Michael Lewis Claims GOP Lawmakers Shockingly Uninformed About Financial Crisis

Discussion in 'Politics' started by Free Thinker, Apr 7, 2010.

  1. Michael Lewis, the celebrated author of "The Big Short," claims that about 40 or 50 House Republicans skipped a December hearing by Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke to spend three hours with him talking about the financial crisis.

    And the lawmakers, who are members of the House Republican book club, were stunningly uninformed about major elements of the crisis, says Lewis, during a recent conversation with Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter:

    "And their questions were increasingly: 'Oh my God, Goldman Sachs did what? A.I.G. did what?' They didn't understand it ... At the end, there was smoke coming out of their ears. I thought they were going to go kill someone at the end of it,.. The minute they started to understand, they were outraged. And I think the more things are explained, the more outraged people will get."

    At first, several dozen of the lawmakers told Lewis that they were going to leave early to attend the Bernanke hearing but they stayed because "they said, 'We never learn anything from him [Bernanke], he never explains anything to us'," according to Lewis. (If Lewis's account is correct, this is the hearing that the House Republicans skipped.

    At the start of this video, Lewis jokes, "Can you believe the House Republicans have a book group?" To which Carter chimes in, "That they even have one?"

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/07/house-republican-book-clu_n_528385.html
     
  2. Mercor

    Mercor

    Did any of them ask if Guam could ever capsize?

    I don't think this is a problem. Most Congresspeople are just normal individuals from all walks of life. This whole finanical meltdown came so fast, and so complicated that few people where aware of this stuff.

    I applaude these people in trying to learn what they can by asking what seems like stupid questions.
     
  3. I've seen "the big short" interview with lewis.
    I was not impressed nor did I find it informative in the least.
     
  4. You and I are probably the only 2 people on Earth who think he's an idiot. The scary part of this story isn't GOP Congressmen being uninformed-and if they are one can only imagine how out to lunch the stupid black and Hispanic Democrat's are-but it's troubling if those Republican's think they got the real low-down from Lewis. When interviewed on CNBC he came across as a shallow "blame mentality" populist.
     
  5. not being aware didnt stop them from voting 100% against any proposed financial reforms. they were just voting as their corporate masters were telling them to.
     
  6. I don't get the point of this. Few people not in the mortgage business understood the full extent of the problem. Certainly that idiot Bernanke didn't. Wasn't it a good thing these congressmen sought out someone independent to educate them?

    In point of fact, virtually all House republicans voted against the financial bailout. It was John McCain who backstabbed them and supported it.
     
  7. the point is the republicans voted in mass against any financial reform and now after the fact they are informing themselves.
     
  8. Hey, isn't that what the democrats did with the Obamacare? Except they voted for something they had no clue on.

    Way worse!
     
  9. Yes and that one boneheaded move possibly cost him the election.

    Eighty five percent or more of the public was against the bailout and mcvain decided to show his true colors .

    What a stoopid putz.
     
  10. What kind of "reform" are you talking about?

    Then, show us the legislation and the breakdown on votes.
     
    #10     Apr 8, 2010