R.I.P. Larry Summers by Greg Palast

[emsimon33]

I love the alien quote from the article:

"On Sunday afternoon, facing a revolt by his own party’s senators, Obama dumped Larry as likely replacement for Ben Bernanke as Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board.

"Until news came that Summers’ torch had been snuffed, I was going to write another column about Larry, the Typhoid Mary of Economics. (My first, in The Guardian, 15 years ago, warned that “Summers is, in fact, a colony of aliens sent to Earth to turn humans into a cheap source of protein.”)"

The whole article is here:

http://us4.campaign-archive2.com/?u=33e4ec877eed6a43863a4a92e&id=60e22b06aa&e=b784a2d50d

[scarletwoman]

1. "Summers is... a colony of aliens sent to Earth to turn humans into a cheap source of protein."

Love it!

[Roy Rolling]

4. Saw it over the weekend....

Soylent Green is people!

Summers next job: CEO of the Soylent Corporation.

[pa28]

2. Who does Obama work for? Hint: You aren’t one of them.

Yeah Greg, I got that a while ago. Good piece.

[davidwparker]

8. Its payback.

Greg was on Ring of Fire this past week and he was telling those whom O owes from taking him from a state senator to Pres. That is, money-wise.

Glad the rest of the party nixed his weakness. By second term, you think you've paid them back already.

[MNBrewer]

17. That part was particularly spot on!

"But the fact that Obama even tried to shove Summers down the planet’s throat tells us more about Obama than Summers—and whom Obama works for. Hint: You aren’t one of them."


But Summers was never a "nominee"

[HomerRamone]

3. "Who picked Obama?"

"If you want to know why Obama would choose such a grifter and gamer to head the Fed, you have to ask, Who picked Obama? Ten years ago, Barry Obama was a nothing, a State Senator from the South Side of Chicago.

"But then, he got lucky. A local bank, Superior, was shut down by regulators for mortgage shenanigans ripping off Black folk. The bank’s Chairwoman, Penny Pritzker was so angry at regulators, she decided to eliminate them: and that required a new President.

"The billionaires connected Obama to Jamie Dimon of J.P. Morgan, but most importantly to Robert Rubin, former Treasury Secretary, but most important, former CEO of Goldman Sachs and mentor of Larry Summers. Without Rubin’s blessing and overwhelming fundraising power, Obama would still be arguing over zoning on Halsted Street.

"Rubin picked Obama and Obama picks whom Rubin picks for him.

"Because, in the end, Obama knows he must choose a Fed chief based on the answer to one question: What would Goldman think?"

[Octafish]

7. No wonder Palast doesn't get invited to breakfast at the White House.

No bended knee. Guy spells it out, a real journalist.

[Ichingcarpenter]

9. His 'end game' memo he reported

I think turned the tide on people calling their representatives against Summer. It opened a lot of eyes.

Great reporter...

[Octafish]

12. The fact he's seldom seen on American tee vee says it all.

The successful plutocratic police state needs ignorant proles.

[yurbud]

14. and they know that Summers is instantly hate-able

the less seen of him, the better for them.

Robert Rubin is largely the same.

I can't figure out why they didn't realize that about Rahm.

Out of morbid curiosity, I try to watch video of him from time to time, and I can't make past one sentence. The smarm and contempt he has for the rest of us is just dripping from the guy.

[emsimon33]

21. I agree. I always feel I need a shower after I see him.

Many of Obama's picks were real disappointments.

[MNBrewer]

18. Penny Pritzker... Penny Pritzker... now why does that name ring a bell? OH YEAH!!

http://www.commerce.gov/About%20Commerce/Commerce%20Leadership/Penny_Pritzker_Secretary_of_Commerce

Penny Pritzker was sworn in as the 38th Secretary of Commerce by Vice President Joe Biden on June 26, 2013.

[KoKo]

20. There was SO Much ONLNE Blowback against Pritzger...but, she Financed Obama

through it all...and he owed her. HE OWED HER! to Push Through the TPP!

And, she's installed and comfy in her office as SOC.

Secretary of Commerce....free to write bills that benefits her Family Fortune! Obama OWES HER.

Time to PAY UP!

[dreamnightwind]

5. Summers here and the time is right

for dancing in the streets - because we have no homes to dance in. Thanks Larry, you're all heart.

from the Palast piece:

"In 2008, both Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican John McCain called for using the $300 billion remaining in the "bail-out' fund for a foreclosure-blocking program identical to the one Franklin Roosevelt had used to pull the US out of the Great Depression. But Tsar Larry would have none of it, although banks had been given $400 billion from the same fund.

Indeed, on the advice of Summers and his wee assistant, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, Obama spent only $7 billon of the $300 billion available to save US homeowners."

I'm a little skeptical that either Hillary or McCain (aka Phil Gramm) would have delivered on this, one thing for sure though is that Obama didn't. Apparently we have Summers to thank for that.

[Octafish]

6. 'What would Goldman think.'

"Summers looked at Stiglitz like Stiglitz was some kind of naive fool who'd read too many civics books."

Gee.

[Vanje]

10. Good article!

Thanks for sharing.

[diane in sf]

11. I'm grateful Obama is not owned by oil and arms like bush/cheney. But I always realized

he was way more corporate than I would prefer. We must end corporate control of our government.

[yurbud]

13. this should have been the title: LARRY "WHAT WOULD GOLDMAN THINK?" SUMMERS

He wasn't mistaken, incompetent, hubristic, or anything of the sort.

He was simply a tool.

And Goldman was the mechanic who screwed us with him.

[KG]

15. one could hope we've seen the last of a destructive bastard like summers, but like kissenger

these walking disasters never seem to go away, they just hire a better pr firm.

[rhett o rick]

16. Summers predicted demise might be premature. The next president might like him. Just sayin. nm

[KoKo]

19. Recommend.

[Le Taz Hot]

22. Something most people don't know . . .

Greg Palast is signed on to DU. I haven't seen a post by him in a number of years and I can't even remember his screen name now but one time, and one time only, while he was still posting, he told us who he was. I don't think he was lying as his writing style was identical and you could easily tell he was a journalist by the quality of his writing. Anyway, thought newer DUers might find it interesting.