Has anyone noticed the increased attention to the words of Eliot Spitzer lately? This would be the former Governor who was notorious for pursuing the slimy business tactics at AIG, the sub-prime mortgage brokers and the Wall Street investment moguls.
I made the point several months ago, that I suspect the investigative efforts of our Governor, made certain people in the banking industry uncomfortable, which lead to his scandalous outing of HookerGate.
Sure, his deeds were the cause of his own undoing, but the unorthodox investigation tactics that continued well after his election to the Governor's seat forced Wall Street execs to silence him.Oops! I sound like a conspiracy theorist.
But with populist anger at AIG and all things stinky in the world of finance, the Steamroller's dire warnings are hauntingly reappearing, much like himself.
Eliot continues to write columns about the financial mess on Slate.com, he's been on national TV and on the radio. (even quoted in the NY Times and Newsweek)
I saw a quote on WAMC's site where Spitzer stated on the Brian Lehrer show. "As you suggested, there was a period when as Attorney General of New York I was pursuing issues that nobody else wanted to pursue. We pursued AIG and Wall Street’s structural failures in a way that others shied away from because it was politically unpalatable for them to address those issues. Now it is the flavor of the month"I would echo THE NATION's Katrina Heuvel's suggestion that Obama replace Geithner, whom I supported at the onset, with Eliot Spitzer as Treasury Secretary.
Me? I am willing to look past the scandal and the forced "temporary" faux leadership of his Leutenent as Governor. (I think Cuomo will remedy that)
Just put the talent where it's most useful and get this country out of this mess!
6 comments:
You are certainly thinking out of the box on this one. I'll put aside my concerns of Spitzer dropping investigations for campaign donations for now.
Why should Spitzer replace Geithner? If this is about doing what's best for the nation and not Spitzer, couldn't Spitzer simply put his ego aside and work for the Treasury as a lead investigator or something along those lines?
Mike: again a superb idea- However do we want the world to view the USA in the same fashion that many look upon DC with a mayor who served time for drugs etc- oops- IS conviction of prostitution a lesser evil than non-payment of federal taxes?
hey you ought to right a book - ditch the blog and go for a novel- suspense, politicss, sex, money- drugs and why not- hey maybe KAPA is closer to gaining airtime than the day before- Tune in- and come to the next KAPA meeting- April 9- and lets us not forget that this date in history is the surrender of Gen. Robert E. Lee at Appomattox in 1865. Another date to remember is that on this same day in April, in the year of 1942, General Edward King surrendered his command of 14,000 US soldiers, sailors and Marines and 80,000 Filipino Soldiers and began the infamous Death March. Mike, wouldnt it be great if we were back on the air then?
oh well- back to the real world.
take care,
Shelly Z
The fact is that a first termer - unless he is so bad that it becomes unbearable - almost invariably is re-elected. Also, there is a very good chance that Rudy Giuliani will run on the Republican side. Given these two assumptions, I would have to guess that it is unlikely Andrew Cuomo would forego re-election as the Attorney General in favor of a less than certain outcome in a Governor's race.
Like it or not, if Cuomo chooses the safe road, the likelihood is that Paterson will have a chance to prove himself on the campaign trail. If Giuliani is the Republican nominee and Cuomo is out of the picture, the Republicans will - in all probability - recapture the Governor's Mansion. Rudy's coattails should be strong enough to bring back just enough seats in the Senate to allow the Republians to draw the District lines for the next decade. This will bring us a split Legislature and a system of checks and balances to keep either Party from abusing it's power too much (let's face it, power corrupts).
As to the Geithner-Spitzer thing, does anyone really think that an Administration so beset by appointees backing out before nomination due to personal issues will choose an Eliot Spitzer as a Cabinet Secretary?
Not likely. Not likely at all.
1:27 Once I read what you had suggested, I have to agree that Eliot could simply join a team. There has been a public outcry to get Geithner some help, and after a day of thinking about it, I thinking Obama might be more apt to place him with the investigative unit of the treasury.
Now, if only the White House staff were avid readers of my Blog, they'd read our suggestions.
Where was this suggestion when the media was tanning the hide of Spitzer?
Now, looks like it's the flavor of the month. Hardy harr---harr.
While I admired Spitzer while in office, and I think it more of a shame that he brought himself down (power corrupts!), I think he made a mjor mistake in trying to bring down Hank Greenburg. All the problems at AIG are a direct result of the removal of Hank Greenburg. All the credit default swap bets on mortgages that brought them down were made AFTER he left the firm. And in the end, Greenburg was not even indicted for anything.
So, you could blame Spitzer for the downfall of AIG.
Of course, you could also blame Greenburg for lack of true leadership progression. There was no one really ready to take over from him. On the otherhand, it was not his intention to step down - he was forced out. A power struggle ensued, and anyone who was too close to Greenburg lost.
Anyway, while I still admire Spitzer - I think trying to put him in as Treasury Secretary would be a disaster.
Give Geithner a chance. he is just warming up. His performance for the last two weeks makes up for his early gaffs.
John G.
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