The GOP and their laissez-faire economists really need some way to blame Barney Frank for this:
"I doubt this approach would play well with regulators, investors, rating agencies, etc," [John P. McMurray, chief risk officer of Countrywide Financial] wrote. "To some, this approach might seem like we've simply ceded our risk standards and balance sheet to whoever has the most liberal guidelines."Fortunately for them, they don't care about facts.
Here is at least one piece of the supposed synergy between Bank of America and Countrywide. I still wonder whether BoA is also keen to hide its own, separate exposure.
The allocation of risk and reward in the American economy is corrupt:
C.E.O. paychecks, which came partway back to earth in 2002, more than doubled between 2003 and 2006. And with those huge paychecks came renewed incentives for malfeasance. Once again, executives could become richer than Croesus by creating the illusion of success, even for a little while.
