Culture of corruption: Banking hypocrite Maxine Waters
My syndicated column today takes on racial demagogue and crony of color Maxine Waters, whose crooked ways I’ve covered since my first days at the L.A. Daily News. It’s about time the rest of the media put her under the microscope. Wait ’til she starts beating them over the head with the race card. It’s worked for decades. Now, she’ll just have to scream louder. I am looking forward to watching the Democrats try to ignore this most beastly example of the culture of corruption in their fold.
(Reminder: Go back and look at my liveblogging of the TARP debate. Note how aggressive Waters was in taking a lead role pushing congressional black caucus members to swallow the crap sandwich. No disclosure of her own self interest in the matter. She’s just a Champion of The People, speaking Truth to Power. And here’s another reminder of minority racketeers pushing for their bailout cut with Waters’ assistance. Business as usual, rainbow coalition shakedown-style.)
I think we should start referring to Waters as “Bank of OneUnited,” the same way she referred to bank execs by their company name.
***
Maxine Waters: Banking on hypocrisy
by Michelle Malkin
Creators Syndicate
Copyright 2009
At a flail-and-wail House hearing last month, California Democrat Rep. Maxine Waters melted down in front of big banking CEOs. “Raise your hand! Raise your hand!” she shrieked as she harangued the executives on their business practices and management of federal bailout money. Sneering at the “captains of the universe” whom she refused to address by name (”You, Bank of America!”), Rep. Waters excoriated the corporate heads for their greed. ” All of my political life,” Waters bragged, “I have been in disagreement with the banking and mostly financial services community because of practices that I have believed to be not in the best interest always of the very people that they claim to serve.”
As you’ll soon see, however, the ethically conflicted Rep. Waters has her own special definition of what’s in “the best interest” of the people she claims to serve. While she crusades against crony pseudo-capitalism, she is one of its most hypocritical beneficiaries and advocates. Cronyism comes in all colors. Waters has once again earned her title as one of the “Most Corrupt” members of Congress from the left-leaning (yes, left-leaning) Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW).
The bank CEOs sat meekly during Waters’ verbal flogging. But as she frothed at the mouth, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Franks covered up the microphone and chastised her briefly. To no avail. Waters’ motor mouth kept on running. Did the banks raise interest rates on credit card customers after they took Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) money, she thundered? Thumping her fists on the table, she then railed about their loan modification policies (”How many require that you have to be behind by two months!?”). Blustering about underwriting fees they paid themselves on government-backed bond sales, she yelled: “You made money off the TARP money!” One of her fellow Democrats finally ended the diatribe: “I’m going to have to calm you down because when the Chairman gets back he’s going to have to penalize me.”
Fast-forward a month later. The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that the high-and-mighty Waters had a personal and financial stake in Boston-based OneUnited, a minority bank that received $12 million in TARP money under smelly circumstances. The banks’ executives donated $12,500 to her congressional campaigns. Her husband, Sidney Williams, was an investor in one of the banks that merged into One United. They’ve profited handsomely from their relationship with the bank:
“Congressional financial-disclosure forms show Ms. Waters acquired OneUnited stock worth between $250,000 and $500,000 in March 2004, as did Mr. Williams. Mr. Williams joined the board of OneUnited that year. Each sold shares in September 2004 — including Ms. Waters’s entire stake — but Mr. Williams continued to hold varying amount of the company’s stock. In the lawmaker’s most recent financial-disclosure form, dated May 2008 and covering the prior year, Ms. Waters reported that her husband held between $250,000 and $500,000 worth of the bank’s stock. Mr. Williams also received interest payments from a separate holding at the bank, also worth between $250,000 and $500,000. The 2008 form doesn’t specify what that is. Mr. Williams stepped down from the bank’s board last spring. It couldn’t be learned whether he still owns stock in the bank. Mr. Williams didn’t return calls seeking comment.”
Waters (along with Rep. Frank) participated directly in pressuring the feds for OneUnited’s piece of the bailout pie. She personally contacted the Treasury Department last December requesting $50 million for the company– and failed to disclose her ties to the bank to them. The government ended up coughing up $12 million in TARP funding for OneUnited — despite another government agency rapping the bank in October 2008 for “operating without effective underwriting standards and practices,” “operating without an effective loan documentation program” and “engaging in speculative investment practices.”
Oh, and get this: The favored bank of Maxine Waters was also penalized for alleged excessive executive compensation. The FDIC ordered the bank to “sell all bank-owned automobiles,” require reimbursement for executives’ car purchases (according to the Boston Business Journal, OneUnited CEO Kevin Cohee was cruising around in a 2008 Porsche SUV), and cease payments on a $6 million Santa Monica beachfront home purchased by Cohee, his wife who served as bank president, and others.
Responding to scrutiny of the bank’s special treatment, Cohee is now accusing critics of — yep, you guessed it — racism.
Now, who is sick of Democrat shakedown artists sanctimoniously lecturing others about the culture of corruption? Raise your hand! Raise your hand!
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Trackbacks
- Culture of Corruption: Many Americans Losing Trust in Government? « Peace and Freedom Global Future
- Democrat Congresswoman Maxine Waters: Racebaiter and TARP Thief « Jane Q. Republican
- Waters Helped Bank Whose Stock She Once Owned « poplicola
- Troubled Waters - another Democrat banking queen scandal | Radio Vice Online
- What if it was Sarah who made Hillary’s trip? « Jim Blazsik
- Maxine “dirty” Waters Helped Steer Bailout Funds to Bank With Family Ties | Fire Andrea Mitchell!
- San Diego Tea Party - Tax Revolt #2 Set: April 11, 2009 at 11 am! « Temple of Mut
- Michelle Malkin: “Now, who is sick of Democrat shakedown artists sanctimoniously lecturing others about the culture of corruption?” « Chronicle of The TARPorkalypse
- Michelle Malkin 2012: Culture of corruption: Banking hypocrite Maxine Waters | AMERICAS WATCH DOGS
- Democrat Culture of Corruption | Axis of Right
- Michelle Malkin » Congresswoman Bank of OneUnited responds
- The Race Card - Does it still work? | Patriotic Dissent
- Uptick Rule - Page 2 - Debate Politics Forums
- Friends of Mark Fuhrman - A lie told often enough becomes the truth. » Shades of Spokane re political corruption?
- ScoopThis.Org » Maxine Waters is crazy! (And a hypocrite, too.)
- Maxine Waters is NOT a nigger! « Mark Epstein
- Barack Obama is Ivan Drago | Obama Approval Rating Blog
- Conservative Nation» Blog Archive » The Hypocrisy of Maxine Waters
- Questioning Maxine Waters Makes You Racist, Bill Clinton’s No Biologist and Video of Every Turbo Boost Ever Used on Knight Rider - Your Weekend Links | All American Blogger
- Saturday Afternoon - Ripping Wallpaper - Laundry Time , An Ol’ Broad’s Ramblings
- Maxine Waters - Another Corruptocrat «
- Will the real Maxine Waters stand up? « Random Thoughts
- RAP SHEET: Democrat Maxine Waters « FactReal
- Obama says, “Don’t Worry Be Happy Now!” « Riggword Weblog
- Frank Takes One for Waters… « Red Dot in a Red State’s Blog
- The Irascible Chef » Oldtime Hypocrite Alert
- ObamaOdrama » Blog Archive » Maxine Waters Advocates Socalism… Er, Rather, Taking Over - Let’s face it, my presence on this stage is pretty unlikely
- The Jawa Report
- Roundup of News You Missed Because of the AIG Media Distraction « The IUSB Vision Weblog
- Pajamas Media » Barney Frank: A Cowardly Hater
- The Anchoress — A First Things Blog
- Michelle Malkin » Maxine Waters: “Many members” are as sleazy as my friend Charlie Rangel
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Categories: Cronyism, Race Hustlers, Subprime crisis
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If she was worth anything, she’d resign. But of course she won’t.
criticizing Ms. Waters is RACIST
you should know that some banks are more equal than others…and since this bank is obviously just a victim of the vast racist white power structure….its OK that one of the oppressed victims of racism, ms waters, profits from this…
you just have to get your mind right..
With my hand waving wildy, I am LOLing at “flail and wail.”
What do you expect from the same idiot that wanted to nationalize the oil companies?
I say AGAIN: Lib chicks are butt-ugly!
Hmmm… .
I think we may know the answer -
This brings to mind a quote of Whitaker Chambers- “Experience had taught me that innocence seldom utters outraged shrieks. Guilt does.” Very fitting, don’t ya think?
This woman is alternately a joke, then a disgrace, then a joke again. She thought Franklin Raines was providing “outstanding leadership” at Fannie Mae, or Freddie Mac, whichever. No problems whatsoever! She should be in jail, along with The Banking Queen.
Miss Maxine hates you crackers! But, her hate is justified and not racist at all. Besides, black people can’t be racist. So, it’s cool. All good in the ‘hood.
See? Hypocritical harpies come in all colors!
It amazes me how someone so stupid can manage to talk “down” to CEO’s! My bet: She does not know what CEO stands for! Los Angeleans out to be ashamed of themselves for putting this moron in office!
ooops, ought to be!
my bad
raising my hand, raising my hand, michelle. she has been a race hustler for a long time.
They will not have to try to ignore it. They simply justify it in their own minds and everything is beautiful!
I would NOT have responded to it at all, unless it spoke my name correctly.
Both hands raised!
Maxine Waters is really Rev. Sharpton in drag. Same modus operandi.
Don’t you just love it. While this pig and her husband are gorging themselves at the hog trough, she is shrieking like a harpy at the evil bank execs. This act will certainly be well-received back home by her constituents who see her getting in the face of “the man”. What a sad, sad state of affairs when people are so blind that they elect greedy, corrupt, egomanics like this to represent them in our government.
The Democratic Socialist Communists routinely accuse others of “Racism” as a means to their socialist ends.
It’s a large part of how Obama got elected.
Obama Nation:
Using Racism In Order To Form A More Socialist Union
That beast is going down…hard! Keep at it, Michelle. I have noticed some investigations going on right now that are encouraging for our side. Hopefully, the veil is coming off these people’s eyes and they are starting to see the truth!
Now that’s socialism we can all believe in!
I’m on my back with both hands AND FEET in the air!
Sad, but likely true.
That’s where the true racism lies.
Here’s more of Waters and other Democrats getting in the face of “the man”, while covering up the real corruption.
I just threw up in my mouth a little.
The silent majority isn’t silent anymore! WE.ARE.DONE!
As a requirement for the job every member of Congress should be audited every year and the information made public.
Don’t like the invasion of your privacy? Then get a job in the private sector where you have to actually produce something.
As long as it’s possible to make a fortune doing “the people’s business” the job will attract the likes of Ms. Waters. You want less corruption in Congress? As the cliche’ goes, sunlight is the best disinfectant.
I do not miss living in her district, but it might just be the safest in the country.
The folks there just love it when she sticks it to ‘The Man’, even if she is him.
And, by ’safe’, I mean horribly dangerous for the citizens, but a sure seat for Mrs. Waters.
You think she’s bad? You should see her constituency.
She’ll be there for life.
Why do people like the CEO of B of A sit there and take being treated like cr*p? We’ve seen this time and time again with people from the automobile, energy and other fields. These guys may not be paragons of virtue but they are entitled to be treated in a civilized mannner.
If it was me I’d announce that I am leaving until these “people” learn to behave in a civilized manner then stand up and leave. Until someone does these a**holes will simply continue to behave like they are some sort of princes and princesses.
TXGator, thanks for the clarification… I, for one, misunderstood you, and was wondering how in the heck her district could be one of “the safest in the country”.
It’s not her district that’s safe, just her seat that is.
Michelle, you are awesome. Imagine if we had leadership on our side who had the gonads to stand up in front of their colleagues and demand a show of hands like the race hustler did to Mr. Bank of America!
On March 13th, 2009 at 12:45 pm, johnsteele said:
And what gives members of our legislative branch the right to act like they have executive branch “police” authority over these heads of corporations?
These Socialists in our government are hell-bent on destroying capitalism.
And by the way, the G5 corporate jet that Nancy Pelosi demands from our government is slightly larger than the G4 corporate jet in which the auto executives flew to D.C.
Maximum Watercloset is just representing her arm of the “Black Panders”. Nothing new here.
Maxine Waters is really Rev. Sharpton in drag and that is her BEST trait. That race-baiting socialist slut is perfectly willing to set South Central aflame for her own ends. If race war does come she will be MORE guilt than a bunch of clowns waking around in their bed sheets.
Maxine Waters and such have a vested interest in keeping the black family really down–THAT is being a race traitor regardless of what some rapper or left over old hippie claims.
Perhaps we need to remind Maxine Waters, John McCain and some others (is this taught anymore?)….
Keep them uneducated, welfare dependant and bitter at the Man and vote Democrat. And just who is the racist?
I L O V E it when the Socialists call conservatives hypocrites.
RedPill,
Everyone in that district loves her for being in people’s faces demanding an agenda based on racial preferences. They want something for free. They don’t ever read anything informative about her, good or bad. They can, however, catch her stunts on TV screaming at millionaires, and they love it. Like a majority of people out there in America, they are horribly uninformed and are 100% committed to staying that way.
There are parts of America that are indistinguishable from the worst parts of Tiajuana, except there’s more violence (in LA!). I do not believe our borders can remain unchanged in the future. If you lived there for two weeks, you would weep for America.
Oh, how I’m wishing you were talking about the Federal Penetentiary at Leavenworth, Kansas.
Hope is not a plan; not all change is good. The resistance is here; the resistance is now.
ECS
Truly stupid and crooked people end up in Congress. It’s amazing and sad.
Howard Hughes told off an investigating committee after WW2 and ruined the crooked senator (there’s a stretch, right?) that instigated the hearings.
Hope is not a plan; not all change is good. The resistance is here; the resistance is now! RESIST!!!!!
ECS
She is the poster child for affirmative action!!! She has risen waaaaayyyyyy beyond her capabilities. I wouldn’t trust thisvidiot to run my lemonade stand properly. Yet she managed to get elected to the US HOR? There is no other explanation.
Is there anyone in D.C. who isn’t scum? These people went to line their pockets with our money, not to represent us or work for the best interest of the country. They all should resign for pushing the country into the dumper.
“Culture of corruption….Still in Business, now under former owners”.
This is a case where we must allow affirmative ethics.
Please people: no more incumbents. Work locally to support someone. These scumbags will never vote term limits. Voting for new people who support your conservative position is our only hope.
What makes me sad and furiously angry is the elitist and overbearing in your face all the time attitude, along with, corruption and the sense of entitlement that is alway present when dealing with liberals.
Two things to look for.
If they say its bipartisan, it ain’t.
Always prefacing with “My friends across the isle”.
I really felt sorry for those guys cause bankers are not as low as Lawyers and Liberals.
Great column, Michelle.
They sit there because they are intimidated to be sitting in that stately hall in that beautiful congressional building–it can be overwhelming.
HOWEVER, those chumps are forgetting who works for who. Those people sitting on the dias work for we, the people. Those Banking CEO’s are BIG PEOPLE because they pay the majority of the taxes that the lackies sitting on those big leather chairs get paid every month and distribute to their favorite lobbyists.
If it were me, I would have investigated every member of that panel and thrown some of their questions right back in their hypocritical faces. I also would have had lots of stats on amounts of taxes paid by employees and the Banks per year for the last 10 years. Thrown their crap right back at them. The group should have designated the Head CEO and to respond to general questions by the likes of Ms Waters etal. Their lack of b*lls makes ME wonder how they could manage to get to CEO status. Me too, I’d have been the adult in the room and left.
Schadenfreude, baby!
An organized crime syndicate is running our government.
No reason to build casinos, sell drugs or pimp, they just run for office.
We may as well live in Palestine or El Salvador.
I look at the people leading this country and I could just cry. What happened to us?
The majority was silent.
I believe that she is the same”person” who replied with “that doesn’t count” when confronted with The Truth about public schools and the damage the federal government has done.
Failed to disclose: read– lied.
More on the subject:
Hypocrite!
This is so patently unethical and the fastest way to wind up in jail.
But I guess if you are protected…
Oh yeah, she’s proud of the fact that she stands up for minorities and she’s just daring everyone to keep up with the scrutiny.
KEEP AFTER HER MICHELLE!
I agree wholeheartedly. But somehow I don’t think that’s going to change anything.
This is a war. Sorry folks, but the time for sitting down and discussing things is over. Our side didn’t choose it , or start it. But we damn well better end it. And the VICTIMS should become victims, when it’s all said and done.
Sorta sacrilegious to use but …
Lonely, I’m Mr. Lonely
I have nobody for my staff
I am so lonely, I’m Mr. Lonely
Wish I had someone with no faults of their own.
(Boy does this one ever take you back! Bobby Vinton )
Sorry! Wrong thread!!!!
Two observations here; 1) Her constituents see nothing wrong with what she is doing, they see it as justified action against “The Man”. 2) Who is left in Washington to complain? The majority of them are doing exactly the same in one way or another. It is simply business as usual in Government.
Whoops I got another one to add to the pile of goofs. He signed an Exectutive Order allowing government funding for stem cell research, and then signing a bill banning it.
Update: Maxine Waters blames Bush.
Like minority own United One fined for only loaning to wealthy not lower income in Miami?
Hypocrite.
Do you have a link for this?
Just went to DU to get their take on the story. Only 4 comments, all of course making it out to be a right wing plot. LOL! I am sure they will studiously avoid discussing the topic much at all.
It would be so cool if we could get an iron-spined John Galt type to testify.
Someone who’d say something like … “I don’t care what you think, Congresswoman Dipwad, it’s your collective idiocy that has triggered virtually all the problems you’re carping about.”
Then Maximum Swampwater would launch into a stemwinding maelstrom of indignant apoplectic rage, making for some really cool TV on O’Reilly that evening!
Happyscrapper,
Here’s a link to the ban, then unban of stem cell research.
President Obama signed H.R. 1105, the “Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009 (aka omnibus appropriations bill) on Wednesday which included a hidden provision that explicitly bans federal funding of any “research in which a human embryo or embryos are destroyed, discarded, or knowingly subjected to risk of injury or death.”
This bill is counter to the claims of Obama made just Monday where “science trumped ideology”.
OOPS, should be unbanning, then re-banning of stem cell research.
Michelle, this isn’t surprising. Rember her defence of Fannie Mae? Franklin Raines is black. She played the race card then. For the record Barney Frank is knee deep in the bailout scam too.
that is nearly pornographic…I’m shivering.
If you want to know how she would run the banks and oil companies, just look at how she ran the King Drew Medical Center. It is so bad there that the accrediting bodies have not allowed medical students intern there for credit for some time. (Of course, no one will note that most of the people killed there are racial minorities.)
Plan to Save King Drew
Maybe we should take the time to start pointing fingers on the people who really got us into trouble and reduced all of our pension plans and savings. It is not the banks!! The problem is our politicians. Note that the accounting bill came into full effect shortly (1 year) before this crisis started. With the mark to market rule, it caused significant accounting and capitalization problems that significantly amplified the fact that dead beats were not paying their loans. Without those rules we would have had a problem but not as severe as the financial panic that we now are experiencing. This piece of trash, Franks and Bush and gang then helped every thing along with their concept of a housed for everyone. Then they did away with the up tick rule that allowed the short sellers to sell down the stocks and further hurt bank capitalization. Brilliant!! Now we have the Chinese telling us to get our house in order, in short, they don’t like the Obama approach to the crisis. Note that of all the banks that trash was talking to, only City was really part of the problem. The others only took on the mortgage originators after the fact and really are heroes.
Congress needs to apologize to these men and we need to constantly be pointing the finger to the politicians to remind them we know who caused the problem. I doubt that they will do much to really change the rules and help us out.
This is almost as good as the NAACP saying blacks were steered into bad loans too. They hold their constituents/members in such low esteem they blatantly say, out loud no less, they’re too stupid to read loan docs, and need guidance to conduct their banking needs. When are the people who give huge amounts to these people going to wake up and see them for what they are….Maxine and the NAACP are racist against their own people, treating them as children.
I want to see hearings folks, lots of hearings and eventual removal from office of Maxine. As far as the NAACP, their contributors should starve them out of existance.
Just as I’m doing with the RNC.
Thanks! The unborn up in heaven are laughing their cute little butts off!
You can’t shame the shameless.
Michelle, I apologize for depressing you further, but as you know, having worked for the LA Daily News, this woman is going nowhere. I lived in her district almost 10 years. She always gets over 80+% of the vote. Half the time there isn’t even an R running in the district. Those who hate her guts (that almost 20% who will never vote for her), have to choose between all these unknown 3rd party candidates.
Back in 1994, I helped to campaign against her, they had an R who signed the Contract with America. He really tried, but there was no way this district was going to vote in a baby faced white guy running against Ms. Waters.
The powers to be in CA make it easy for her, gerrymandering this district to be uber safe. The district next to hers, is that other CA Congresswoman who was/is defaulting on all of those home loans, remember her? Zowie, CA is just a cesspool on all levels of government.
Term limits hasn’t helped on the state level, unfortunately. Now the lobbyists run circles around the elected legislators. And the legislators just play musical chairs regarding term limits. It is just disgusting. I had to leave the state. I was fed up.
Quoting Maxi-Pad, red-Waters:
You misunderstand: regardless of what she says, by the way she fought for her bank, its not banks per say with which she has a problem!
Instead, look at the name of the only bank she excoriated by name — that says it all…
“Captains of the Universe…”
What a condescending, hypocritical B.
(hand raised and waving) Democrap racist are just sickening. Rep. Waters (D-GangBangers), please resign, today, do it now.
If a Republican does it, he/she is a bigot, and if you point out that she is doing it, you are “naturally” a racist.
No win for America, win win for this old racist harridan.
Do any of these elected official have to have regular check ups? She doesn’t look right in that photo, what if a brain scan showed an abnormality? I mean there could be a medical reason for all the power lusting and greed money grubbing, that is prevalent among our public servants ?brain lesions?
Karen,
I was in her district for five years. Congrats on getting out…I left three years ago.
There’s no hope for that place. It will continue to spread like cancer.
You have to look at the section of LA that she represents — she is a perfect reflection of her constituents — a loud, arrogant, angry, belligerent Black Woman with the intelligence to recommend her for little more than a hall pass monitor in some inner-city public school.
And if it were a republican, it’d be all over the airwaves, hearings would be held, an arrest made, and time served. Since it’s a black democrat, expect msm to say nothing, no one from the ethics committee will utter so much as a murmur, and it’ll end up being a resume-builder for her when she seeks a senate seat. I’ve never appreciated hypocrisy..and while I think she’s an idiot who needs to be held accountable, I think those who continue to re-elect her deserve nothing but shame and contempt.
My car had a flat tire this morning. crap…you guessed it!…racism.
My team missed a last second shot in the ACC tournament, the shooter was clearly fouled but got no call from the refs..yep..you got it….racism.
Found a hair in my salad…damn!!…racism
My Netflix envelope came in damaged…freaking racists again.
On March 13th, 2009 at 1:00 pm, TXGator said:
Sounds like the average Maxine Waters voter has a lot in common with the average Barry Sotoro-Obama voter.