The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

DOJ: Shooting The Messenger (S&P) For Telling The Truth Is Better Than, You Know, Doing Our Job

Posted on | August 18, 2011 | 11 Comments

by Smitty (h/t Drudge)

CNBC:

The Justice Department is investigating whether the nation’s largest credit ratings agency, Standard & Poor’s, improperly rated dozens of mortgage securities in the years leading up to the financial crisis, according to two people interviewed by the government and another briefed on such interviews.

Working hard, trying to muster some surprise.

From the thugs that policitize education and refuse to do the right thing about Gunwalker, this is sickeningly par for the course.

I badly want to hear from GOP candidates precisely how they intend to go through the DOJ with pliers and a blowtorch after the next election. Also, the rest of the Executive Branch. Whichever candidate has the better-detailed plan for reforming this decadent situation will likely garner the best support.

While not the only leprous portion of the Executive, ‘Nation of Cowards’ Holder has one of the most despicable records in the whole rogue’s gallery of this Administration, and merits a thorough shaming for the anti-American behavior that has occurred on his watch.

Mr. Holder, you are truly a piece of work.

Update: more at Ed Driscoll.

Category: Barack Obama, Eric Holder

Comments

11 Responses to “DOJ: Shooting The Messenger (S&P) For Telling The Truth Is Better Than, You Know, Doing Our Job”

  1. Anonymous
    August 18th, 2011 @ 12:24 pm

    Actually, Smitty, the thing we all need to keep an eye on is this other agency, Fitch’s, that refused to downgrade the US, basically said that Fedgov spending didn’t matter, but is downgrading states like New Jersey where the governor is trying to control spending. It will be interesting to see which Fitch’s partners get government jobs or hired with Soros cash over the next 18 months.

    Bottom line: when a group is making pronouncements that are counter-reality, assume the Chicago Way is at work until proven otherwise.

  2. Stan Brewer
    August 18th, 2011 @ 12:41 pm

    Holder needs to be indicted, tried, convicted and give massive jail sentence, along with Obama. These two would be fine cell mates.

  3. Chuck Coffer
    August 18th, 2011 @ 1:02 pm

    Holder wants everyone to know how corrupt he and brakabama are. They want everyone to know there isn’t a goddam thing you can do about it. They truly despise this country.

  4. McGehee
    August 18th, 2011 @ 1:36 pm

    There needs to be a perp-walk parade out of this White House, with Eric Holder as Grand Marshal.

    Maybe they can glue sequins on his handcuffs.

  5. Aggie Sprite
    August 18th, 2011 @ 1:43 pm

    Indeed, why isn’t Fitch’s being investigated? And Moody’s?

  6. dad29
    August 18th, 2011 @ 1:57 pm

    The Mortgage-Backed-Securities investigation predates the downgrade by quite a long time.   But then, people who did NOT lose several million dollars in MBS don’t really care about these things, eh?

    Here’s the cut-line:  if Moody’s gets the same rectal over MBS ratings, it certainly is NOT political.

  7. DaveO
    August 18th, 2011 @ 4:43 pm

    Neither Obama nor Holder will do a perp walk. Obama because of custom. Holder because his allies tried it with former Attorney General Ashcroft.

    Holder is coated in teflon, regardless of his actions and inactions.

  8. Steve in TN
    August 18th, 2011 @ 7:19 pm

    Aren’t there reports of insider trading type activities associated with S&P’s downgrade?

  9. Adjoran
    August 18th, 2011 @ 7:34 pm

    The reason the ratings were off for mortgage-backed securities is that there was no way to evaluate them.  Due to federal pressure and policy, the MBS which had been rock-solid when filled with standard mortgages was now polluted with sub-prime garbage.

    No one even realized this because the feds kept it quiet.  Despite ridiculous levels of regulation from Sarbanes-Oxley, there was no need to disclose what proportion of an MBS was subprime paper, so no one did.  This precipitated the 2008 crisis because of the sudden realization that what had been traded as good as gold turned out to be maybe gold, maybe copper, maybe nothing at all.  So the market went to zero for both mortgage instruments and the default swaps that hedged them.

    The insane “mark to market” rules meant that any MBS/CDO held by a bank had to then be revalued to zero since there was no market.  This meant most banks were suddenly undercapitalized.  It was all an illusion, even the worst of the MBS paper was worth something, but the market said otherwise.

    The entire problem was created by the federal government’s insistence that mortgages be granted to people who could not repay the money.

    Barney Frank should die in prison beside Chris Dodd and Frank Raines, and Fannie and Freddie need to be disbanded.

    Investigate that, Holder-hack.

  10. jwallin
    August 18th, 2011 @ 9:28 pm

    I agree that an investigation NOW is motivated by the black eye they gave King Putt. However, they DO need to be investigated if they had anything to do with the toxic mortgage derivatives which are the major reason we are still in the dumper after the housing bubble popped.

    Along with Barney Frank and Chris Dodd and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and anyother pandering fool that decided that banks lending money to risky applicants was a good idea if they were a minority.

    How’d THAT work out for us and all the minorities that got suckered in?

    Not so good huh?

  11. Anonymous
    August 18th, 2011 @ 10:01 pm

    Actually, they avoided making this look like the standard ham-handed Chicago political pressure by beginning the investigation a couple of months before S&P downgraded Treasury debt.