Blame Everyone Else

Until I read this three-hanky piece about the former head of FNMA I actually imagined that the head of a huge government sponsored entity had some power.  Now I have learned that he was pushed around by absolutely everyone - regulators, customers, investors, White House staffers, Congressman, and parking valets.  Poor guy.

Maybe we should simplify the requirements for these jobs.  Let's distill them down to (a) having a backbone and (b) demonstrating an ability to use the word "no".

Comments

[PrestoPundit]

Roger Mudd's son.

The call the children of communist party members "red diaper babies". What do you call the children of CBS News anchors?

[Jane]

Roger Dodger?

[bgates]

Fake diaper babies?

[DebinNC]

No Housing Woes for Fannie's Failed CEO"

[hrtshpdbox]

They're also called red diaper babies, natch.

[DST]

Try to kill yourself and you get your house for free.

[matt]

s they say in Brooklyn, "My Nose Bleeds for Him". Anyone who can be pushed around should never be in a senior management position.

As the Japanese do, banish him to a corner office where he sit and read the paper all day and reflect on his idiocy.

[Daddy]

For what its worth, in 1967 as a 12 year old in Arlington, Virginia I used to have a morning newspaper route delivering the Washington Post. 04:30 AM pick-up under some corner street light, Red Schwinn bicycyle with big fat tires, etc. Back then you had to go collect from each subscriber every month. Roger Mudd was on my route and for Christmas he met me at the door 1 afternoon and tipped me 10 Bucks, which back then was huge. That's all I have to say about Roger Mudd.

[ThomasD]

Sign me up. I can use the word no.

No, I don't want the lobster thermidor, not when stone crab is in season you cretin.

No, have the limo waiting. I can't be seen standing on a streetcorner.

No, I won't forget you Senator come election season. Oh pardon my French, of course I meant re-election season.

That job would be a snap.

[clarice]

I just learned my mom has most of her meager reources tied up in Fannie Mae. As she's out of town and was distressed I will have to check elsewhere to learn if her investment is in a bond which may be okay or in stock which is probably worthless. SIGH. She really is distressed and I don't blame her.not that she'll ever want for anything because we'll see to that, but she is always very frugal and fiercely independent.

[Jane]

I bet she's in a defensive position and unscathed Clarice. That generation goes in that direction. Of course it depends on who put it there, but people of our parent's age, generally aren't in equities.

[Buford Gooch]

"The call the children of communist party members "red diaper babies". What do you call the children of CBS News anchors?"

Brown diaper babies, because they are full of...?

[clarice]

My husband helped put her there years ago and I know he was very conservative, Jane. But it was years ago and without the instruments or him here (he was out of town and on his way home) I cannot reassure her much.

[DebinNC]

I always liked Roger Mudd, and was disappointed CBS chose Dan Rather as anchor over him. Rather's daughter is a far lefty environut who, unfortunately, looks exactly like her dad.

[Jim Rhoads aka vnjagvet]

I wonder what sort of claim Fannie's investors have against Mudd, Raines, Johnson, Gorelick and the rest of those wascals for breaching their fiduciary duties to them?

[clarice]

I don't know,but Raines' house is down the block in case we want to try to attach it to satisfy their claims.

[Rick Ballard]

Clarice,

If I were in your place I would consider the implications of taking the investment off her hands at Aug 30 value with the explanation that it will be a big legal fight to reclaim assets and you don't want her worrying about it.

There are some tax considerations involved (possibly beneficial) but I really couldn't stand the thought of someone over 85* shortening their time remaining through worry over something as silly as money.

*to whom I am related. Others, not so much.

[Jim Ryan]

From the article:

James B. Lockhart, the chief regulator of Fannie and Freddie, adjusted the companies’ lending standards so they could purchase as much as $40 billion in new subprime loans.

I can't find any details on this event by Googling. Anyone know the circumstances of Lockhart's decision? How large a role did this change to $40B play in the debacle?

[clarice]

Yes, we're looking into it--talking to her now and it seems she has a bond with a decent rate of return. We'll speak to her broker tomorrow and get the details--one way or the other we'll work this out. Thanks, Rick..I just couldn't bear for her to be distressed about this either.

[DebinNC]

I hope Raines must reimburse more than this:. $91M - $25M = way too much pilfered loot remaining.

[Jim Ryan]

Well, there's this:

“Given the new portfolio cap flexibility, portfolio maturities, and sales and securitizations, on a combined basis, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could buy and securitize more than the legislative goal of $125 billion over a six-month period in subprime rescue mortgages without an increase in the portfolio caps,” Lockhart said in his letter to Kanjorski.

[Jane]

Biden's M-I-L died. From the way it's being reported it sounds like it's his first wife's mother, but I have no clue. RIP

[DebinNC]

Jim, it might be this:

"Regulators ease caps on Fannie Mae debt"

[PeterUK]

My husband helped put her there years ago

Considering Fannie Mae's political affiliations you should have avoided this one like the plague, Clarice. With so many other financial alternatives available, this was not a very clever move on your part, I'm afraid.

[clarice]

Raines got off easy, didn't he?

[Rick Ballard]

"How large a role did this change to $40B play in the debacle?"

Not too much. Fannie and Freddie together had packaged more than $5 trillion in loans (lots of them have already been refinanced). They're carrying over a trillion on the combined balance sheet so $40 billion wasn't that much of an issue. It's the fact that they were able to bump by $40 billion whenever the urge struck that was the problem.

Clarice,

If you do it, make sure that the broker handles it as a private transaction (if it's busted). Otherwise there might be too many questions about the statement from your mom.

[clarice]

Well, PUK,IIRC her broker had recommended it as a safe govt insured investment with a rather nice return. If it is a bond that remains the case I think. It's the stockholders who are in greater difficulty but we'll see.

I expect most of the FM bondholders are pensioners or pension funds or others who needed rather secure investments.

[kim]

The part that keeps all the kinderscheissen contained is called the Rather Gather.
=================================

[clarice]

Yes,Rick--she does read every statement carefully.

[kim]

Well, you called that one, Jane, at 4:33. Hooray, thank heavens for small favors.
==============================

[Amused bystander]

Raines should be put in jail; the whole lot of them

He should be forced to pull a rickshaw up and down Broadway (in NYC). Just chained to it.

Really, we cannot go on with this double standards, with these protected groups.

It is like living in South America or Russia.

It just will not do.
Look what they did to Skilling or Lay over Enron.
what was that? 160 billion?

Raines will wait a few months and be running some non-profit somewhere. Wear this like some sort of badge of honor, no doubt.

Bet he is still on some boards somewhere.

Speaks poorly of us as a nation.

[PeterUK]

Clarice,
Sorry but the 5:29 post wasn't by me.I think the SCUM are doing a spot of sock puppetry.Would TM kindly provide the ISP?

[Rick Ballard]

Shark fight.

I'm rooting for Wells Fargo (and Wachovia shareholders). Can anyone come up with a reason why the FDIC wants to hand Wachovia to Citi other than to try and prop Citi up for another few weeks? Wells has made a 'no thanks, Uncle Sugar' offer which doesn't involve the taxpayer.

What the hell is going on? This is precisely the type of government selection of "winners" which provided grounds for opposition to the bailout.

Sit down and shut up, FDIC. If Citi is broke, they're broke. Robbing Wachovia stockholders to prop up Citi isn't a very good start.

[Extraneus]

Speaks poorly of us as a nation.

It sure does.

[clarice]

I agree, Rick--and I expect the court will as well.

[clarice]

It didn't sound like you,PUK.

[centralcal]

PUK, we always recognize your comments - no spaces after periods. The one you point to, isn't in your commenting style at all.

[Rick Ballard]

Bundesbank Steps In

The article also notes that Paribas is taking Fortis.

I like this fellows take. All the cash whizzing around with no return will come back to the market as soon as the credit consolidation clarifies.

[Amused bystander]

Citi is more connected to DC. This is what it is all about: A protected elite. A new Ancient Regime.

You might as well ask what were Goldman Sach people doing in the room when the fate of their competitor, Lehman was decided.
Where they there when Bear Stearns was taken down. Given Paulson's form position over there, why were they involved. Why did Buffet get in there so soon.

Ahem, Speaking of the government and Goldmann and Citi excutives.

It is really too much. And they are so arrogant that they do not care if anyone notices. Someone does somewhere, and they may not be voters.

Would you invest billions into a crooked game like this, where there is no accountability?
Might as well invest anywhere for the notion of trust in the rule of law in the American system is hard to keep alive with shenanigans like this.

That is why there was a notion that the USA was a relatively safe haven.

Hang 'em High.

[Chris]

I love the NYT's take. It's everyone's fault, and no one's, simultaneously. Whocuddaknowd? Guess the reporters on this one were too busy to read their own archives. The NYT's was highlighting the insanity all the way back to at least 1999.

I also like the way they obfuscated on just how it was that Mudd came to the CEO position in the first place. Their timeline needs some work.

[Amused bystander]

form=former

[PeterUK]

centralcal,
"PUK, we always recognize your comments - no spaces after periods."

Saving the planet,pixel by pixel.

[RichatUF]

Rick-

Another view from across the pond.

It is always worth pointing out that the actions that Greece, Ireland, and now Germany have taken are in violation of EU regulations. Wonder how long the euro can really last when national treasuries have to bail out national banks?

also from the article-

The European Central Bank – which raised rates into the teeth of the crisis in July – has played a shockingly destructive role in this enveloping slump. Its growth predictions this year have been, and still are, delusional. Neglecting its global role, it has vastly complicated the fire-fighting efforts of Washington.

It could have offered “cover” to the US Federal Reserve this spring when Ben Bernanke was forced by events to slash rates to 2pc. It could at least have signalled an end to monetary tightening. That is how an ally ought to behave.

Instead, it stuck maniacally to its Gothic script, with equally unhappy consequences for both sides of the Atlantic, as well as for China, Japan, and India. The euro rocketed yet further, which it turn set off an oil shock as crude metamorphosed into an anti-dollar with leverage.

The ECB policy was self-defeating, even on its own terms. It merely drove headline inflation even higher, while deeper forces of underlying debt deflation pulled the real economies of Germany, Italy, France, and Spain into a recessionary vortex.

It's like he's been reading the comments section here at JOM.

[Jane]

That's funny PUK, I too didn't think that sounded like you. By now I think we are all related by brain, or writing style or something.

Really, we cannot go on with this double standards, with these protected groups.

That's a huge fear with Obama from my perspective. I can just imagine who they will avenge those of us who disagree.

Clarice, could Raines have injected in his civil settlement release that he would not be criminally prosecuted? It's all the Feds, right?

[clarice]

I expect criminal prosecution is out--I think because of the Statute of Limitations,but of course it's hard to imagine how a civil settlement could guarantee against criminal prosecution. After dinner I'll see if I can find out more for you.

[RichatUF]

Rick-

The Wells/Wachovia/Citi deal with the FDIC stepping on the oxygen line is a confusing bit. If Citi were in such bad shape they need a "bad bank" merger, why didn't regulators just fed WaMu to them? WaMu was already on the watchlist and regulators were tired of the WaMu executives. I agree that the Citi deal with Wachovia stinks though.

[matt]

t should be noted that the Irish Dail (parliament) approved an E400 Billion ($700 Billion) bail out....If the Irish can do it, I guess we can as well.

[Jane]

how they will avenge

[Rick Ballard]

Rich,

He still doesn't know how to read a ledger. "The US commercial paper market is closed. It shrank $95bn last week, and has lost $208bn in three weeks." Uh huh - so, how much of the $208 is parked at the Fed rather than being lent? "Lost" does not mean the same thing as "decreased". The dough is still floating around - it's just not being lent to corporations.

Now, some of it may be being held to pay off coming losses in the CDS debacle, in which case it will definitely be "lost" (and "found" by the other side of the transaction), but it wasn't lost in any "default of borrower" sense.

Second, "America starts its purge with net external liabilities of $3 trillion, and a savings rate near zero." is shear crap. There are still over $14 trillion in assets in personally managed pension funds throwing of some $1 trillion in interest alone every year.

The general thrust of the piece is OK but this isn't the first time he has demonstrated that he does not possess a good grasp of fundamentals.

IMO - it's a toss up as to whether the Euro and the European Union survive this intact. It's always been a liars club and some participants are much bigger liars than others.

[Amused bystander]

Matt, was that not a guarantee of deposits for Irish banks? It is not quite the same thing as the Fed bailout.

Still, I understand that there is no upward cap to the deposit insurance. If the rest of the world (or just the EU) takes similar measures, then we ma have to follow.

This relates to an earlier post on this thread: Could doome the Euro. Dount that happens though.

Unintended consequences...

[Amused bystander]

doom^

[Rick Ballard]

Rich,

Watch what happens to balance sheets when the "mark to market" is revised based upon the reverse auction results. Wells (according to GMax) had a 74 cent valuation on the Wachovia portfolio that Citi was going to get for nothing. That would be great juice for Citi, which is about to get clobbered by the CDS auction. I think they are definitely on the 'payor' side while GS, MS and JPM will be sitting with pearly whites gleaming on the 'payee' side. Just a hunch, but it explains the FDIC action. Some people might get upset if Citi sank. I wouldn't be counted among those people.

[kim]

What I think is funny, Pete, is that that didn't even register to me as your comment. Apparently I didn't read your name and just considered it from a troll, and not worth any bother.

Underlining our precarious existence here, doubly.
===============================

[RichatUF]

Rick-

I missed the bit about savings and went straight to the ECB raising rates which had the self-fulling effect of raising inflation as the dollar sank against the euro. Wanted to jump up and down seeing that written on the other side of the Atlantic.

I need to read more closely:)

AB-

Point taken about "Unintended consequences". The credit crisis in its European variant will probably give the European political class more ammo for greater intergration not less.

[cathyf]

Mudd, the son of former newsman Roger Mudd and descendent of Dr. Samuel Mudd, who treated Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth, did not return calls for comment.

Hey, a distant relative. (Well, actually, not clear. I have a Sarah named as a daughter in Thomas Mudd's will in 1696. From various records, it is not clear whether Sarah was the daughter of Thomas Mudd, or the stepdaughter with Thomas Matthews being her father. These people are extraordinarily difficult to track down, especially considering that they are dead and thus not moving.)

[PeterUK]

Europe is going to have a worse time than America.

[RichatUF]

Rick-

Some people might get upset if Citi sank. I wouldn't be counted among those people.

But think of all those "poor" limousine liberals who would be left homeless.

Not sure what its collapse would look like-would think that the Fed would have do an AIG type intervention?

[Rick Ballard]

Rich,

Yeah - Citi is a hybrid bastard where the pieces are worth more than the whole. The main thing is to get rid of the damned board. Hold a fire sale for the insurance side and use the proceeds to try and recapitalize the bank. Their balance sheet is going to improve markedly once the auctions start.

If they keep that board then sudden death would just be mercy.

[Amused bystander]

Yes Rich, but it will give the skeptics ammo too.

If there is a real blowout they will have to fund it via some sort of taxation, overt or covert. This will be taken from the national purses of the meber states, and that will impact local spending.

If the EUrocrats, the "Colleagues", the business aristocracies, and Enarch groups do not take any beating for this, and there are hard times over there, they will rue the day.

Through in dmr bd race riots, and then, well...

Things are not what they seem over there -- not politically, not economically.

I have absolutely no faith in the ratings of Moodys and their ilk in the EU or the CIS zones. None. I have been in on some of these dog and pony shows, and I truly doubt that there is much accuracy in theit appraisals. Same applies to member or ECB figures, reports, targets or "strategies". They are as detached from realoty as the Democrats.

Whatever our transparency and accountability problems, things are much more opaque over there.

So, the EU establishment does not have much room to maneuver. Yes, they will press for integration, at least on the regulation and triage level, and they will have some short term success at these efforts, but the member states will have problems enough at home.

Even without this crisis there was a looming club med crisis, not to mention a real recession looming across the EU.The Euro is essentially a tax on Germany, or perhaps all of northern Europe. It canot go on much longer as it is.

I will point out that the current EU structure has never seen hard times, and the idiots never really planned for it. Tranzis never plan for this in their abstractions.

Personally, I do not see much future for the EU; it will go the way of Napoleon's "Federation". I think it will devolve to something like the OECD, but it will take another decade.

However, If Putin screws around with Energy and saber rattles in the East, it will be rough weather in Brussels this winter.

Again, unintended consequences.

The funny thing is, if The ONE get in to the WH, we may find that the Eu have de facto pulled out of Kyoto just as we are going in to some approximation of it.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Jon Voight is tearing the Obama/Ayers connection up and down on Huckabee's show. It could be coming from the comments here.

[Amused bystander]

PeterUK, love that EURef. blog, read it every day.

[Amused bystander]

meber=member

[kim]

Follow Pete's link and read about Neelie Kroes, too.
================================

[clarice]

Yes, Rick, I agree--there's a lot of money on the sidelines people would like to invest as soon as they find someplace other than their mattresses to put it.

[clarice]

Here's a more detailed description of the Raines settlement (wrist slapping really). I don't know that it would preclude a criminal prosecution , Jane, but as he left FM in 2004 I expect the statute of Limitations may have run on his conduct...or most of it.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/washbizblog/2008/04/regulator_to_dismiss_charges_a.html>Raines

[Jane]

Thanks Clarice. I don't know what the crime would be, but for securities fraud it is 2 years from discovery or 5 years.

[Jane]

Thanks Clarice. I don't know what the crime would be, but for securities fraud it is 2 years from discovery or 5 years. Since he denied all wrong-doing it would be simple to discover the fraud now.

[Jane]

Oh dear - look what I managed to do.

[boris]

OT ... Charlie, I left a comment at Explorations under Why to Vote for the Rescue. If you can get my email from registering get back to me.

[clarice]

As I recall the public reports, the main thrust of the govt's claim was that they used dubious accounting methods which increased the book revenue of FM and (their bonuses)..I'll try again to see what else there is.

[clarice]

Yes, it was book fiddling that was the basis of the suit that was settled. This NYT piece from 2006 makes reference to an independent DoJ investigation but so far I've seen nothing else on that:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/23/business/23fannie.html

[narciso]

One recalls that those great financial moguls, John Deutsch and Nora Slatkin were once on the Citibank board; formerly of the Pentagon and the CIA. that' reassuring.

Franklin D. Raines is the urban mirror image of Ken Lay. Lay, before his downfall, one recalls came from humble midwestern routes; his track record in the Navy, the Interior Department and later his oil ventures with HNG; were so sterling that
Bob Rubin, picked him to head the new merged energy consortium; which would become Enron. Because of the geographical nature and his previous background; he had
originally republican connections; but seeing as the company had its hay day in the Clinton era, it ventured into more exotic elements, like water rights and carbon caps. It also had this very interesting interpretation of accounting rules, which allowed revenue to be logged
when projects were announced, not completed.
It became a major philanthropic institution in the era. Their revenue model proved ultimately unsustainable and so it ultimately collapsed; when the legerdemain was discovered. The President who was a friend of the family; felt so betrayed by
Lay's deception, that he let it fall apart.

Raines comes from more humble roots, served in the Carter Administration, then Lazard Freres, and the Clinton administration; at OMB where discovered 'the balance budget' and the soft pillars of Fannie Mae, supported by the subprime market. At some point, Raines must have realized that the books were cooked, yet he accepted the accoutrements of this deception. They hired
Republicans to lobby the administration (like Davis & Black)while having Frank and his special friend; Herb Moses, provide the backstop to reform. He engaged in local and later even strategic political philanthropy.
Ultimately this was unsustainable and we are left to pick up the pieces; both those who charged for reform; like McCain, and those who were confortably conforted by their largesse (Dodd, Biden, & Obama). Justice demands that Raines, Gorelick, & Johnson face the music on this score. Failing that, the anger associated with this and other financial scandals could rise to the poisonous levels of pre Dreyfus era France; due to the Canal scandal. Race, gender, or ethnicity should not be a bar to this reckoning,

[matt]

Amused;

Yes it is, but it may be structured similar to what Paulson has discussed. Ireland has had a similar housing boom with incredible leaps in values, so if it becomes deflationary, we are likely to see the same pressure on the banks and building societes as they're called over there.

In the end, if one pillar of most of these financial institutions fails, then the entire institution may be at risk. The leverage in Europe is much higher than in the States, if you can believe that. OPM is a powerful attractant.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

OT ... Charlie, I left a comment at Explorations under Why to Vote for the Rescue. If you can get my email from registering get back to me.

Ah, so THAT'S what that was about. I couldn't figure out the connection.

Okay, the email is off to you.

[matt]

narciso;

good stuff....so it seems to be a few bad decisions that lead down the primrose path.....Barney Frank's desire make the American Dream more widespread...the desire by the de-regulation faction to open markets.....and then some functionary decides to push it as far as they can, and all hell breaks loose....These interrelationships become so complex that no one really understands them. We're going to have to start a new academic/practical discipline...economic genetics.....

[uh oh]

Reversal in Palin Case

ANCHORAGE (AP) — Seven Alaska state employees have reversed course and agreed to testify in an abuse-of-power investigation against Gov. Sarah Palin.

uh oh

[Amused bystander]

Wonder what their party ID is.

Sounds pretty fishy to me.

What an election. What will they do to Palin if she loses?

Truly scary, this election. I am amazed that the American people can put up with this.

Imagine if Kerry had tried these tactics?

[clarice]

The First Dude has switched course, too. I wouldn't jump to any conclusions. Frankly, I think it would be grand to have her tagged with trying to get a child and wife abuser fired from the law enforcement force. Guy sounds like a fruitcake who should never get a gun permit.

[clarice]

Per the article they switched course because the court ordered them to comp;ly with the subpoena that suggests to me that they were simply testing the power of those who issued it, the court said the tribunal had the power and they are complying.

Simmer down.

[BobS]

Clrice: Thanks for fact-checking but consider the source. The AP (Attack Palin)

[Charlie (Colorado)]

If I'm following this correctly, the Alaska AG asserted the committee didn't have subpoena power; the court disagreed; so they said "okay, we'll testify." As Clarice says, I want to see them make a big deal out of firing someone fourteen months after querying why the guy that tasered her nephew and credibly threatened to murder her father and sister was still a State Patrolman.

[Jane]

Did anyone else watch Hannity on Obama's associations? I've got the creeps now.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Campaign Finance Fraud: the Associated Press Covers Up

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

This made me laugh out loud. I actually know someone who would do this. Not because she is a redneck or dumb, but just because she is really really weird and dances to the beat of a very different drum.

Red Neck Fire Alarm

[Sue]

Jane,

I watched and I'm creeped out too.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Federal Judge Orders Obama to Produce Birth Certificate

[Neo]

Regulators, spurred by the revelation of a wide-ranging accounting fraud at Freddie, began scrutinizing Fannie’s books. In 2004 they accused Fannie of fraudulently concealing expenses to make its profits look bigger.

Mr. Howard and Mr. Raines resigned. Mr. Mudd was quickly promoted to the top spot.

But the company he inherited was becoming a shadow of its former self.

I bet every "made man" in the Mafia feels the same way from time to time. I'd go as far as to say the original management of Napster had this same experience.

[clarice]

Sara, I am quite certain that is a fraud that has been circulating for days. What that is is an unsigned order presented as required by the rules to the judge along with the motion. It is unsigned and means nothing at all. The people who keep circulating this are doing themselves and everyone else a disservice either by design or by stupidity.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Thanks Clarice. That is good to know.

[clarice]

You're welcome. If you know how to contact the owner of that site, you'd do him a favor by telling him. I have put out this stupid fire 10 times this weekend. There seems to be no stopping it.

[Jane]

Wow Sarah. I'm surprised. Was that the case of the wacky Philadelphia lawyer?

[Jane]

Oh gawd - duped again.

[Neo]

The government throws a party and nobody comes ...

Fears are mounting that many Wall Street banks and financial firms will refuse to participate in the US government's $700bn bail-out package, leaving global markets and world economies in a perilous state for months to come.

'There is a growing feeling that banks ... might instead decide to tough it out,' said Thomas Caldwell, chairman and CEO of Caldwell Financial, a $1bn-plus fund manager.

[bgates]

From Sara's Powerline link -
These crimes came to light because the people who made the illegal contributions made no effort at concealment. There is no easy way to know how much of Obama's loot is in fact illegal.
When campaign contributions are criminal, only criminals will make campaign contributions. Campaign finance reform is another case of Congress thinking it controls physical law and can define what is possible rather than what is merely legal. By outlawing behavior that is so difficult to detect, they only constrain people who prefer to obey the law. The result is a legal system which benefits those who have contempt for it.

[clarice]

Along those lines there is some good news, a court of appeals overruled a district court decision which had sided with Citibank to block the Wells Fargo take over of Wachovia.

It would be wonderful if the bailout served merely to spure private arrangements with no govt involvement.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Clarice: The site where I picked it up is The Astute Bloggers and that's Reliapundit, who reads here. But his link led to a Daily Herald link, which then leads to the court order. I can see why people would think it legit, although I did think it strange it would show up on a Sunday.

It takes an attorney's eye to spot the problem and thankfully, we have you and others here to help set us straight.

[clarice]

I hope he reads this then--I tried to contact him, it was too hard and I was too busy to bother further.

[MJW]

In regard to "Federal Judge Orders Obama to Produce Birth Certificate," that doesn't seem to be a court order, just a proposed court order. Motions are often accompanied by the order the moving side hopes the judge will issue. That doesn't mean that's the order the judge will issue.

[M. Simon]

On Monday Sept. 29, 2008, Philip J. Berg filed a Response to the DNC’s and Obama’s Motions to Dismiss the lawsuit challenging Obama’s eligibility to be President. As of Friday, Oct. 3, the Court had not ruled on the motions. Berg’s Response included a draft “Order” for the judge to sign. If the judge were to sign the Order as drafted by Berg, Obama would have 3 days to produce the following: 1) Certified copy of his original long-version Birth Certificate; 2) Certified copy of his Certification of Citizenship; and 3) Certified copy of his Oath of Allegiance.

Texas Darlin

[clarice]

That's exactly what it is, unfortunately the report that it's a real order keeps going viral and it seems impossible to stop the error.