President Obama had some very strong words for Wall Street bankers during a press conference on Thursday:
However, Lynnley Browning, New York Times, nails the biggest scandal of the bailout season ~ Banks receiving bailout money while they evade their tax bills in multiple offshore tax havens." I saw an article today indicating that Wall Street bankers had given themselves $20 billion worth of bonuses ~ the same amount of bonuses as they gave themselves in 2004, when times were flush ~ and now at a time when most of these institutions are teetering on collapse they are asking for taxpayers to help sustain them, and when taxpayers find themselves in the difficult position that if they don't provide help that the entire system could come down on top of our heads ~ that is the height of irresponsibility and it is shameful. "
U.S. Subsidiaries in Offshore Tax Havens
The study, by the Government Accountability Office, singled out Citigroup as having 427 subsidiaries in offshore havens like the Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands and Switzerland. Bank of America has 115 subsidiaries in offshore havens, while Morgan Stanley has 273, the report said.
Bank of America received an additional $20 billion in government aid on Friday, on top of a previous $25 billion, and a federal promise to absorb nearly $98 billion in soured mortgage-related securities. Citigroup is expected to get $50 billion.
The 63-page report drew unusually revealing criticism from the Treasury Department. Michael F. Mundaca, the deputy assistant secretary for international tax affairs, wrote in a letter included in the report that because there was no universal definition for an offshore tax haven, any list of havens “is likely to be regarded as a blacklist and may be used as the basis for the imposition of sanctions or other negative measures” that would “inappropriately negatively affect our economic and other relations with listed countries.”
The report was commissioned by the Democratic senators Byron L. Dorgan of North Dakota and Carl Levin of Michigan. Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup declined to comment on the report, which can be viewed at www.gao.gov."
By the way, Citigroup ~ which has and is still receiving billions of bailout dollars ~ just abandoned plans to buy a $50 million dollar corporate jet after Obama questioned the purchase this week.
Allen L Roland http://blogs.salon.com/0002255/2009/01/30.html
Freelance Online columnist Allen L Roland is available for comments, interviews and speaking engagements ( allen@allenroland.com )
