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February 12, 2009

Bank CEOs Testify on Capitol Hill
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Meanwhile the CEOS of Bank Of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and
other major banks appeared on Capitol Hill Wednesday to testify before
the House Financial Services Committee. The bank executives were
repeatedly grilled over how they were spending the billions of dollars
in taxpayer funded bailouts and their role in the economic crisis.

Rep. Barney Frank: “I said this the opposite of that terrible problem in
warfare. Collateral damage. When innocent people are injured while
trying to maintain a military objective, one of the problems we have
gentlemen, is that you are the recipients of collateral benefit—that is
an effort to get the credit system functioning things will have to be
done that will be to the benefit of the institutions over which you
preside because there is no alternative. But, you need to understand,
and many of you do, how angry that makes people.”

James Dimon, the CEO of JP Morgan Chase admitted some mistakes were
made.

James Dimon: “Finally, today’s economic crisis is the result of the
mistakes of a lot of people, and all of us who are here today and many
who are not , who have some responsibility for the current state of the
markets.”

Barney Frank also questioned the bank CEOs over why banking executives
needed to receive enormous bonuses.

Barney Frank: “If in good times you were told you weren’t going to get a
bonus what part of your job would you not do? I mean if you weren’t
getting a bonus would you leave early on Wednesday or would you take
longer lunches, would you bypass a certain class of investments?”



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