Phil and Me: Ex-Sen. Gramm Says of the Economic Collapse, Don't Blame Me (Video)

[leftchick]

:eyes:

http://www.motherjones.com/mojoblog/archives/2009/01/12066_phil_and_me_gramm_american_enterprise_institute.html



Last year, I wrote an article explaining how former Republican Senator Phil Gramm had helped grease the way to the subprime meltdown in 2000 when he was chairman of the Senate Banking Committee. Gramm wouldn't talk to me for the article. At the time, he was a close adviser to presidential candidate John McCain, and his past support of financial deregulation and his subsequent work as a lobbyist for UBS, the Swiss banking giant, became a campaign issue. Neither McCain nor Gramm addressd these matters publicly. And then Gramm generated further controversy when he dismissed Americans worried about the economy as "whiners." After that, McCain distanced himself from Gramm, who faded from the campaign trail.

Now, Gramm is back--at least to defend himself. Last week, he spoke at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington. The subject of his talk: was deregulation responsible for the current financial disaster? The real subject: was Gramm responsible for the current financial disaster? Mother Jones and the American News Project filmed Gramm, and I was able to pose a couple of questions to him. See what happened below in a video that was edited by Tay Wiles.

[corruptmewithpower]

1. Measuring the impact of our financial meltdown

I want to see Gramm explain our dismal economy with his "Dicky Flatt" test. How does the end of prosperity affect his buddy Dicky Flatt?