Mr. Wall Street Scott Brown will be on the Cape this weekend at a fundraiser hosted by former Lehman Brothers Managing Director Larry McCarthy and VP Larry McDonald. Both of these guys have been active bashing the head of Lehman Brothers (and rightly so) in the fall of the investment firm. Larry McDonald authored “A Colossal Failure of Common Sense”, which touts itself as an inside story of the collapse of Lehman Brothers.
But that’s where they stop, neither wants Wall Street to be regulated, they blame individuals and ignore the structural problems in the financial industry which created the problem in the first place. This is were Wall Street traders and Scott Brown meet.
A review of Larry McDonald’s book sums it up nicely:
The eagerness of the Street and the media to pin this meltdown, which has ruined millions of lives and cost trillions of dollars, on a couple of old guys (however greedy, vain and stupid they were), rather than on an out-of-control financial system desperately in need of reform, speaks volumes about who creates the narrative in this country, and how much those narrators feel they have to gain by retaining the status quo.
Let’s not forget Scott Brown’s letter to the head of JPMorgan Chase:
While regulations are necessary, it is also very important that when unprecedented mistakes do occur, banks will use the internal policies that they have set up to promote employee accountability
Taxpayer backed financial meltdown based on risky behavior, to Scott Brown, it’s an internal company matter.
The scariest lines in the fundraising newsletter?
Above all, I want Scott on the Senate Finance Committee next year, he’s the right choice, not his opponent.
Yikes. This is what Wall Street is hoping for.
SomervilleTom says
THAT is the seed for another killer ad from Elizabeth Warren. It doesn’t even need scary music — “Für Elise” will do nicely.
A thirty-second ad, zeroing in on that line:
Above all, I want Scott on the Senate Finance Committee next year, he’s the right choice, not his opponent.
Perhaps the ad can open with a shot from “The Great Gatsby”, morphing into a suitable Cape shot featuring the Mr. McCarthy and Mr. McDonald.
A few choice images reminding the viewer of who these guys are, some stark images reminding the viewer just how catastrophic the collapse was, and returning to the “Above all…” quote.
Perhaps it closes with a head-shot of Elizabeth Warren saying “I’m that opponent. I’m Elizabeth Warren, and I approve this message”.
SomervilleTom says
How hard is it to put Mr. McCarthy’s face on the left, Mr. McDonald’s face on the right, and Scott Brown’s on the one in the middle?
karenc says
will sit on it in January 2013.
Brown was not assigned that committee in 2010 and there is no reason to think the party will assign him to it in 2013. As to Warren, she would be great on it, but the Democrats would need to make an exception to their rules that 2 Democrats of the same state can’t be on a committee. Kerry has been on the committee for several years. (So, unless he gave it up or left the Senate, that might be unlikely.)
demeter11 says
I see the VP of Chamber of Congress endorsing Brown and saying how good he is for business owners followed by a list of his pro-business votes for big oil, etc. and his two votes against the DISCLOSE Act.
johnd says
From July/2012…
SomervilleTom says
Again you miss the point by offering yet another false equivalence.
Are you suggesting that Wall Street eagerly seeks to advance President Obama’s agenda for the Senate Finance Committee?
The point is that Wall Street strongly prefers Scott Brown to Elizabeth Warren.
David says
It’s more than that. They are afraid of nobody more than Elizabeth Warren. They would prefer being poked in the eye with a sharp stick every day to Elizabeth Warren. It’s not that they like Scott Brown so much (after all, he voted for Dodd-Frank after watering it down); it’s that Elizabeth Warren is their worst nightmare.
johnd says
Remember, there are unintended consequences to almost everything. I was a big advocate of tightening credit since we gave loans and credit cards to slouches who could not pay them back. Great, but now millions of Americans will not be buying homes since their credit rating doesn’t pass the “new” criteria. Millions of Americans cannot get credit cards. Fine with me but ask some of those Americans.
EW is not friendly to Wall St or Banks in general. I agree that it’s not that they like Brown as much as they hate EW. I think it would be great to have a Senator that Business is neutral on but who is willing to make sure the SEC and other regulatory agencies do their jobs and enforce existing laws.
johnd says
BTW, I completely agree that Wall St would like Scott Brown over EW, why would anyone like EW with her attitude about Wall St or Banks. She anti-business.
SomervilleTom says
What makes your attempted equivalence false is your claim that President Obama did the same thing. That is demonstrably FALSE.
The objection here is not that Scott Brown seeks contributions from Wall Street. In today’s political world, every politician seeks contributions from Wall Street.
What makes your attempted equivalence false is that Barack Obama has not structured his agenda to advance the interests of Wall Street (at least in comparison to Scott Brown). Hence, Wall Street is not eagerly working to help Barack Obama.
We also agree about the antipathy of Wall Street to Elizabeth Warren, and vice-versa. That is the political point. You seem to like the fact that Wall Street endorses Scott Brown — I think the Elizabeth Warren campaign is equally happy that Wall Street despises Elizabeth Warren.
With friends like Wall Street, who needs enemies?
johnd says
Story…
johnk says
and without a point. But that could be the reason you are going around in circles. It’s Warren and Brown, try to focus.
johnd says
we’re on differing wavelengths.
johnk says
at least you have the utopia AM radio.
Bob Neer says
Brown wants to continue Republican policies that almost drove this country into the ground in 2008, and probably would have done if McCain had been elected. He has been bought off by big business, whose interests are global, not limited to the United States, and certainly not to MA.
Warren’s policies will help build a consumer base and support small businesses, which is the only way to develop a healthy economy, as Democratic-run Massachusetts’ recent economic out-performance demonstrates.
For a preview of a Scott Brown-run economy, head down to the old offices of Lehman Brothers.
johnd says
Stick with it, but don’t hold your breadth for people to believe you. EW never met a capitalist she didn’t want to strip out his/her wealth.
johnd says