Worldcom Trial: Ebbers says "not an economist."

[Tsiyu]

Ebbers Jurors Hear His Voice: 'I'm ... Not an Economist'

By Erin McClam Associated Press Writer
Published: Jan 27, 2005


NEW YORK (AP) - Jurors heard the Southern-tinged voice of former WorldCom Inc. CEO Bernard Ebbers, saying on a conference call that "I'm a P.E. graduate, not an economist."
The tape, introduced by Ebbers' defense lawyer, was designed to bolster the notion that Ebbers led WorldCom in broad strokes, leaving the numbers work to his chief financial officer, Scott Sullivan.

It was played in court Wednesday on the first day of testimony in the federal trial of Ebbers, accused of orchestrating the massive fraud that drove WorldCom into bankruptcy in 2002.

In the February 2002 conference call, Merrill Lynch & Co. analyst Adam Quinton asks Ebbers if he can offer any prediction on when the U.S. economy will come out of its recession.

Ebbers answers: "As far as indicators of ... when we're going to come out of the recession, you know, remember, I'm a P.E. graduate, not an economist. So I don't know that I can speak to that with any credibility or anything."

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBMTWKIG4E.html