Author Archive for: emptywheel
About emptywheel
Marcy Wheeler is an independent journalist writing about national security and civil liberties. She writes as emptywheel at her eponymous blog, publishes at outlets including Vice, Motherboard, the Nation, the Atlantic, Al Jazeera, and appears frequently on television and radio. She is the author of Anatomy of Deceit, a primer on the CIA leak investigation, and liveblogged the Scooter Libby trial.
Marcy has a PhD from the University of Michigan, where she researched the “feuilleton,” a short conversational newspaper form that has proven important in times of heightened censorship. Before and after her time in academics, Marcy provided documentation consulting for corporations in the auto, tech, and energy industries. She lives with her spouse in Grand Rapids, MI.
Entries by emptywheel
Yet More House Finance Hearing Geithner Liveblog
/82 Comments/in Economics/by emptywheelIf I understand the rules Barney Frank laid down on Tuesday, the members who waited patiently but never got a chance to ask questions on Tuesday (people like Alan Grayson) get to go first.
You can follow along at CSPAN3 or the committee stream.
Frank: When Geithner and Bernanke here on Tuesday, these members were here when they had to leave:
Declining Justice: DOJ Lets Statute Run On Bush Criminality
/30 Comments/in Bush Administration, emptywheel, FISA, Law, Obama Administration/by emptywheelOn March 10, 2009 Emptywheel noted that the five year statute of limitation on the initial criminal wiretapping acts by the Bush/Cheney Administration in the al-Haramain case were expiring. Now the final statute of limitations on the criminal wiretaps of al-Haramain has expired as of 12 pm last night.
Again on the al-Haramain Stuff
/38 Comments/in FISA/by emptywheelThe WaPo has a front page article blaring about Obama’s horrible record on state secrets.
I agree with the article that Obama’s record on state secrets has been worse than disappointing. But I’m really tired of reporting that misses key facts about the case. Here’s the theme of the WaPo article.
The first signs [that Obama is “forsaking” campaign rhetoric about openness] have come just weeks into the new administration, in a
Brad Miller Asks More Questions about Goldman Sachs
/43 Comments/in Economics/by emptywheelBrad Miller (D-NC) asks the complement to the question I asked last night: Where’s the guy who doesn’t know shit about Wall Street to assess these bailouts?
Brad Miller asks, doesn’t Edward Liddy’s past board membership on Goldman Sachs create the appearance of conflict of interest–not to mention someone without the sufficient distance to approach this problem fairly?
Geithner doesn’t seem too troubled about any potential conflict of interest.
Brad Sherman Predicts This Will Work Out Badly
/3 Comments/in Economics/by emptywheelBrad Sherman predicts this is not going to work out well for the taxpayer. First, he predicts we’re going to fail to do anything to reel in Wall Street:
What I fear here is that we are doing a kabuki theater in three acts:
The first act, Washington tells the American people, “we understand your anger at Wall Street.”
In the second act, we nitpick to death any proposal that actually adversely affects
Michael Capuano: Why Are We Using the FDIC in the Bailout? And Why Do We Trust Ratings Agencies?
/18 Comments/in Economics/by emptywheelMichael Capuano (D-MA) did the best job grilling Geithner and Bernanke about Geithner’s new bailout plan today. He challenged Geither’s claim that this leverages private investment at a 6 to 1 ratio, arguing that with the FDIC funding, it’s actually 13 to 1.
He then asks how much toxic assets are out there, noting that there are more than a trillion dollars of toxic assets out there.