William Black: Geithner "A Disaster," Has Been "Wrong About Everything In His Career"

Former federal banking regulator William Black, who certainly hasn't stepped back from his disdain for the Obama administration's financial regulatory team, has once again singled out Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner for particular opprobrium in an interview with Newsweek.

Black, an associate professor of economics and law at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, is perhaps best known for his work during the savings and loan crisis of the 1990s. Black points out that investigations into the S&L crisis resulted in over 1,000 convictions, while the current financial crisis -- which is much larger in scope -- has yet to yield a single conviction. (We're not counting Bernie Madoff or Marc Dreier)

Here's Black:

"Some of the things Bernanke did were very bad, but he is in sharp contrast to Geithner who has been wrong about everything in his career. When Geithner was once answering a question in response to Ron Paul, he said, 'I've never been a regulator.' He was then the President of the New York Federal Reserve, and he purports that he was never a regulator? That is a demonstration of what is wrong with the Federal Reserve banks if the head of the unit doesn't think he's a regulator. He's a disaster."

Not surprisingly, this isn't the first time Black's taken a shot at Geithner, who he's targeted for not taking a prosecutorial role in ferreting out the causes of the financial crisis. Earlier this year, he said that Geithner "has a track record of failure everywhere he's gone."

In an interview with Bill Moyers earlier this year, Black went even farther when the subject of the size of the bailouts came up. He actually accused Geithner of covering up the health of the financial system:

"Geithner is charging, is covering up. Just like Paulson did before him. Geithner is publicly saying that it's going to take $2 trillion -- a trillion is a thousand billion -- $2 trillion taxpayer dollars to deal with this problem. But they're allowing all the banks to report that they're not only solvent, but fully capitalized. Both statements can't be true. It can't be that they need $2 trillion, because they have masses losses, and that they're fine."

Read the entire interview at Newsweek.com.

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Comments

[MyTalkRadiou]

Obama needs to do actual reform instead of just talk & plan

good articles: http://br.st/tU

~~

[spinns17]

it would be so nice just to see one of these bankers hang.

[dart79]

Do not forget that Timmy bought his house at the peak. Brialliant!

[tuberider]

...and didn't pay his taxes. It's all beyond the looking glass...

[GreenN10]

Goldman and Bank of Amerika run the markets along with Geithner, and beagle boy Ben. There is no free markets, only welfare capitalism and socialism for capitalism.

good articles: http://iamned5.blogspot.com

[berrycooda]

Sounds like somebody has been selling us
snake oil.....

This group has a GIANT PIGGY BANK IN WASHINGTON
or is that a GIANT VISA CARD called TAXPAYER.

And I don't mean big business taxpayer, I am talking about
the peons, who happen to be US.

[VillainUs]

Big Business Taxpayer? Sounds like an oxymoron.

[kankankan]

Obama is/was a rube about financial stuff...when the Clitonistas say these are smart financial guys, he went with them...preferring Timmy because he was younger, more international than say Summers...but come on, if are going to change things you have to DARE and REACH, why not put Volcker, Warren, Stiglitz, Black in charge, they understand what is going on, they saw the crisis coming before it happened, they have good solutions and are sincere public servants...but no, he goes for the guys the big wigs tell him are smart...whatever, i'm sure Greenspan, Rubin, Summers, Gietner are smart...but they were wrong, they had wrong idea, they have been proven wrong, and they do not care about American people

Obama, clear the decks, start over with people who were right and people who care about us, facing reality is strong medicine but ignoring reality hurts worse...

[PNG]

When you as a politician are 'in the pocket' of special interests and lobbyists, you can not be the voice of rebellion as you have to 'pay' your benefactors in return.

[tuberider]

And by all means, don't listen to William K. Black. He knows exactly what he is talking about.! How can myth survive? Rally round, children!

[tuberider]

What career? He's a little boy, born of blue-blood leverage and their "road most often traveled".

[Hailmaryyy]

Black is right. The stress tests were a sham. We know unemployment is much higher than the worst case basis for the stress tests. Yet miraculously the banks don't have enhanced losses or need extra capital.

http://www.escapethenewgreatdepression.com

[mjtaylor22]

I LIKEDD TIM BECAUSE HE SHOULD OF KNOWN WHAT WAS GOING ON BUT I DO NOT SEE HIM AS THE ADVOCATE FOR THE PEOPLE, NEEDED AT THSI TIEM OF CORRUPTION AND FORCED MISERY

[Thermodynamics]

So I am trying to guess Obama's psychology and motivations.

This is where Geithner comes in. Obama ran for office promoting "change". Geithner's track record does not fit with that image of Obama. Why did he pick Geithner and other similar old plutocrats?

Obama's mom was educated as a cultural anthropologist but her job was running a program for micro-loans to locals in Indonesia. Her boss was Tim Geithner's father at the Ford Foundation, a very establishment way to influence the third world. It sure looks like the old money guys occupy the position of respect in O's mind. It is almost like his mind is telling him that mom was a little daffy but now I can hob-nob with the real big boys, men like your boss.

At least two of Obama's mom's husbands were oil men who worked in the third world - his father and his stepfather

Geithner's background stints with Kissinger, Rubin, Summers = very, very establishment:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Geithner

Ted Rall sees O as more of a baby-kissing Chicago pol than the Savior of the Free World, and a Hoover, not an FDR. (Historically Hoover was a good man who made bad choices.) Obama is certainly willing to compromise.
http://www.uexpress.com/tedrall/

[aj88]

Interesting post, I was never able to understand Geithner's appointment, sadly, it now makes sense.

[speakingout]

When the corrupt need to cover up their mis-deeds, who do you expect them to bring in? The ones most knowledgeable of the corruption!

It's all about the derivitives folks.

That's the next bubble to burst. A whopping $700 TRILLION!

I say, round up all the leaders of the pack of the banking elites and throw them in Guantanamo with the so-called terrorists they rounded up to divert our attention for the last 8 years so they could rape and pillage our bank investment accounts and pensions, and value of our homes. The war is just a diversion people. Wake up! It's all about the MONEY they are stealing from us and sending overseas to their private bank accounts while they saddle us with debt. WAR, is the vehicle they use to do this. End the wars, take away Congress's authority to give more of OUR money to the nutjobs that just want to run around the world killing whoever they want. In the name of security. Where is our security now? We can't rub 2 nickels together to pay for protection, God forbid somebody really did attack us! Fire the State Department, the CIA, the Pentagon, the Federal Reserve - then this country will prosper.

[spinns17]

im not a fan of tim .but he does have the wieght of the congress behind him.so i think obama has no say in it.

[aj88]

I spent a good deal of time researching the connections with Geithner/Obama/The CIA and the Indonesian coup. It gives you that sick feeling in your stomach.

[MyLIberalKos]

Everything but the little people have become too big to fail.

Everyday we pay the consequences of Reaganomics and neoconservative economics

good articles; http://iamned1.blogspot.com

80's: Arthur Laffer, MIlton Freidman, Greenspan, Alexander M. Haig, Jr, Donald T. Regan, James A. Baker 3rd,
Later: Robert Rubin, Bernanke, Paulson

[outnow]

That big sucking sound is Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Hussein Obama outsourcing your job. Hillary Clinton was going to give free trade a "timeout." Ha, ha ,ha! What a total joke! Obama told the financial eleites in Canada that he was giving mouth service to conceal his actual intentions to commmit further to fre trade.

When the Democratic party embraced the fre trade doctrine, and abandoned organized labor, all that is left is Wall Street financiers who profit.

America is in the toilet for want of true patriots. Pat Bucannan had his come-to Jesus moment over free trade, even breaking with Milton Friedman before the pet of the financiers passed- away. Pat sadly told Milton that free trade was going to destroy America. Imagine a Republican breaking with mantra chant of the economic elites who make a bundle by arbitraging jobs and economic regulations!

America is in a terminal tailspin induced by the bought-and-paid for think tanks and Universities who pray to the false god of free trade. Fractional reserve banking with fiat money masters have brought us to the brink of ruin, yet the bank played on.

[PNG]

All is fairly sound in your post: however, what we are experiencing is 40 + years of the progression Corporate Fascism now brought to the surface for all to see. Blaming specific individual­s/'parties­' does not relay the whole story.

[Whinger]

Touché!

[rkrenke]

For whatever reason, Obama has chosen to surround himself with mediocrity - Emanuel, Summers, Geithner - these people are certainly not what I'd consider the "best and brightest".

Surely, we can do better.

[outnow]

"For whatever reason?" You haven't figured that out yet? Obama is the president of special interests., that's why. Free trade is the means by which your jobs are send overseas. Special visas are available to foreign engineers because Americans are not available (cost too much).

David Riccardo thought up free trade but wrote that "absolute free trade,": while giving a comparative advantage is tantamount to treason because eventually most good jobs will go to where labor is the cheapest even if that undermines the home economy.

Obama surround himself with the very people who will prefer the interests of financiers and those who offshore and outsource jobs. American financial eleite are hiding their treason behind so-called "free trade." They make money upfront by job stripping America. Unemployment is around 20 - 25%. Does that tell you anything?

[PNG]

'You haven't figured that out yet? Obama is the president of special interests'

...Since 1968, ALL the presidents have been.

[washlib]

Any time YOU and others like you want to support FULL PUBLIC FINANCING OF ELECTIONS, i'll be happy to talk to you about it. Until then our political system is run by those who give the $$ to our reps to get them re-elected.

Amazing how much our reps could do if they didnt have to scavenge like dawgs 1/2 the time in office for enough campaign cash to stay in.

PUBLIC FINANCING OF ALL ELECTIONS NOW
STOP CORPORATE LOBBY $$ NOW
HOLD OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS ACCOUNTABLE NOW

[dadw5boys]

Did you guys miss the warning Obama got his FIRST DAY IN OFFICE ?????

" The Presidental Helicopter is old and needs to be replaced. A new Presidental Helicopter is on order from a Company in Itlay. "
Get it Italy --- MAFIA -- this was a blantant threat. The Trilaterial Commision is going to have the "One World Goverment " and no President is going to stand in their way. Look at the numbers of Trilaterial Commision Members on Bush and Obama's Staffs.
Next they will be building Military Bases all over Africa, watch and see.
The Economic Crash is mean to bring about the North American Union. Watch when the Saudi's and China crash the dollar the AMERO will soon arrive.

Obama can only do what he can to help the American People while fighting this deeply entrenched corruption.
Unless Americans rise up and go to Washington and back Obama in throwing out this Corrupt Society of Crony Capitalist we get what we can get thats all.

[PNG]

If you can properly verify this minus all the 'truther' hubris, I am game to see it.

[dadw5boys]

Your about to live it. Watch as they dump the Dollar the value drops and the Amero emerges as an equal to the Euro.