON — Two U.S. federal regulators who sounded early warnings on the financial crisis and a Liberian peace activist who helped end that nation's civil war were honored for their efforts Monday at the John F. Kennedy Library in Boston.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. chairwoman Sheila Bair, former chairwoman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Brooksley Born, and peace activist Leymah Gbowee (LAY'-mah BOH'-wee) were presented with Profile in Courage Awards, annual honors named for a 1957 Pulitzer Prize-winning book written by John F. Kennedy.

"(It's) a special honor to present the award to three women who have inspired all those who seek to bring about change in their political systems," said Caroline Kennedy, daughter of President Kennedy and head of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation that administers the awards.

Bair was one of the first to speak out about the subprime lending crisis, and Born warned a decade ago that unregulated financial contracts, including credit default swaps, could pose dangers to the economy. Gbowee organized a group of Christian and Muslim women to challenge Liberia's warlords.

In accepting her award, Bair said she was proud to join the list of those who have received past Profile in Courage awards. "I'm particularly pleased to be joining two other female awardees who stood up when some of their male counterparts failed to act, or worse, actively fought them," she said.

Gbowee received her award on behalf of the Liberian women who were featured in the "Pray the Devil Back to Hell" documentary about Liberia's civil war.

"For us women of Liberia, this award is a call that we will keep walking until peace, justice and the rights of woman (are) not a dream," Gbowee said, "but a thing of the present."

Comments

[freddymedal]

The tree fell in the woods and nobody heard it.

[winchestereast]

plenty of people heard it and saw it coming - they were the proponents of deregulation who were making billions in fees on every transaction, every sale of loans, credit default swaps - they didn't care because the had made theirs - and they had a lot of help in crafting the de-regulation which allowed it to occur, namely in the gop, in every pro Gramm Leach Bliley Act lobbyist and 'public servant' - Sheila Bair said, again i quote "GLBA stimulates greater competition and innovation in the financial services industry and... promotes consumer protection and safety and soundness" - 2002 -

[RobertHenryEller]

I want these women in Treasury, in the Fed, in the SEC.

Now!

[socks1]

You and me both, but as long as its only the profiteers that are being protected, we are blowing smoke and powers that be are not interested in better government; just the same ole field where they can continue to rob the American people of jobs and fair treatment.

[sheilaofmiami]

Maybe I can rephrase my words so HP does not prevent the post.

We women are all too often apologized to. Why? Someone else did not listen when we said bad idea.

These 2 women warned everyone they could, no one listened, times were too good, and everyone who was anyone was riding high and not thinking about the fall.

Did you know that real estate deals, the really big ones, were done with no due diligence? That is to say, there were not calculations done based on times getting tough. Only calculations done on the markets in continuous growth, with no end in site. 10 year predictions made with no bother about the economy doing anything other than going up.

These 2 women, they saw the crash coming. Privately to me, my husband said as much, 10 years ago. We knew we were riding a limited train. We can only hope our plans will work.

[freeenterprisechic]

Wish I had heard. cherylmikela

[RedStateCenterLeft]

Sheila Bair is from my red state. Today, we're very proud of her.

[sheilaofmiami]

And you should be. She has a vision for these unrealistically big numbers. We need more like her!

[winchestereast]

agree she is smart, able and hard-working - but, like many, she worked within and without gov't to promote the de-regulation of Gramm Leach Bliley as good for the country - in her own words PO-3107, May 16, 2002 House testimony as assistant secretary of financial institutions: "GLBA stimulates greater competition and innovation in the financial services industry ..... promotes consumer protection and safety and soundness" - does anyone think this is true today?

[kappa08]

huh?...anybody with 1/10 of common sense could have predicted that. I am NO genius and i refused to buy a 100k house for 250k with and open ended A.P.R. 3 years ago.
A LOT of people saw this coming. Unfortunately we are those annoying cynics that people tend to brush off because we mix up the unrecognizable feeling in those insecure tummies.

I have a prediction:(off subject) The Democrats will lose the majority on 2010 if Obama doesn't start balling up his fist and start holding people accountable and do at 1 frigging thing like single payer health care for the middle class. His "patience" will get us killed in 2010. MARK MY WORDS.

[dutch163]

my heroes!...­err..heroi­nes!!

[nellieh]

Somehow, the lady that blew the whistle on ENRON should have been included.

[winchestereast]

Sheila Bair in 2002 testimony on the Hill (she was considered an expert in financial regulation) stated that the repeal of Glass Steagall (the Gramm Leach Bliley Act) would make the financial institutions stronger and more competitive, and offer consumers greater protection - guess she was caught up in the Republican­/Financial interest mantra that de-regulation would all work out , when in fact it was just a way for a few people to run off with a quick billion here or there - have not hear a mea culpa from her yet - but glad the president kept her on board - she knows all the players and where the skeletons are hidden -

[MysticInd]

Thjanks for your comment; would love to hear her explanation of how it went wrong!

[Joethepauper]

Give them the award, but then give them Summers' and Geithner's jobs!

[RobertHenryEller]

Seconded!

[Biyobi]

Congratulations to all three.

EPIC GOP FAIL

[dontvote4him]

Along with Frank, Dodd, and Waters?

[quindy]

Suze Orman and Elizabeth Warren should get award too. They tirelessly warned people of housing bubble and credit card debt. Nobody listened.

[bikerdude]

contrary to your opinion, lots of people listened to Suze and saved a lot...

[fisharefreinds]

Not enough! some of us were listening to the marketers and media mavens telling us "everything is alright, live beyond your means, don't worry about tomorrow case tomorrow never comes...."

[Georgia1992]

Congratulations. I bet no one believed them and turned deaf ears.

[beaupritchard]

Profiles in courage and well deserved. We need these little islands of sanity.

[WhatDaBleep]

I predicted this in 2004 and Move to Europe!

[MNTom]

I perdicted it too. But I stayed in the US. Will stay no where else to go.

[marinade]

http://www.thenation.com/blogs/edcut/370925/the_woman_greenspan_rubin_summers_silenced

""Despite that event," the Times reports, " Congress (apparently as a result of Greenspan & Summer's urging, influence-peddling and pressure) "froze" Born's Commissions' regulatory authority. The next year, Born left as head of the Commission."

Born tried to get something done, but Summers, Greenspan and Rubin were intent on undermining the democratic process. They deliberately undermined her authority and her ability to protect the American people.

[escribacat]

Hmm. Maybe Summers should be replaced with Born.