Lawmaker says SEC hindering House's Madoff probe

[Joanne98]

WASHINGTON (AP) — House lawmakers on Wednesday accused the Securities and Exchange Commission of impeding their probe into the agency's failure to uncover the alleged $50 billion Bernard Madoff fraud.

The clash between lawmakers and high-ranking SEC officials at a House Financial Services subcommittee hearing came after the man who waged a decade-long campaign to alert the regulators to problems in Madoff's operations denounced the agency for its inaction. Whistleblower Harry Markopolos also said he had feared for his physical safety and would turn over new evidence that Madoff had not acted alone.

In loud, angry exchanges, lawmakers threatened to issue subpoenas to SEC officials to compel their testimony in the case.

Pennsylvania Democrat Paul Kanjorski, the panel's chairman, vented frustration after the SEC's acting general counsel said the five officials appearing at the hearing couldn't answer lawmakers' questions about the Madoff case because it's under investigation. The five SEC commissioners voted earlier to assert a privilege in not having officials answer lawmakers' questions.

Kanjorski accused the agency of impeding the panel's investigation, calling it a "lack of cooperation" and an "abuse of authority."

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jFqIBk_at-eY6cwSjoZzZ3FqWb5AD964VB8O0

In the hearing the SEC lawyer tried to claim EXECUTIVE PRIVILAGE!

[Idealism]

1. It is quite apparent that the SEC is complicit in the Madoff scam

Possibly a collaborator, which means possible charges...

[whistle]

2. That smells like collusion

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

3. So now, what do we know?

What we know is that the level of corruption in the SEC is astronomical, or they would not be stonewalling. That's what we know.

I would say it's time to send in the FBI, but I fear they are as bad, if not worse. DoJ? :rofl:

As if.

Le heritage' du chimpanze'. It will be around for a long time. Especially in the meat puppets they left behind.

[lamp_shade]

4. I'd like to see subpoenas issued to that same SEC bunch and force them

to testify in front of the same panel they had today. I watched the whole thing. It was amazing.

[Warpy]

5. There were 8 SEC probes over 10 years

and one of them was aimed specifically at uncovering a Ponzi scheme.

While Madoff was clearly able to charm the birdies out of the trees, no one is that charming.

He had a friend or friends in the SEC. Of course they're going to stonewall.