CREW files FOIA request to see if federal agencies influenced congress on financial reform.

[jotsy]

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) has filed Freedom of Information Act requests with several agencies for records related to their efforts to influence financial regulatory reform currently being considered by Congress. Several agencies likely to be impacted by reform legislation have waged an intense turf battle to try to preserve their roles and power. CREW’s request specifically seeks all correspondence between eight agencies – Department of the Treasury, Federal Reserve Board, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of Comptroller of the Currency, Office of Thrift Supervision, National Credit Union Administration, Security and Exchange Commission, and Commodities Futures Trading Commission – and Congress related to the key financial regulatory proposals and suggestions. These records will help the public understand how these agencies have tried to influence Congress and whether these efforts were proper.

[anigbrowl]

1. Seems sorta pointless

There's already tons of testimony sitting there in the congressional record for anyone who wants to look. They're not private companies, they're part of the executive branch. What is CREW expecting to find here?

[notesdev]

2. What they expect to find

direct intervention by the Fed, Treasury, SEC, FDIC, etc. on behalf of their clients in the finance industry.

Of course the sickening incest and corruption with these organizations is already out there for the world to see, so yeah, kinda pointless to get more of it out there as long as our "representatives" really represent the very same clients.

[Foo Fighter]

4. IOW, they're looking for the obvious.

To me, it's a big "Duh, of COURSE Fed agencies influenced Congress when it came to financial reform." After all, that's the way the system works. Congress does whatever the corporate masters ask and in return, they get re-elected and dole out even more taxpayer dollars to the corps as payback. The corps see it as ROI, the pols see it as their pathway to power and money, and the poor and working-class taxpayers are the ones that get fleeced. It's been that way for 200+ years. Nothing new there. Just bidness as usual.

[jotsy]

5. It seems to me Ms. Warren has suggested we see these entities as cops on the industry beat

Agencies that are loaded with folks who ignored that particular task of their objectives. Any scope of light that can be shed upon the depth of truth here is imperative to regaining the public trust. Especially since, while on campaign trail, the president pledged transparency.

My pet peeve on the list is the O.C.C. I caught chief counsel, Julie Williams, testifying about credit card company practices in '05 or 6. Her impervious and deliberate demeanor struck me as somewhat vampire like. But it wasn't until the Spitzer thing that I learned how often this 'government affiliated' entity sided with the financial institutions against consumers as "friend of the court" in 50 out of 53 cases.

When this economic witches brew boiled over a couple of years back, I predicted it would go down as the biggest land and money grab ever. I don't pretend to understand the financial structure required to govern a nation, but it seems if everybody had been doing their job, what happened wouldn't have. I'm curious to know where the legal line between collusion and racketeering is in matters such as these. I'm no Martha Stewart fan, but over a single offense, she did time, cushy as it may have been.

Your profile suggests you possess some expertise in economics, I'd be curious as to your take on a couple of things regarding what I call bank closure Friday.

[anigbrowl]

6. You know, it's a funny thing...

all the right-leaning, anti-regulation types I've met in or around the finance industry are under the impression that regulators and various other government entities are out to destroy their freedom. For some reason, the conservatives in that sphere are always complaining about the interference and burdensome regulations that besets them, and never celebrating their supposed domination of the regulatory agencies.

Of course, I learned early on that in sporting events, while people may cheer lustily for their own side and loathe the opposing team, the one thing both sides have in common is a general disdain for the referees. Indeed, the more neutral and objective the refereeing, the most people dislike it.

[upi402]

3. CREW absolutely rocks

I'm always wanting emails secured.

:patriot:

rec