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Since President Obama took office, corporate earnings and profits have soared. The major stock market indexes have grown at a remarkable pace. After a decade in which private sector employment struggled badly, American businesses have added over 5 million jobs in the last two years.
One might think, against a backdrop like this one, Wall Street would not only be delighted, but would also be reluctant to change course. But that's not the case at all -- the financial industry has come to hate President Obama with the heat of a thousand suns. This includes Goldman Sachs, which supported Obama in the past, but which has now invested heavily in Mitt Romney and Romney's super PAC.
I can appreciate why financial giants like Goldman Sachs would be somewhat cross -- Obama did create new safeguards and layers of accountability for Wall Street -- but the whining is a bit much.
The last straw for many came two weeks later. At the annual White House Correspondents Dinner, the president drew laughs at their expense. "All of the jokes here tonight are brought to you by our friends at Goldman Sachs," Mr. Obama said, referring to the SEC allegations. "So you don't have to worry -- they make money whether you laugh or not."
Really? A joke at a dinner was "the last straw"? I realize Wall Street can be thin-skinned, but it's disconcerting to think it's become this ridiculous.
To be sure, it wasn't just the Correspondents Dinner. Goldman Sachs apparently expected the White House to seek its input on Wall Street reform.
Regardless, Alec MacGillis notes the larger political dynamic: "Wall Street's thin skin is absurd and infuriating, but for Democrats there has been a silver lining to it for most of this campaign: the lines of support have been clarified."
Quite right. The right desperately wanted to muddy the waters, suggesting it was ambiguous which party and candidate really enjoyed the financial industry's political backing. There's no ambiguity anymore -- Wall Street thinks Obama was insufficiently deferential, so they're all in for the Republican who's vowed to roll back all those pesky regulations to the way they were before the 2008 crash.
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Rich people have scrubbed themselves so clean over the years, they have no skin left! -Kevo
The big boys have gotten used to making a fortune without having to invest in America or anything else. They do not enjoy having to go back to "earning" a profit.
Damn good point!!
Also, since corporations are people now, when will we start demanding that they behave like responsible citizens?
This isn't my idea, I don't remember where I read it, but somebody pointed out that these guys aren't satisfied with earning a huge salary, they aren't satisfied with being admired or having their photo on the cover of financial magazines. They want, no, DEMAND to be worshipped. Anything less is insulting.
There there Goldman, I realize that the President has sort of delayed your dreams of the Plutocratic takeover of OUR government, but be careful what you wish for. I'm hearing the sounds of the pitchforks being sharpened and the building of the guillotines right now as I write this!
We really should be kinder to them, after all Goldman Sachs is a person under the law according to our supreme court.
You can be "kinder to them", me, I'm sharpening up the pitchforks? Got torches?
Torches? Didn't they include those in all these smoking bans?
It seems that Wall Street needs to be registered like a sex-offender. Why should they be allowed to thrive without scrutiny while they are continuing to screw America.
Even after all this time of day-in day-out observance of the body politic, Steve doesn't truly and completely comprehend the clear, obnoxious, nauseating nature of not only the social right, but the economic and libertarian right. These are people who simply were never taught right from wrong or are so congenitally deficient in humanity that they couldn't or wouldn't learn.
Ya gotta get out more, Steve. These people are really as obnoxious as they seem.
To bring the Hemmingway/Fitzgerald comments up to date:
"The rich are different from us."
"Yes. They are #$%^&**&^!~@##$%!! ers. And so are their %$^*23#[>!!"
Feed the fish and eat the rich.
Nah. They're usually careful to be on their best behavior, so let's assume that they are much worse than they seem.
On Sunday, Fareed Zakariah interviewed GS CEO Blankfein. He was 1 of a panel of 3 CEO's commenting on the business environment from Clinton's Global Initiative gathering. Blankenfein, although attempting to look cool and in charge was livid just under the surface. He stated that regulation was inhibiting innovation on Wall Street. Wall Street was under such scrutiny that they were unable to take risks without fear. If I recall, Blankfein recently wriggled his slimy ass off the hook in a Congressional inquiry about billions of dollars he lost in yet another highly questionable scheme. It's good to be king, there's always underlings who await your dump truck full of @!$%#.
Oh.. and how dare you ask me any questions about how I conduct my business. Sounds like he and Lord Small Balls Romney were pod mates.
A whole lot less "innovation" from the New York City craps game, aka Wall Street, would be a Good Thing.
Innovation. Right. Innovation is the proverbial better mousetrap. All Wall Street does is shuffle piles of money around and skim off the top (and the middle, and the bottom). That's not innovation. That's a racket.
If Obama had put these sons of bitches in prison they could be campaigning for Mitt down in the yard. But no, old Ram decided that if we shoveled taxpayer money at them they could be bought. Well, the problem was that like all crooks, you can buy them but they don't stay bought. This has nothing to do with thin skins. It's just that Mitt will use dump trucks to deliver the money.
Millions suffer that I may decorate my many bathrooms.
Thin-skins = guilty consciences. F the banksters' feelings.
If you're going around telling reporters right after getting caught with your hand in the cookie jar that you're "doing God's work", I don't think you have much in feelings or conscience.
This won't change anything. Obama's economic policies will continue to run right of center, and continue to be denounced as communist.* Short of a real, honest-to-dog revolution, massive regulations and restructuring will be the only way to reform our economy (and that's just a first step). Obama doesn't have the ideology or the will to attempt such a massive course correction.
*in my local paper, at least, the wingnuts have moved beyond socialist to embrace the stronger word.
Wall st. is just the outer layer of the huge monster machine that was created by the greedy of this world. They are lucky to be alive, but instead of turning around and becoming user friendly they have decided to take revenge. They've unleashed a host of instruments to use one being Romney, the other are the great critics of the world " The Koch brothers". Who somehow have gotten it in their small minds that the world cannot survive without them. Guess what... we will do fine without the likes of people like them. We will do even better. We will survive by being honest and helping one another and we didn't learn that from a T.V. evangelist.
The only question that I have for Goldman Sach et al is what's your role with ALEC? Run and hide but Common Cause will find it!
And what is it EXACTLY (sorry, I haven't learned how to underline) that rummy would Legislate to prevent another 2008 lubejob? The irony here is that he Does know what to do,, but,, he's evil.
Get the leverage and speculation out of the system.. Pay your own damn cash for stock and then own it for 3 months!
For four years now, I've been hoping I might see a story about the financial sector that doesn't make me think, rather longingly, of this.
So far, I'm still waiting.
In other news, the fox throws a fit that the farmer, after losing most of his hens, no longer allows the fox to have input to security plans for the henhouse...
Goldman Sachs. Is there really any two words in the english language that are more vile, more hated, more associated with crimminal activity? I think not. They are the financiers of global destruction and political careers, always in the shadows working both sides of the street with heartless ambition.
I'd be happy to hurt more than their feelings. I wonder how much it hurts to have your head separated from your body with a guillotine? Or to have your neck stretched with a rope?
I have stated many times that Obama made the mistake of not having Holder investigate and indict people on Wall Street. It would have been popular with many voters who were burned by the crash. But Obama thought he would be able to woo Wall Street for his reelection. If Obama wins a new term and Dems have control of Congress they should put more stringent regulations on the Wall Street and give them something real to whine about.
It is time to treat the rich the way they have treated the rest of us, shabbily. Raise Federal Income Taxes to 1956 levels. Raise the DEATH tax to 50% for estates over 5 million. Add a 10% surtax to all incomes over $1 million, and investigate them for the crimes they committed to get all that money. If that doesn't work, then its time for a 1789 solution.
I think the biggest effect of this "thin skinned" reaction is that unlike in previous elections where Wall Street donated heavily to both sides to guarantee that their interests would be met either way, this year they are donating only to the GOP. So if Obama wins, he and Democrats won't be beholden to them in the same way as in the past, especially in 2008.
I think the SuperPACs helped this trend, rather than partisanship-- because in prior elections Wall Street was limited in how much it could donate to one side, so it made sense to hedge their bets. Now they can pour in lots more, and so they might think they can turn the tide, which makes them donate even more.
That's definitely a hopeful outlook, though even if it does turn out that way, it'll take more than one election to disentangle everyone's sticky fingers.
Maybe too hopeful. I can easily imagine Democratic politicians thinking that if only they could accommodate Wall Street even more, they could then win back their campaign donations.
I feel so sorry for those guys (NOT!) that ride high on knowing they won the game of foreclosing homes…
My neighbor is moving out because the bank will not renegotiate their loan after trying for 2 years… another empty house. They are/were very good neighbors. My Sister in law is also leaving another vacant house for the bank and her neighbors.
I have ZERO sympathy for Goldman Sachs, but feel sorry for my neighbors and friends and family.
That's now 3 foreclosures on my little area. The nearby subdivision that was done to rent out the homes, ALL 10 houses were foreclosed, I know a couple of them have been sold, but most of the renters had to move, one bought.
This is very sad and all too common. But my friend got a job, so that's good. Goldman Sachs got how much taxpayer bailout…
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/money/industries/banking/2010-07-24-goldman-bailout-cash_N.htm (check the video of you don't already know)
But all these people get no renegotiations of their mortgages? The T.P.ers voted for more of that?
Why isn't everyone asking goldman where the jobs are ? instead of obama? obama did not make a trillion in profits , and its the free market that is suppose to create the jobs , not the government
the gop get a pass yet again
In a perfect world, Goldman (Lehman, Merrill, AIG, etc.) execs would be strung up on lightposts...but perfection is not our curse. Pres. Obama has squandered the majority of any political capital he may have had by NOT prosecuting the prosecutable among Wall Street conglomerates, those who orchestrated and perpetrated the financial collapse of 2008...the worst since The Great Depression.