1:40 If possible, it appears as though whatever condition is going on with Paulson's skin has gotten worse, and that it's starting to peel.
1:45 Rep. Cummings: do you think it was fair that Merrill Lynch paid out huge ass bonuses before the deal went through? Do you think it was ethical?
Paulson: Those are two words.
Rep. Cummings: Oh, we've got a college boy in the house. Did you think it was fair?
Paulson: I'd rather not say.
Cummings pinch hitting for Maxine Waters. You worked at Goldman, did you not? You told former Goldman guy Ed Liddy to go run AIG. GS received a metric asston of money from AIG. WHAT THE FUCK HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO TELL MY CONSTITUENTS ABOUT THAT?
Paulson: Can I just say you and your friends are doing a phenomenal job? Really.
Rep. whose named I missed (but nice tie) would like to know what the government's exit strategy is. Paulson no longer works for the government, and spends most days bird watching and counting the clams he made while working at GS, so he doesn't much know or care.
Rep. McHenry: In my hand, I have phone records between you and Mr. Bernanke. On one given day, you spoke five times. Is that standard?
Paulson: Yeah, pretty average. You know how the balls and chains can get. Constantly popping in to just say hi.
Rep McHenry: Well it doesn't seem "pretty average" to me. It all seems pretty shady. Shall I read from one of the call?
Paulson: Knock yourself out, I got nothing to hide.
Rep. McHenry [clears throat]: Ben, it's Hank. Only have five minutes. What are you we-
Paulson: Okay I'm good, no more reading.
2:02 Is Paulson prepared to take responsibility for issuing the threat? Hell yeah is. You take ownership of something your proud of, and threatening that drunk while biking skiing kayaking running with the bulls having his Paulsons shorn in order to save the world is one of HP's proudest moments.
2:17 Lady Representative from Ohio is pissed about the sweet deal that Warren Buffett got. Did you personally selected the buxom prosties (WB's special preferred dividend)? He's not going to answer that.
2:25 If there was some legal way to save Lehman, and if Hank weren't always trying to make his brother look bad, they would've.
2:33 Apparently Paulson should've recused himself of everything that was going on in the fall because he worked at Goldman Sachs and it was a conflict of interest. Something about how maybe he became Treasury Secretary so he wouldn't have to pay taxes? Are we confusing HP with certain elfin' fellow, Rep. Stearns?
2:39 Goldman is set to pay record setting bonuses this year, most of it coming from blood money. What do you think of that? "I don't have a comment since I no longer work there but in all honesty? Break me off a piecea that! Do you know if they're hiring? Think I got a shot?"
Paulson has a 4:45 flight to catch. Peace, plebes, vote GS.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:43PM
Bald is worth well into 9 figures and he's wearing a watch that can be bought out of a vending machine. What a trendsetter.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:44PM
It is from all the crusted semen.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:44PM
The first President bush would wear the same watch.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:45PM
HP is gay.
Barney Frankus
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:45PM
His comment about being on a ski holiday during the largest banking crisis known to man kind went off really well with stooges. He still looked a little sunburnt?
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:51PM
It is amazing how un f'able Sue Herrera is
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:51PM
what the hell is going on with HP's pinkie?
Posted by Pay It Forward , Jul 16, 2009 1:51PM
@1 -- I was thinking the exact same thing. Now I want to wear a Timex Iron Man too.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:55PM
Steve Liesman thinks it OK for the Fed to threaten banks that don't do their bidding.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:56PM
Bilbray just threw up the shocker, can anyone get a screen cap of it?
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:56PM
7 Ask a Yakuza member.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:57PM
why does paulson wear that watch? I had that in 7th grade.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:57PM
@9 i love the fed, shut your whore mouth.
-SL
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:58PM
3 W as well. That Texas old boy thing was a show. He's as New England Yankee as his father. Andover, Yale, HBS, summers in Kennebunkport? Come on.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 1:58PM
The Timex Iron Man is the new Rolex Oyster Perpetual Date Sea-Dweller DEEPSEA.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:00PM
Did he do his homework?
"Goldman Sach's current chairman, Henry M. Paulson, was a protégé of Mr. Friedman's in the mid-1970's when he made the mistake of challenging his mentor to a wrestling match at a gathering of the firm's executives. Mr. Paulson, a tall, broad-shouldered former wrestler and football player, went to the mat with Mr. Friedman, unaware of the wiry Mr. Friedman's accomplishments.
Mr. Friedman repeatedly pinned Mr. Paulson, who frequently recounts the story, adding the lesson that he learned: Always do your homework."
http://tinyurl.com/kng2ue
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:01PM
I just bought a Breuget. I love bonuses.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:01PM
13 Oh yeah! Well I hate the Fed.
Ken Lewis
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:01PM
5+ years after the fact, my wife is still pissed that I got married wearing my Timex Ironman watch (its in all the pictures). Vindication at last. Good enough for the Bald; good enough for me (and her)...
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:02PM
@9 - Liesman is correct for once. Listen, these tools took too much risk and it came back to bite them in the ass.
Plus Hank fishes with his bare hands. BARE HANDS!
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:04PM
Never mess with a man who goes noodling for fun
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:06PM
Does anyone else see any similarities?
http://www.theforce.net/swtc/Pix/dvd/zs/rotj/unmasked3.jpg
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:07PM
20 And who facilitated the risks for these tools to take?
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:08PM
HP and Barney Frank are canoodling for fun.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:11PM
@9: Steve Liesman thinks it's OK to tag team a collie with Dennis Kneale.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:11PM
@1 You dumb shit. He's on national TV and he orchestrated the biggest heist in the history of American business.
Do you think he really wants to have an angry mob with pitchforks hunting him down?
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:12PM
@25 - It's not?
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:14PM
@1 are you homo? otherwise why do you give a fuck what kind of watch he wears?
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:15PM
@23 - No one, which is why some blew out, and others were close. KL needs to shut his mouth and be thankful he has a job.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:16PM
Because @12, Paulson doesn't need to compensate for his inadequacies with an expensive watch like you do. Douche.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:17PM
29 Only the banks are to blame for this mess?
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:20PM
Is Maxine going to speak?
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:20PM
@31 - 29 here, The banks such that their financial engineers created the leveraged products and their risk managers didn't know how to properly manage the associated risks. Also, the ratings agencies that were clueless in the same way as the banks' risk managers.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:20PM
31 No. Everyone knows its Barney Frank and Bill Clinton that are to blame.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:24PM
@32 no. she's not on this committee.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:25PM
@26... the folks at Fan and Fred are laughing hysterically....
Peanuts, buddy, peanuts.
31... yes, only the banks. You indebted homeowners and speculators are absolved. Go in peace.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:25PM
34 All true. Fed, SEC, Treasury, CONgress - innocent?
Posted by NakedShort , Jul 16, 2009 2:26PM
No helicopter looking for the murder Two in the morning got the Fat Burger
Even saw the lights of the Goodyear Blimp And it read Hank Paulson's a pimp
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:29PM
This is the dumbest live-blog I've ever read. At least dealbook is covering the substance of the hearing. Your coverage consists of nothing more than a string of insults and lame jokes. Juvenile, at best.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:31PM
@39 = andrew ross sorkin. also, dealbook is summarizing what's happening. for the people actually watching the event, that's not value-added. finally, eat a dick.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:31PM
39 Please go back to watching The View.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:32PM
@39
Welcome to Dealbreaker, shithead.
-Bawldeep Inyamom
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:35PM
@37, 34 back. Treasury under HP did what they needed to. Treasury now needs to STFU and let Ben and Co. play cleanup.
Everyone you listed has some blame, the most, IMO, lies with the SEC because they are responsible for the oversight of tradable instruments. The Fed and Treasury can combine like Voltron and become the lender of last resort.(each on their own is ineffective for various reasons(forex, swaps, etc...))
Right now, honestly, most of the questions today are coming from tools that are just looking to passify their districts, even if the questions are uneducated and asinine.
Paulson needs to Hulk-up right now and hunt these guys like the 4 ft Pike he kills with his Bear hands.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:36PM
congress is so dumb. DUMB.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:38PM
Shh Maxine is on!
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:41PM
That is a handsome man. What I would give to cover his beautiful bald head in crisco, ram in straight up my ass, and then spin around like a top.
gay in Charlotte
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:43PM
Hey has anybody mentioned that watch?
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:46PM
43 Will agree to disagree, but anyone that thinks Liesman is a tool like I do is OK in my book.
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 2:48PM
Hey guys !)
Posted by guest , Jul 16, 2009 3:02PM
@39 - learn to spell before you call the rest of us names!
Posted by guest , Jul 17, 2009 9:59AM
I crushed that fuld guy and i can crush you too!
The Linebacker
Posted by guest , Jul 17, 2009 10:19AM
@47 no
Posted by guest , Jul 17, 2009 10:25AM
Why get a Timex Ironman when you can get a Timex Analog? Cheaper, crisp, big numbers, utilitarian - you don't need all that beeping dim gray screen Ironman crap. All of you are disgusting sweaty hot-blooded jockstrap-sniffing proles.