Top 25 Censored Stories for 2009
Sources:
Truthout, February 2008
Title: “Predatory Lenders’ Partner in Crime”
Global Research, March 17, 2008
Title: “Why the Bush Administration ‘Watergated’ Eliot Spitzer”
Author: F. William Engdahl
Student Researchers: Rob Hunter, Elizabeth Rathbun, and Rebecca Newsome
Faculty Evaluator: Mickey S. Huff, MA
The exposure of New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer’s tryst with a luxury call girl had little to do with the Bush administration’s high moral standards for public servants. Author F. William Engdahl advises that, “in evaluating spectacular scandals around prominent public figures, it is important to ask what and who might want to eliminate that person.” Timing suggests that Spitzer was likely a target of a White House and Wall Street operation to silence one of its most dangerous and vocal critics of their handling of the current financial market crisis.
Spitzer had become increasingly public in blaming the Bush administration for the subprime crisis. He testified in mid-February before the US House of Representatives Financial Services subcommittee and later that day, in a national CNBC interview, laid blame squarely on the administration for creating an environment ripe for predatory lenders.
On February 14, the Washington Post published an editorial by Spitzer titled, “Predatory Lenders’ Partner in Crime: How the Bush Administration Stopped the States From Stepping In to Help Consumers,” which charged, “Not only did the Bush administration do nothing to protect consumers, it embarked on an aggressive and unprecedented campaign to prevent states from protecting their residents from the very problems to which the federal government was turning a blind eye.”
In this editorial, Spitzer explained:
The administration accomplished this feat through an obscure federal agency called the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). The OCC has been in existence since the Civil War. Its mission is to ensure the fiscal soundness of national banks. For 140 years, the OCC examined the books of national banks to make sure they were balanced, an important but uncontroversial function. But a few years ago, for the first time in its history, the OCC was used as a tool against consumers.
In 2003, during the height of the predatory lending crisis, the OCC invoked a clause from the 1863 National Bank Act to issue formal opinions preempting all state predatory lending laws, thereby rendering them inoperative. The OCC also promulgated new rules that prevented states from enforcing any of their own consumer protection laws against national banks. The federal government’s actions were so egregious and so unprecedented that all 50 state attorneys general, and all 50 state banking superintendents, actively fought the new rules.
But the unanimous opposition of the 50 states did not deter, or even slow, the Bush administration in its goal of protecting the banks. In fact, when my office opened an investigation of possible discrimination in mortgage lending by a number of banks, the OCC filed a federal lawsuit to stop the investigation.”
3 comments:
If only people had read the op-ed but then reading isn't popular with Americans. Just the headlines or the movie. I loved the read how everyone talks about bad morals of Spitzer while praising people like Bush who doesn't even care or stop to see his Mother who had surgery. 4000 plus soldiers died based on lies by the President as Americans praise his morals for murder. Torture, rape and murder done to men/woman/children by the White House while Americans don't question their morals. I hope the Attorney General Holder appoints a Special Prosecutor for the Spitzer case. At lease the Prosecutor for the Spitzer case resigned when he found out their would be an investigation. Even the Judge in the case said the Proecutor asked after Gov. Spitzer resigned that the case be dismissed against the Emperior Club. Yes the Brazilan Lady who ran the business was given 150,000 dollars and sent home without being charged with a crime.
Too bad Spitzer didn't think to watch his back. He should have known people would be after him.
Good point Mr. Kitty about watching one's back. But what human doesn't have something in their closet? To the best of my knowledge we were born of sin and even Jesus asked to be bapitzed. So unless you know one person who is perfect then back watching wont work. Spitzer was morally wrong but the list is great. We saw Bill Clinton get hammered while those with the hammer had and were doing worse and the public saw no problem. Spitzer is a Law Officer who hired a prostitute with his own money. Vitters is a Law Maker who votes on Law's we are to follow and he hired and still hires Prostitutes.
This case was about stopping indictments. If Spitzer had dropped the investigation and never bothered the crimes Wall Street and the Bush Administration were doing he would not have been busted. They first went after Spitzer's Father to make him stop. Then they charged him with false charges with the New Jersey State Troopers. All that failed so they did what any Mafia team would do look in his closet. If they didn't bring him down on sex it would have continued to his wife and kids next. Yes the headlines would read Mrs. Spitzer had an affair and the public would have asked the Govenor to resign based on bad morals. Or his kids hung out with a bad kid so ask the Govenor to resign.
Mr. Kitty this is a fact of life. Evil and Corrupt people will hurt you or your family to continue to committ comes when they know the public will support them. Look how long it took to bring down the Mob yet it's still strong. Rudy came in office fighting the Mob only to cave in an join the Mob. If you can't beat them join them. Spitzer might have sinned but his only mistake was standing up to fight the biggest crime coming and with the help of all the moral Americans who have never committed any sin it worked and the Stock Market Crashed. So Spitzer did his best to save Americans who beat him down to nothing. Sounds like what they did to Jesus doesn't it. Kill him, after he's deal oh it was a mistake.
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