Goldman Sachs

Is ShoreBank Sheila Bair's Baby?

Submitted by Paul Chesser on Wed, 07/28/2010 - 15:27

Sheila BairThe deadline for ShoreBank to come up with sufficient outside capital has been extended again, with the Federal Reserve saying more than $150 million from the likes of Goldman Sachs and Citigroup and $75 million in TARP money aren’t enough to save the politically-connected community lender. Crain’s Chicago Business reports it’s the third extension the Wall Street firms have granted to enable ShoreBank to get its act together, with the new deadline August 6.

Goldman Sachs Got Off Easy

Submitted by Peter Flaherty on Thu, 07/15/2010 - 19:06

Lloyd Blankfein photoGoldman got to keep 100% of what it really wanted, namely the ability to cling to its claim that if did nothing wrong. 

It did acknowledge a “mistake” for not telling CDO buyers that hedge fund operator John Paulson helped booby-trap the security before it was sold. It is common for the SEC settle Wall Street cases without an admission of guilt, but is not typical for it to allow the accused party to do but at the same time admit to a “mistake.” That’s how it works when your political influence permeates the government. You get to deny wrongdoing at the same time you admit to wrongdoing.

ShoreBank President Uses Saul Alinsky Playbook

Submitted by Paul Chesser on Fri, 07/02/2010 - 13:11

Rules for RadicalsLast week the Chicago Tribune reported that Illinois Finance Authority chairman Bill Brandt threatened “a firestorm” in the Windy City if the Federal Reserve did not follow through with a bailout of South Side-based ShoreBank. This followed some reported pressure applied by the Obama Administration on companies like Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, GE Capital, Bank of America, and Chase, who were asked to kick in $20 million each to make politically-backed community lender appear eligible to receive TARP funds. 

Turns out the preference for Chicago-type coercion goes right to the top (and the origins) of the troubled bank itself.

White House Denial on ShoreBank is Sestak-Like

Submitted by Paul Chesser on Fri, 06/25/2010 - 07:08

Shorebank logoIllinois Republican Rep. Judy Biggert on Wednesday inserted into the financial regulatory reform bill an amendment calling for an investigation of efforts to rescue ShoreBank. Meanwhile the White House issued denials that it pushed for a bailout of the politically-favored community lender. The Chicago Sun-Times reported yesterday:

As Chicago's ShoreBank struggles to survive, the Obama White House issued a strong statement Wednesday denying that it is interfering in any way with federal regulators or influencing financial institutions willing to pump money into the bank.

'Firestorm' Promised to Save Politically-Connected Chicago Bank

Submitted by Paul Chesser on Tue, 06/22/2010 - 11:57

ShoreBank logoAccording to a story over the weekend from the Chicago Tribune, the $135 million that the Obama Administration reportedly coerced from TARP recipients like Goldman Sachs and Citigroup may not be enough to save ShoreBank, the politically connected “community” lender whose big bank bailout was supposed to make it eligible for its own TARP funds. From the Tribune:

The bailout of Chicago-based ShoreBank has hit a serious snag as the Federal Reserve and Treasury drag their feet on whether to provide funding to the ailing South Side lender, sources close to the situation say….

The Treasury is deferring to the Federal Reserve. One source said some at the Fed want ShoreBank to raise more private dollars before it gets government money.

White House Bails Out ‘Clinton’s Favorite Bank’ Through Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, GE

Submitted by Paul Chesser on Thu, 06/17/2010 - 11:15

Shorebank logoCongressman Spencer Bachus of Alabama must feel like he’s experiencing déjà vu all over again.

The Ranking Republican on the Financial Services Committee last month asked the Obama Administration to explain its role in the bailout of Chicago-based ShoreBank, a lending institution favored by the community organizing and green job creating crowds. Hundreds of similar-sized others were allowed to fail, but several “too big to fail” banks (who survived thanks to TARP money) were reportedly pressured into a joint effort to rescue ShoreBank. Bachus sent the president a letter, then issued a press release:

Beyond Pathetic

Submitted by Peter Flaherty on Mon, 05/31/2010 - 12:09

BP logoIt’s revealing that the “greenest” of the big international oil companies is now responsible for one of the worst ecological disasters in history. Maybe BP should have concentrated on its core mission of efficiently and safely producing oil instead of trying to make us believe that BP stands for “Beyond Petroleum.”

Most big companies zealously guard their brand names. British Petroleum seems embarrassed by theirs. Even as the Deepwater Horizon gushes into its 42nd day, the BP website proclaims:

Former Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott Belittled at Goldman Sachs Annual Meeting

Submitted by Peter Flaherty on Mon, 05/10/2010 - 20:06

Lee Scott photoAt the Goldman Sachs annual meeting on Friday, former Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott was elected to the Goldman board of directors. Several Left-wing activists rose to sing his praises. I added this comment at the end of my remarks about our shareholder proposal asking for a report on the science behind Goldman’s embrace of global warming:

Mr. Blankfein, I hope you will reach out to experts on with diverse viewpoints. Sorry to say, your new director, Lee Scott, can be of no help. He claimed that carbon dioxide causes hurricanes, something he must have picked up from Al Gore. He also took a company founded by Sam Walton, one of the greatest entrepreneurs of all time, and transformed it into a cowed giant, almost an appendage of the state, now supporting ObamaCare and cap and trade.

Lloyd Blankfein Plays Dumb on Goldman Sachs Support for Jesse Jackson

Submitted by Peter Flaherty on Sun, 05/09/2010 - 14:37

Blankfein photoAt the Goldman Sachs annual meeting on Friday, I had an unplanned exchange with CEO Lloyd Blankfein about Goldman's support of Jesse Jackson, who was at the meeting and kept popping up to speak. Jackson was acting adversarial toward Blankfein, even though Goldman Sachs is one of Jackson’s largest financial supporters.

In hopes of ending this charade, I asked Blankfein to clarify the relationship between Goldman and Jackson as that of donor and recipient. Blankfein said he didn't know if Goldman supported Jackson. I challenged him by asking, "You do not know?" and "You give Jackson's group six-figure sums and you don't know about it?" Blankfein continued to play dumb, so I moved on to address our resolution asking for a report on the science behind Goldman’s embrace of global warming.

Of course, Blankfein is not dumb, just dishonest.

Goldman Sachs Ripped on Embrace of Global Warming

Submitted by Peter Flaherty on Thu, 05/06/2010 - 15:26

Goldman Sachs logoMy remarks at Goldman Sachs annual meeting today:

I regret that management opposes our resolution asking for a report on the science behind Goldman’s public positions on global warming. In 2005, Goldman Sachs established its “Environmental Policy Framework,” which stated:

“Goldman Sachs acknowledges the scientific consensus, led by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), that climate change is a reality and that human activities are largely responsible for increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases in the earth’s atmosphere.”

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