Catastrophe - Dick Morris [84]
One indicator of his influence is the [amount] in campaign contributions—more than to any other politician—that Fan and Fred have given him since 1989, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. These contributions are legal. But favors like those Mr. Dodd is alleged to have received may not be. Mr. Feinberg says he went public with his story because when he heard Senator Dodd on TV talking about predatory lending, he felt it was “hypocritical” and he says, “I just thought, ‘This is wrong.’”312
Countrywide contributed more than $100,000 in campaign contributions to Dodd, second only to then Senator Barack Obama. The company was not alone in feeling that Dodd was crucial to erecting the house of single cards of subprime mortgage deals that ultimately collapsed. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, who purchased the subprime mortgages and disseminated them all over Wall Street, also gave Dodd special favors, this time in the form of campaign contributions. Dodd proved useful to Fannie and Freddie, killing any attempt to rein them in. Here’s a list of the top recipients of contributions from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Notice who is number one:
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TOP RECIPIENTS OF FANNIE MAE AND FREDDIE MAC CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS, 1989–2008
Source: Center For Responsive Politics
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That Chris Dodd is a popular guy, isn’t he?
Since last summer, the Senate Ethics Committee, chaired by Senator Barbara Boxer, has been investigating whether Dodd knowingly received an illegal gift. But those folks don’t move too fast, so don’t expect a resolution any time soon. And Boxer is a Democrat, so don’t expect her to roll on one of her own.
QUESTION: How many regular people got a ‘courtesy’ on their mortgages?
AIG
Dodd’s missteps have not been limited to his personal housing transactions. By April 2008, AIG had become the universal symbol of the excesses and greed that caused the global financial meltdown. After receiving a total of $182 billion in federal bailout money, the company did not seem to get either the need for cutting back on their extravagant business practices or the rage that was simmering against them across the country.
Shortly after the company received its first $75 billion in federal bailout funds, reports of lavish corporate outings at expensive resorts began to be reported in U.S. media outlets. Anger against AIG for continuing its profligate ways exploded, reaching its peak when a Connecticut bus tour was organized to visit and protest at the homes of AIG employees.
The final straw came when it was revealed that AIG had doled out more than $100 million in huge bonuses to its executives after it accepted the federal bailout money. When it became apparent that Congress had authorized the payment of these bonuses, the public demanded to know who was behind the approval.
Turns out it was none other than Chris Dodd, chairman of the Senate Banking Committee.
When the first reports of this appeared in the media, Dodd vehemently denied having anything to do with it. But later Dodd changed his story. He said that after checking, he realized that he had “reluctantly” agreed to make the change when the secretary of the treasury asked him to do it. (After a thorough investigation, he was surprised to find out the culprit was himself!)
Of course, as chairman of the Banking Committee, Dodd could have said no. He couldn’t have been forced to do it. But he didn’t—he went right along with the Obama administration.
Dodd’s been slammed in the media ever since. It didn’t help that re-ports surfaced a few days later showing that AIG executives had emailed employees and urged them to contribute to Dodd because he was about to become chairman of the Senate Banking Committee and would oversee any