Heads-Up !!! - The Clinton Team Is Writing 'Too Big To Fail' Out Of The Financial Crisis - HuffPo

[WillyT]

The Clinton Team Is Writing 'Too Big To Fail' Out Of The Financial Crisis
Why grapple with history when you can just rewrite it?
Zach Carter, Jason Linkins, & Shahien Nasiripour - HuffPo
01/20/2016 04:55 pm ET


Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has lately been talking about "too big to fail" banks like they didn't play a central role in cratering the economy a few years ago.
Lance Iversen/ASSOCIATED PRESS

<snip>

Here’s a term you may remember from 2008: "too big to fail." It was the title of a best-selling book and an Emmy-nominated movie, and ultimately the foundation for a pretty terrible time in U.S. history when financial titans sent countless jobs, homes and taxpayer wealth into the economic afterlife.

That's not the kind of thing you just forget about -- unless you're really trying to. Somewhat disconcertingly, it seems that a lot of participants and observers of the 2016 Democratic Party primary are trying to forget, thanks to the efforts of Hillary Clinton's banking brain trust.

This week, Paul Krugman claimed that “too big to fail was at best marginal" to the crash of 2008. Earlier this month, the economist Austan Goolsbee said on Twitter that "BIG wasn't what made Bear or Lehman dangerous. it was the ability to spill damage onto others." Former Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) even said Lehman was "very small" when it failed.

This has accompanied a broader barrage of Clinton rhetoric suggesting that Bernie Sanders' plan to break up big banks is a weak proposal that ignores her tough-as-nails shadow banking plan. Basically, the argument goes, "too big to fail" was never a serious problem, or at least the “big” part of it wasn’t really a problem, and anyhow, Lehman Brothers wasn’t very big.

Here's the problem: This is preposterous. In the Obama era, we've grown accustomed to evidence-blind nonsense from Republican politicians looking to protect big banks' profits. But it's a new level of sad when respected liberals start echoing the arguments proffered by Hamilton Place Strategies, a PR shop run by former George W. Bush Treasury spokesman Tony Fratto, who works on behalf of big banks. Krugman, Goolsbee et al. are essentially placing a Democratic Party seal of approval on corporate GOP rhetoric.

The Clinton camp's “too big to fail” denialism runs against the official conclusion of the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, as well as the views of other top finance scholars. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, former IMF chief economist Simon Johnson, former Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chair Sheila Bair, former bank bailout Inspector General Neil Barofsky and FDIC Vice Chairman Thomas Hoenig have all maintained that "too big to fail" was, in fact, central to the crisis.

Every official who authorized the bailouts of 2008 and 2009 said they had no choice. They argued that letting big institutions fail would have ravaged the broader economy. The havoc that followed Lehman Brothers' 2008 bankruptcy demonstrates that this fear was legitimate.

"Everyone, including the administration, agrees...

<snip>

More: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/hillary-clinton-too-big-to-fail_us_569fd359e4b0875553c2a298

[ViseGrip]

1. Just another reason not to vote for this establishment candidate

[HerbChestnut]

2. These guys make themselves more transparent every day.

It's amazing what can be learned once the establishment becomes threatened.

[draa]

5. Most of the old timers knew what was what.

We've been saying for years our party is corrupt and a mirror image of the GOP. We were ignored and eventually marginalized.

The supporters today are mostly ass kissers who can't think for themselves. That's why you'll see the same meme or quip a million times a day on Democratic sites. It's gotten to where no one can do anything because you don't want to be the "odd" one in the crowd. Just follow each other like lemmings over a cliff (yes, I know they don't do that).

No free will is allowed in The New Democratic Party.

[floriduck]

20. God bless her clueless supporters.

Shouldn't we just recognize that they are not capable of connecting any dots? Excuses are in their food pyramids. Protein, milk, fruits/veggies, grains, excuses.

[draa]

21. Lol

I adopted this motto a few years back.

[debunction.junction]

22. Would love to know what Hillary supporters actually believe in other than Hillary, first woman POTUS

I am all for a woman for President as long as her name is Elizabeth Warren. I never see Hillary supporters on Du actually speak to the issues when defending Hillary. Have no idea what they are actually for or against. Do they believe in private prisons? Do they believe in equal pay for women? Do they believe in a $15 minimum, which in my mind is still poverty wages? Do they believe that corporations are people? Do they believe in public funding of elections? Do they believe that money is free speech? Inquiring minds want to know.

[Plucketeer]

30. IF you could pin them down with those questions

You'd get the same deflective non-answer nonsense Hillary would barf up. She HAS TO be cautious with what she says because her big bucks backers have their ears finely tuned to every utterance.

Welcome to DU, BTW.

[draa]

3. And this runs counter to what Wall Street wants.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2016/01/17/the-stock-market-and-bernie-sanders-agree-break-up-the-banks/#1109ba1b3d2f1772be413d2f

[Qutzupalotl]

4. But OTHER than being preposterous, their argument's not too bad, right?

[Uncle Joe]

6. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, WillyT.

[RiverLover]

7. There is a lot of history they're trying to rewrite. Reframe by reframe.

So many sheeple will fall for it too. Its not only bad for our country, its downright embarrassing as well.

[Skwmom]

8. Clinton's Logo: Fighting for Us. Do you have any doubt who the Us is? I never have. n/t

[Still In Wisconsin]

18. US banks, US corporations, US insurance companies, US military contractors,...

All on the list of "Us's" that Pantsuit will fight for.

[AzDar]

9. Ugh.

[azmom]

10. Kick

[retrowire]

11. Bernie says, "Break em up, break em up!"

Hillary says, "Cover it up, cover it up!"

[Joe Shlabotnik]

24. Because "Cut it out, cut it out" didn't pan out so well. n/t

[Motown_Johnny]

12. Packing the Golden Parachute?

I guess she wants to make sure those Big Bank speaking fees will be rolling in after her political career ends.


Their internal polling must be even worse than what we are seeing.

[elias49]

13. Calling Cali-fornia Demo-crats

Where are you? Call me!

[Blue State Bandit]

14. Wait, woah, what? Paul Krugman? Who spiked his latte'?

[Armstead]

15. A picture is worth a thousand words....

[WillyT]

26. Thaks For That Reminder !!!

[Warren DeMontague]

16. Hmmmm. Maybe she can blame the financial crisis on encrypted iphones.

You laugh, but I suspect her advisers are working on it right now.

[Jack Rabbit]

17. Historical revisionism is not the answer to Mrs. Clinton's problems

Legs Dimon and Pretty Boy Lloyd belong in the slammer and everyone except apologists from the banksters know that (of course, they do, too, but an occupational liar gotta lie).

Maybe next her team will argue that she was there when the slaves were freed on Juneteenth? You know, kinda like this . . .
[center]

[/center]
No, it wouldn't work that way. The historical revisionists who work for the American oligarchy will put the banksters in Baghdad (claiming the Iraq War was won by them).

[WillyT]

27. "Legs Dimon and Pretty Boy Lloyd" - You've Alaways Had A Way With Words, Jack Rabbit !!!

[silenttigersong]

19. Hillary for President of Wall Street!n/t

[SHRED]

23. Well no shit

Look at who's bankrolling her.

[malokvale77]

32. Look who's leading her campaign.

http://www.muckety.com/John-D-Podesta/8565.muckety

It explains the confusion in the "progressive movement".

[Hotler]

25. How dare you speak ill of HRC. This post is rude and disruptive....

and needs to be locked. Come on administration lock this thread and ban the poster.


Come on, really? Did you folks exspect any different? HRC is bought and paid for by the banksters.

[EndElectoral]

28. Starting to worry about revisionist history...

[nc4bo]

29. What a bunch of creeps.....ALL of them. nt

[silenttigersong]

31. Hillary and Bill BOGO

[malokvale77]

33. A kick, a rec...

and an UGH.

Thanks WillyT.

[WillyT]

34. Bed Time Kick !!!

[WillyT]

35. Rise And Shine Kick !!!

[FlatBaroque]

36. Krugman has lost all credibility

he has shown himself to be a political hack, economics is just his cover now.