According to a new book called Throw Them All Out by Peter Schweizer, as relayed by Dave Weigel at Slate, Rep. Bachus made more than 40 trades in his personal account in the summer and fall of 2008, in the early months of the financial crisis.
The fact that Bachus personally traded on private information he received as a result of his job is bad enough. The fact that he was the ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee at the time is simply outrageous.
In one case, the day after getting a private briefing on the collapsing economy and financial system from Ben Bernanke and Hank Paulson, Rep. Bachus effectively shorted the market (by buying options that would rise if the market tanked.)
A few days later, after the market tanked, Bachus sold his position and nearly doubled his money. MUCH MORE
These are the people who are supposed to be representing "the people," but how can they do that when our interests conflict with their personal wealth? Why would anyone expect them to vote against their own best interests? If any of them had any morals they would have passed legislation years ago outlawing Insider Trading in Congress. Instead, they have endorsed the fact that our Congress is a specifically privileged cabal of sociopathic criminals who can commit what would be felonies if Wall Street or you or I did it, and do it with impunity -- and then expect us to believe they are acting in our best interests. If you go back in history, the almighty predictor of our future, from the Roman Empire on up, there has always been a class that make their fortunes off the backs of the average citizen and it has destroyed more empires than war itself when the populace finally gets fed-up enough to take action. Here's a brief snapshot of our Congressional Leadership:
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) reported at least $3.4 million in wealth, an almost 10 percent rise over the prior year. Reid had a minimum net worth of close to $3.1 million in 2009.
Much of Reid's wealth is wrapped up in land holdings in his home state of Nevada and in Arizona. Those holdings include 160 acres in Bullhead City, Ariz., worth at least $1 million. He also reported a loan to his campaign valued at at least $50,000.
As in 2009, Reid caught a Christmastime jet ride to Reno thanks to Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) last year. Reported as a gift, its value was $14,500, as determined by Senate Ethics Committee staff.
_________________________________________________
Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) reported a minimum net worth of $9.8 million and remains one of the wealthiest lawmakers on Capitol Hill, according to his disclosure form. His minimum net worth grew close to 29 percent from a minimum of $7.6 million in 2009.
McConnell's wealth likewise rose in part to some smart plays in the stock market with his wife, former Bush administration Labor Secretary Elaine Chao. They exchanged some of their stock holdings for Vanguard 500 Index Admiral shares, with a value of at least $500,000.
Chao also gave several paid speeches, for which she was paid more than $1,000 per appearance, according to McConnell's financial disclosure report. She spoke to the University of Illinois-Champaign, Corning Inc. and the American Chamber of Commerce in Chicago, among other groups. LINK
Corruption is everywhere in Congress; Lobbying is nothing more than legalized bribery -- and we all know it. To make matters even more dire, SCOTUS corrupted our entire election process with their Citizens United ruling, again placing corporations above the people -- a hallmark of fascism! How can our nation successfully govern itself when we are being ruled by what amounts to legalized criminals? Based on the behavior of our Congress, it is obvious that our government no longer functions in the best interests of the people. We have finally reached a point in history when U.S. Congressmen publicly endorse Fascism and blatantly lie and propagandize their arguments to stand up for Corporations and Elites, and then have the nerve to demonize those that seek to restore our Representative Democracy. If this happened back when Democracy was still important to the bulk of the population in the 1800 --s, the scoundrels I speak of would have been tarred and feathered when exposed -- if not worse. We need to return to the days of sanity.
The Occupy Wall Street Protestors have done our nation a great service. They have accomplished what all of the writing and Op-Eds by Liberals and Progressives have failed to do for too many years -- they have awakened the people and the nation should be grateful. That said, it isn't over yet, and if you're a true American that values our Constitution and the American Way of Life, there's a rough road ahead and we all need to pitch-in and help. I don't know if it will take a General Strike, massive social disobedience, or again crashing the phone and email systems of Washington as we did during the S-1959 debacle, but we have to do something and like Mitch and the rest of the United States, we're all searching for answers. One of my favorites is to remain peaceful, and using Social Media, start with a day when millions, or even hundreds of thousands of people flood into their local streets -- and then refuse to move. They can't arrest us all -- and the message it would send would demonstrate that "we the people" still hold the reigns of power -- but only when we choose to stand-up for ourselves and understand that if we don't take action, and fast -- this nation will devolve into a state of Fascism and Authoritarian governance that will likely be unstoppable. The only way to take back our country is to stand together in solidarity; united we stand, divided we fall.
35 Facts About The Gutting Of America's Industrial Might That Should Make You Very Angry(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
