Follow along on CSPAN3.
This will be a half-assed liveblog, but it has already proven more interesting than I thought. Chris Dodd has basically said, “Fed screwed up prior to the crash” but then said, “but I support your reapproval anyway.”
Then, he just raised Nouriel Roubini’s read that people are borrowing dollars to buy assets, which is making those assets overvalued. Dodd said he wasn’t sure if he pronounced Roubini’s name correctly (!?!?!?!). And Bernanke said he doesn’t think assets are overvalued.
That, by itself, should cause Bernanke to lose his job.
Bailout Ben says BoA will pay us back immediately. Now boasting of stress tests. Claims that the holding companies are perfectly healthy.
Bailout Ben pushing getting healthcare under control. Apparently doesn’t know that health care reform cuts the deficit.
Please fire this arsehole now!!
He apparently hasn’t heard about the two wars we’re fighting.
Bailout Ben is really focused on restoring securitization markets. That’s nice.
Jim Bunning beating up on Bernanke for being too captive to derivities. Says he’s worse than Greenspan.
Bunning: You are the definition of a moral hazard.
Bunning: I will do everything I can to stop your nomination and drag out this process as long as I can.
Dodd: I don’t understand guaranteeing at 100%. Hard to accept notion that we had no leverage.
Bernanke: We had no leverage.
Dodd: Counterparties would have been in trouble too. You’re the Chairman of the Federal Reserve.
(But Dodd will still support Bernanke.)
Bayh: I’m struck that Bunning and Sanders find themselves in agreement.
Bayh: What would you have done differently?
Bernanke: Slow to do anything on consumer protection.
Bernanke: Liquidity is to be distinguished from bailouts.
[Except for the fact that they made a bunch of insolvent firms “liquid” last year]
Schumer: You’re a victim. Action was needed and was needed quickly. I talked to Warren Buffet, govt deserves high grade. You played a major role. Now onto consumer issues.