Paulson a major Cuomo donor

Individuals from Paulson & Co., the hedge fund at the center of a fraud suit brought by the SEC against Goldman Sachs, have given nearly one hundred thousand dollars in campaign donations to New York Attorney General and presumed gubernatorial candidate Andrew Cuomo. Paulson & Co. is not charged in the suit, but its role …

Read More

Dodd’s Decision to Retire Likely Doomed Financial Reform Bill

When Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Connecticut) announced last January that he would not seek reelection, some media outlets declared that Dodd’s retirement would actually increase the chances that robust financial regulatory reform would be enacted (for example, see articles by The Washington Post and BusinessWeek). Such analyses demonstrate a near total ignorance of the processes of …

Read More

Bean and New Democrats Linked to Key Wall Street Lobby

Last week LittleSis reported that Rep. Melissa Bean receives significant support from the Wall Street interests who helped weaken new financial reform legislation. One such supporter is the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA), Wall Street’s primary lobbying organization. SIFMA funds many of the New Democrats who helped pass the Bean amendment, as well …

Read More

AARP, AMA endorse health bill

President Obama snatched up endorsements of the health bill by AARP and AMA and will visit the Capitol today to make one last push to lawmakers. (WSJ) Fourteen people are now charged with insider trading in conjunction with the Galleon Group case. (NYT) AIG posts its second straight profit, but there is still no word …

Read More

House Dems want a weekend health vote

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is pushing for a vote on the health bill Saturday. (NYT) Fourteen more arrests have been made in the Galleon insider trading case. (Bloomberg) The Senate unanimously passed legislation yesterday to give tax breaks to big companies hit by the recession, but Rep. Charles Rangel, chair of the Ways and Means …

Read More

Health bill may not be passed until 2010

Sen. Harry Reid said the health reform debate may carry on into 2010. (WSJ) House Republicans have drafted their own health bill with no public option that doesn’t require people to have insurance or employers to provide it. (NYT) The GOP wins two key gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia and Republican Michael Bloomberg …

Read More

Panel aims to pass climate bill before December

Sen. Barbara Boxer has charged the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee with completing a climate change bill before the international summit in Copenhagen in December. (Reuters) Three key races will play out today in New York, New Jersey and Virginia and Republicans are poised to claim victory. (WSJ) A study released by Sen. Jay …

Read More

Republicans to release their own health bill

Rep. John Boehner says House Republicans will release their own health bill this week. (WSJ) White House economic adviser Larry Summers will hold a meeting today to discuss the economy. Among the attendees are Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. (Reuters) CEO of Bank of New York Mellon Robert …

Read More

C.V. Starr & Co.: Greenberg’s new AIG?

The New York Times ran a great story on Tuesday about former AIG chief Maurice Greenberg‘s latest venture, the C.V. Starr empire. Reporter Mary Williams Walsh links Greenberg’s new success to the Treasury Department capping executive pay at AIG last week: “That may hasten the exodus of A.I.G.’s talent, sending more refugees into Mr. Greenberg’s …

Read More

Chamber of Commerce chief lambastes health bill

Chamber of Commerce Chief Thomas Donohue strikes out against Obama’s health care plan. (WSJ) Sen. Tom Coburn, also a licensed family physician, is one of the health bill’s most fervent opponents, leading the Republican opposition in Congress. (NYT) Hearings on the climate change bill written by Sens. Barbara Boxer and John Kerry will begin as …

Read More

House Democrats to unveil health bill

Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Democrats will announce their own health bill today that includes a public option and taxes the wealthiest Americans to pay for it. (Reuters) Under the new financial overhaul bill in Congress, the Federal Trade Commission would have increased authority over banks. (WSJ) Floundering CIT Group rejects a loan from billionaire …

Read More

Public option increases Democrats’ divide

With the inclusion of Sen. Harry Reid‘s public plan, Democrats are now divided on the health bill and Reid may not have the 60 votes he needs to pass it through. (NYT) Two of the health industry’s biggest lobbyists, AHIP president Karen Ignagni and PhRMA CEO Billy Tauzin have different styles on the Hill, but …

Read More