The government must hold accountable any individuals who acted illegally in this financial meltdown, while preserving the viability of the companies that received bailout funds or stimulus money. Certainly, we should demand justice. But we must all remember that justice is a value, the adherence to which includes seeking the best outcome for the American people. In some cases it will be the punishing of bad actors. In other cases it may involve heavy corporate fines or operating under a carefully tailored agreement.
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
Ashcroft: Government must hold accountable those who acted illegally during financial crisis
In an op-ed in today's New York Times, former Attorney General John Ashcroft writes that those who have committed fraud during the current economic crisis must be held accountable:
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Sounds like Ashcroft doesn't want to hold anyone accountable at all. In theory he does, but only if it doesn't scare investors, or something.
It's instructive that he considers the relatively mild federal response to the Enron and WorldCom disasters to be exemplary. Yes, DOJ prosecuted a few people, and Congress passed a weak regulatory law in Sarbanes-Oxley. But that's it. Five years later, entire sections of the financial industry perpetrated fraud on a scale that made Ken Lay and Co. look like goldfish, and Ashcroft wants a repeat of our tepid response earlier in the decade.
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