NEW COMMISSION MUST AGGRESSIVELY INVESTIGATE CAUSES OF FINANCIAL COLLAPSE, SAYS CAMPAIGN FOR AMERICA’S FUTURE

WASHINGTON – The Congressional Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission members named by Congress today must drive an aggressive investigation of the systematic frauds and excesses that caused last year’s collapse, said Campaign for America’s Future co-director Robert Borosage. The Democratic congressional leaders chose six of the Commission’s members and Republicans selected four.

Borosage said the investigations should not be a question of partisan divide. All Americans suffered the damage of Wall Street’s excesses, and demand and deserve a thorough public investigation. Borosage specifically praised the appointment of Phil Angelides as chair, and Commission members Brooksley Born and Byron Georgiou, for having the experience and temperament needed for a serious investigation.

STATEMENT OF ROBERT BOROSAGE

May the grand inquest begin. The country needs answers. We deserve to know the truth.

The commission must act boldly to investigate and expose the abuses of Wall Street that left millions of Americans suffering. This is our best opportunity to identify the people and practices that got the country into this mess.

I’m pleased that Phil Angelides was named as chairman of the Commission by the Speaker and Majority Leader. The environmental and labor communities have benefited from his leadership of the Apollo Alliance, which has laid the groundwork for real economic growth based on investment in a new generation of energy technologies, not speculative bubbles. Angelides’ work as California state treasurer gives him the expertise to lead the commission effectively and make him particularly aware of how important an aggressive public inquiry is.

Brooksley Born, was the hero of those who have been making the case that the new era required better regulation – not the deregulation that got us into this mess. She was ahead of other government leaders in calling for strong oversight of financial derivatives products, such as credit default swaps.

Byron Georgiou has the business, legal and financial acumen to play a significant role in the Commission.

I trust that both the Democratic and the Republican appointees will reflect the mandate provided by the vast majority of Americans who want a no holds barred investigation that exposes the practices, legal and illegal, that are at the base of the financial collapse.

The Commission should hold public hearings across the country, from California to Wall Street, exposing the systematic malfeasance that inflated the housing bubble, and gave bankers multimillion dollar personal incentives to gamble recklessly with other people’s money.

Only by exposing the systematic malpractices that got us to where we are can we gain a foundation for broad reform. If we don't get comprehensive reforms now, we'll have created an even greater peril -- banks and hedge funds officially recognized as too big to fail, assuming that they can pocket their winnings and the public will cover their losses. The Commission can play a critical role in insuring the public understanding and support for the change that we need.

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