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April 22, 2010
What goes around: Greg Craig and President Obama
An epic battle starring limousine liberals? Greg Craig, the former top lawyer in Obama's White House, will represent Goldman Sachs Group in the surprise SEC fraud action concerning complex mortgage-backed securities that were structured and marketed by Goldman Sachs for one of its hedge fund clients. The SEC complaint alleges that Goldman Sachs failed to disclose that the program of securities it devised "bet against" mortgage securities Goldman was also promoting.
Craig, who recently moved from Williams & Connolly to Skadden, is widely seen as being pushed out of Camp Obama last Fall by pragmatists who didn't like the strict timeline he proposed for closing down Guantanamo Bay's detention facility. And this week the President, although carefully choosing his words, morphed into an anti-Wall Street (and therefore anti-Goldman) mode as he pushed for legislation to more tightly regulate Wall Street firms. Showdown with the old Boss?
It's interesting news. The SEC, an independent Article II agency and quasi-court created by the Article I Congress, it is argued, technically does not work for the Article II White House. So there is apparently no revolving door problem for the steady and mega-charming uber-WASP Greg Craig. Really? True, Craig is a lawyer, not a lobbyist, and the White House is not seen to control much of what the SEC does.
Well, we hope he's not caught in the ethics net because we like watching Craig, a Boomer's Boomer, work.
Craig is a youthful guy in his sixties who won't whine about working past 7:30 PM. We currently have to work with people who will be "stressed" into early retirement by 38. But Craig is one of us. For the first time in decades, WAP? feels like going to church. Or something. Maybe just the Old Ebbitt. See at Politico "Goldman Sachs Taps Ex-White House Counsel". Excerpts:
On Friday, the SEC charged the firm with securities fraud in a convoluted subprime mortgage deal that took place before the collapse of the housing market.
Next week Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein will face questions from the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, which is looking into the causes of the housing meltdown, the source said.
In Craig, Goldman Sachs will have help from a lawyer with deep connections in Democratic circles.
And:
"A former White House employee cannot appear before any unit of the Executive Office of the President on behalf of any client for 2 years—one year under federal law and another year under the pledge pursuant to the January 2009 ethics E0," said a White House official.
The official also said that the White House had no contact with the SEC on the Goldman Sachs case. "The SEC by law is an independent agency that does not coordinate with the White House any part of their enforcement actions."
Posted by JD Hull at 11:38 PM | Comments (0)
April 21, 2010
Law libraries poised to make comeback.
No names. Meet me at the Federal Digest alcove around 6:30. Wear red pumps or I won't show. I'm watching you.
Books and nooks. The way we use them as a substitute for thinking, computers have made everyone dumber anyway. Real lawyers still take advantage of books. But do they really take liberties with library staff? We've been trying to research, as it were, the librarians themselves. See, via our friend Redford, the UPI piece Survey: Librarians Get Frisky In Stacks.
Posted by Holden Oliver (Kitzbühel Desk) at 12:53 AM | Comments (0)
April 20, 2010
The Other Easters.
Old Roman and Pagan versions of Easter are rowdy, have just as many fairy tales, and are probably lots more fun. Rebirth and renewal. Does it matter how you get there? We suggest services here.
Posted by Holden Oliver (Kitzbühel Desk) at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
April 19, 2010
Île Saint-Louis: Pay full price--but savor the rudeness.
Welcome back, Monsieur Hool. As before, three cats or two waitresses in room. Remember. You must choose. This is Hôtel du Jeu de Paume, the non-oath version. Erected in the 17th century, it once housed a tennis court built by Louis XIII, king from 1610 to 1643. Beams from the early 1600s cross the ceilings. An interior garden. The walls: old books, newer original art.
Neither Left or Right bank. Save for your 6th trip to Paris. The longstanding and competent staff takes a "working" dim view of both Americans and the English. They are wonderfully rude, Paris smart, and Yankee-style industrious. A haughty Labrador even lives here full-time. Be late to breakfast at your peril. Hull McGuire's hands-down favorite since 1996.
Brits never stay here twice. Too French. The staff does not just smile when it is says no; it laughs.
Posted by Rob Bodine at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
April 18, 2010
Sarah Silverman's 100% sane reaction to Pope's Malta promise.
Silverman: Something more comprehensive, maybe? Good news: Benedict said something in Malta (MSNBC piece). Bad news: Way too late and no one believes him even a little. This is not our kind of Pope yet. Too bad. As religions go, his started out as one of many good ones. They are only as holy as their leaders.
Do all organized religions via their leadership break bad? And go jack-ass on us? One interim option: Read Cicero instead, and do the Antler-Dance. See also "If you’re still Catholic...you must be on crack" at Marc Randazza's The Legal Satyricon.
Posted by Holden Oliver (Kitzbühel Desk) at 12:00 AM | Comments (1)