A Black Agenda Radio commentary by Glen Ford
The Obama administration is willing to cut an infinity of deals for the Lords of Capital. Two Crimes Of The Century in a row have produced no serious criminal prosecutions of individuals. Attorney General Eric Holder gave out “so many immunities from prosecution he looked like Abraham Lincoln on Emancipation Day.”
Wall Street’s Untouchables
A Black Agenda Radio commentary by Glen Ford
“The feds did what the government always does with Wall Street criminals: they settled.”
The federal government and the nation’s biggest banks have reached yet another settlement
If ever there were a capital corporate crime, this was it – a mega-theft so monstrously destructive it merited French Revolution-style justice, with hundreds of one-way trips to the guillotine. Instead, what we got was presidential intervention, during Obama’s last State of the Union address, when he announced that there would be a settlement with the states to avoid state prosecutions of the banks. The robo-signing investigation would pass into the gentle hands of U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, whom the bankers had no reason to fear, and the states would divide up $25 billion, much of which would never reach victimized homeowners.
This week’s second settlement of the same scandal is a bizarre derivative of the first deal. The banks had agreed to hire outside consultants to pour through their books to determine how many homes had been unlawfully seized, loan modifications wrongfully denied, and fees improperly charged. By late last year, the consultants were nowhere near finished, when federal regulators called off the exercise, calling it hopeless and too expensive. So, the feds did what the government always does with Wall Street criminals. They settled, this time for $8.5 billion – while consumer advocates say the actual damage to homeowners was many times that.
“The banks’ books are vast crime scenes.”
It’s an educated guess that the independent auditors took so long sifting through the records because the banks’ books are vast crime scenes, covered in the life’s-blood of millions of consumers. Not the kind of treasure trove of criminal evidence that one should rush through, if one is seeking justice. However, what this administration seeks is not justice, but settlements that allow the banksters to pay a fine, stay out of jail, and get on with crime as usual.
Eric Holder is the Settler-in-Chief. That’s his job. Remember that other Crime Of The Century, the LIBOR interest rate-fixing scandal, the one that reached into every crease and crevice of the world economy. Attorney General Holder vowed to build criminal cases immunities from prosecution
Eric Holder is actually the Get Out of Jail Attorney General. Not Get Out of Jail Free – the banks do have to pay a fine, which is called a settlement, and is viewed as a cost of doing business. And since the only business Wall Street knows how to do is crime, it’s back on the roller coaster for another screaming ride – until, finally, the whole contraption goes off the rails. How long? Not long.
For Black Agenda Radio, I’m Glen Ford. On the web, go to BlackAgendaReport.com.
BAR executive editor Glen Ford can be contacted at Glen.Ford@BlackAgendaReport.com .
Scant attention has been placed on the context of anti-Asian racism and its roots in the history of U.S. imperialism.
Victoire risked her life to establish that Hutu people were also killed by the Tutsi army, before, during, and after the Rwanda genocide, writes Ann Garrison.
The manifesto claimed the LGBTI struggle as an indelible and urgent part of the history of Pan-Africanism and the ongoing movements for Black sovereignty.
“…he said if you can enjoy A real nice affair (Over at Mary's place—oh) Then you'll make it Your business to be right there… (Over at Mary's place— oh)” —Sam Cooke
Harvard’s administrators completely miss the point of tenure, which was created to allow scholars to do their work, speak their truth, and stand up for something without risking their jobs.
