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Non-Tech : The ENRON Scandal -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Baldur Fjvlnisson who wrote (4693)	12/10/2002 6:08:34 AM
From: Baldur Fjvlnisson	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5185

Banks' Enron Deals Draw Scrutiny Mon Dec 9,12:04 AM ET WASHINGTON -- Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - News) and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. helped Enron Corp. hide debt or avoid taxes in previously undisclosed deals that congressional investigators plan to depict this week as shams that show Wall Street had a bigger role in the energy trader's collapse than realized, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday. Both banks have been pummeled all year for allegedly helping Enron deceive investors, but congressional investigators say the new evidence gathered for a hearing Wednesday shows that both actively and aggressively helped conceal the precarious nature of Enron's books before the Houston company collapsed. "Citigroup and J.P. Morgan were clearly facilitators of Enron's deceptions," said Sen. Carl Levin in scheduling the hearing before the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, which he heads until Republicans take over the Senate next month. In an interview, the Michigan Democrat added: "We have some of the best business brains in the country designing schemes which have no business purpose -- other than moving money from the right pocket into the left pocket" to hide debt or losses or avoid taxes. The banks concede that aspects of the deals -- two by Citigroup and one by J.P. Morgan -- are questionable on tax and accounting grounds, and that neither would pass muster under internal bank policies adopted after a grilling they endured during another Senate Enron hearing in July. Privately, both complained that the Senate panel is exposing them to a second round of bad publicity for failings they admitted to during the summer hearing and addressed with the new policies . Citigroup has been especially aggressive in its reform efforts, with one executive saying it has turned down a number of deals as a result of those changes. "While we don't think we did anything illegal or unethical, from the standpoint of reputation risk we would not do this transaction today," a spokeswoman for J.P. Morgan said. A Citigroup statement said it now "would not approve the transactions. ... Under a new policy Citigroup initiated in August, no such financing will be approved without meaningful disclosure of its impact on a company's financial condition." -- Glenn R. Simpson and Jathon Sapsford, staff reporters of The Wall Street Journal, contributed to this article.

To: Baldur Fjvlnisson who wrote (4693)	12/10/2002 12:49:30 PM
From: Mephisto	Respond to of 5185

U.S. District Judge John Bates who handed down the decision favorable to Bush-Cheney was appointed to the bench by Baby George Bush. I heard Judge John Bates worked for Kenneth Starr. He was the special prosecutor the Republicans got to investigate Clinton! I heard that he made Hillary Clinton turn over documents. I heard the case brought against Cheney and the case brought against Hillary were similar. Keep your eyes pealed for details. I haven't found any in this morning's news.

To: Baldur Fjvlnisson who wrote (4693)	12/10/2002 3:29:11 PM
From: Skywatcher	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5185

Of course this is in addition to W naming one of the deepest clowns of the wall street brigades of theives for the SEC chair.....DONALSON..... UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!!!! it just doesn't stop.... CC