President targets ‘fat cat’ bankers
(15 December 2009 – USA) The President of the United States has launched a verbal assault against bankers that are fighting regulations on bonuses.
Barack Obama said in an interview that he did not run for office to help out a bunch of ‘fat cat bankers’ on Wall Street and the President made it clear that he largely blames financial institutions for the recession.
Mr Obama also said he believes some banks have paid back the billions of dollars they were given by the US Treasury simply to avoid government control on bonuses.
The President also added that he is frustrated by the fact that the same banks that benefited from taxpayer assistance are fighting tooth and nail with their lobbyists up on Capitol Hill, against financial regulatory control.
Mr Obama argued that much of the recession was due to the irresponsibility of large financial institutions on Wall Street that gambled on risky loans and complex financial products, seeking short-term profits and big bonuses with little regard for long-term consequences.
The President is due to meet with banking executives at the White House in an effort to convince them to loosen up on credit facilities, with the bosses of the countries major banks are expected to attend including Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America and Goldman Sachs.
The President's senior economic adviser, Lawrence Summers, said President Obama will press them to ease lending restrictions to help create jobs as the country’s unemployment rate sits at 10 percent.
Mr Obama also said he believes some banks have paid back the billions of dollars they were given by the US Treasury simply to avoid government control on bonuses.
The President also added that he is frustrated by the fact that the same banks that benefited from taxpayer assistance are fighting tooth and nail with their lobbyists up on Capitol Hill, against financial regulatory control.
Mr Obama argued that much of the recession was due to the irresponsibility of large financial institutions on Wall Street that gambled on risky loans and complex financial products, seeking short-term profits and big bonuses with little regard for long-term consequences.
The President is due to meet with banking executives at the White House in an effort to convince them to loosen up on credit facilities, with the bosses of the countries major banks are expected to attend including Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America and Goldman Sachs.
The President's senior economic adviser, Lawrence Summers, said President Obama will press them to ease lending restrictions to help create jobs as the country’s unemployment rate sits at 10 percent.
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