JPMorgan Chase CEO Attacks Business Critics, Promotes Private Sector Role In Job Creation

Jamie Dimon addressed Monday's Fortune 500 dinner.

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon took the opportunity at Monday evening's Fortune 500 dinner to hail American business and trash its critics.

Speaking at the New York Stock Exchange event, Dimon bemoaned what he called the "constant attack on business" and suggested that the economy should have added twice as many jobs in the past two years.

"American business has added 4 million jobs in the last 24 months," Dimon said. "That's not government jobs, and I don’t think government policy had anything to do with it. It should have been 8 million."

Over a dinner of ahi tuna and seared fillet of beef, Fortune magazine marked the release of its latest Fortune 500 list. Dimon spoke on a panel joined by Gordon Bethune, the former CEO of Continental Airlines, and Alex Gorsky, the new CEO of Johnson & Johnson.

"I don’t care if they attack me personally," Dimon said, but attacking the business community "denigrates the best things in America, and it hurts consumers’ business confidence." It wasn't entirely clear from Dimon's comments who, specifically, Dimon thought was making these attacks on business.

Dimon, who received an 11 percent raise last year to $23.1 million in total compensation, also saluted the American economy. "We have these serious problems and we've got to work hard," he said. But "we still have the royal straight flush. [Other countries are] not even close ... Businesses are in great shape. Consumers are in better shape."

Yet if businesses are doing so well, why aren't they hiring, asked Fortune managing editor Andy Serwer.

Business has been hiring, but there are other problems, Dimon said. "We’re four years after the crisis and haven't fixed the mortgage market. Everyone's scapegoating and finger pointing and ... totally misusing facts all the time for political purposes."

Dimon's comments came only days after he received an Executive of the Year Award at the University of Rochester's New York City Conference, where he similarly touted the efforts of American businesses and their employees and complained that critics -- including Occupy Wall Street protestors -- were vilifying all CEOs. "That's ridiculous; it’s another form of discrimination,” he complained then, according to Forbes.

Monday's dinner, which featured former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen on another panel, also was designed to spotlight the employment challenges faced by returning members of the military and to present how some corporations take a proactive approach to veteran hiring. Dimon used the occasion to admit his company’s mistakes in prior business dealings with veterans.

“There’s no class we hold higher in America than the veterans of the armed forces,” Dimon said. But, "we were, believe it or not, foreclosing on active duty military people serving overseas," he said. In 2011, Chase executives apologized to Congress for what critics said was a violation of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. "You’re not allowed to do it," Dimon said. "There are a whole bunch of reasons we made the mistake. We admitted the mistake."

Comments

[30b]

08:53 AM on 05/14/2012

Big Deal Loss of $ 2 billion, Remember LOSS of $ 50 Billion
To the Editor > Any !
I am very disturbed that not one word was mentioned ofthe $ 50 billion loss made with the same type of trading, not so long ago.
I sent the following E,
I suggest seeing a move, INSIDE JOB.

Sy Weiss

Fort Lee NJ 07024

May 11 (1 day ago)

Brooksley Born was on the money !
Former agency chief defied the ‘big boys,’ foresaw The fiscal crisis.
The hedge fund Long Term Capital Management, dealing in derivatives on a leveraged basis, nearly collapsed. The Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve were forced to bail the fund out to preserve national and international financial stability. What’s $50 billion to us taxpayers.

Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Headed By Mrs. BROOKSLEY BORN
The CFTC is, to most, an obscure agency charged with “protecting market users, and the public, from fraud, manipulation and abusive practices … related to the vast array of financial instruments.”

Today, S.E.C. Opens Investigation Into JPMorgan’s $2 Billion Loss.
NYT 5/11/2012
http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/05/11/s-e-c-opens-investigation-into-jpmorgans-2-billion-loss/?hp

A MUST READ What happened not long ago : IF YOU STILL HAVE $$$$ !

Link:http://www. hcolumbiatribune.com/news/2010/jun/13/brooksley-born-was-on-the-money/ (via shareaholic.com)

[Tom Iarossi]

07:58 AM on 05/11/2012

Oh the poor, persecuted business community. "Deregulate us" they say. "We'll create jobs if you just get out of our way" they please.

Well, Mr. Dimon, corporate profits are still at record levels. Corporations are still sitting on all that cash, over $2 trillion, instead of expanding and creating jobs. Why is that, do you suppose?

Because you've been lying to us. Even a high school econ student knows that increased production depends on increased demand, and those who generate that demand can't because all the glorious benefits of supply-side economics haven't trickled down to them yet. They're not able to play the high level derivative games that the financial sector is, where absolutely nothing of value is created but a few people make obscene money for not creating anything.

[Tiredashell]

12:09 AM on 05/11/2012

I would be happy to lose money for them for just 10% of his salary with no annual bonus. I may not be able to lose that much money, but I would give it a try. I mean, you have to be kinda "special" to lose 2 billion dollars.

[Land of Unlikeness]

08:50 PM on 05/10/2012

Typical banker. Everyone else is at fault for your mistakes.

[mr e vader]

07:38 PM on 05/10/2012

Lets make a deal: You start getting bonuses based on how many permanent jobs you create instead of inflated financial reports & stock value and we will stop calling you liars and thieves. OK?

[Nikkii Rogers]

01:10 PM on 05/09/2012

I worked at a bank when they gave out the simulate package. My bank took it, The CEO said, "we will not change our lending practice", He was asked, "then what will the money be used for?" response was, "We are going to invest it until the 0% loan comes do and then repay the loan back".... I was setting there completely shocked.. Hello, the rich gets richer and to HECK with you small undeserving people

[Dogvane]

10:56 AM on 05/09/2012

America's highest-paid crybaby is still blaming others for his failures and mistakes.

[big tom]

10:37 AM on 05/09/2012

jamie you are the problem.... not the solution...

[francisbono]

10:18 AM on 05/09/2012

You tell them Jamie. Remind people that the 90 billion you borrowed during the crisis and the near 0 interest loans provided by the Fed have nothing at all to do with your "success". Are you totally out of your whiny, "momma's boy mind? More likely you are a practiced liar. What circle did Dante reserve for your kind?

[guveqzero]

09:50 AM on 05/09/2012

Well, you have been doing well haven't you. I want more than an apology. Treat his bank like he treats home owners. That is, like deadbeats.

[rfinkels]

09:46 AM on 05/09/2012

People don't hate "business", they hate businessmen like YOU

[Steve Albin]

09:34 AM on 05/09/2012

OMG i just snorted from LOL

[phatdaddy51]

08:16 AM on 05/09/2012

i'll listen to the snake speak when he and i are the last two people on the planet and even then .......

[VPerry24]

05:34 AM on 05/09/2012

Last I read was the banks are laying off by the thousands, so does Best Buy, etc. government and states are laying off due to budget shortfall. What jobs?

[Sral Rolyat]

02:44 AM on 05/09/2012

Business community is not the best thing in America. They have long since argued that the market should determine our values and humanity.

THe business community is the worst of America. Utterly devoid of public responsbility, increasingly devoid of accountability, and now these socioeconomic ploys in the form of corporations have a constitutional right to hijack our political process as full "super citizens".