New Report Follows Lobbying Money Trail

In a new report, Robert Weissman of Multinational Monitor points to twelve deregulatory steps that led to the financial meltdown. It also does an analysis of the amount of money Wall Street poured into Washington in campaign contributions and lobbying over the last ten years. Their answer? A staggering $5.1 billion over the past decade.

The Obama administration is making a concerted effort to boost confidence in the US economy amid waves of continued layoff announcements, negative economic data and downard-spriraling markets. On Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped below 7,000 for the first time in eleven years. The market has now lost almost one quarter of its value this year and more than half since its high in October 2007. Speaking to reporters yesterday after meeting with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, President Obama said he was sure the U.S. economy would rally back.

Obama administration officials appeared before Congress Tuesday seeking to reassure lawmakers about the economy. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Peter Orszag, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, testified before separate House committees that the president’s massive spending plan would benefit working Americans. Meanwhile, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke testified before the Senate Budget Committee about the potential impacts of stimulus.

While the Obama administration is looking to turnaround the economy with its stimulus plan and budget proposal, what about the issue of financial regulation–what some people point to as the fundamental cause of the crisis? A new report points to twelve de-regulatory steps that led to the financial meltdown. It also does an analysis of the amount of money Wall Street poured into Washington in campaign contributions and lobbying over the last ten years. Their answer? A staggering $5.1 billion dollars over the past decade.

Robert Weissman is the author of the report, it’s called “Sold Out: How Wall Street and Washington Betrayed America.” He is the director of Essential Action and editor of the Multinational Monitor. He joins us from Washington DC.

Robert Weissman, Director of Essential Action and editor of the Multinational Monitor. He is author of the new report “Sold Out: How Wall Street and Washington Betrayed America.”