Free Republic

If anything has characterized Barack Obama's presidency, it has been his fruitless efforts to make nice with constituencies he should be punishing, or at the very least, isolating. His choice of Mary Schapiro to run the Securities and Exchange Commission was just one of many such mistakes, but it is high time for the president to admit his error and show her the door. One doesn't need to do much more than watch TheStreet's interview with her (above) at the annual SIFMA Conference in New York Monday to see why Schapiro needs to go.

Chairwoman Mary Schapiro's general counsel is accused of having a conflict of interest in the Madoff affair that Schapiro knew about. Two influential congressional leaders are directly challenging Security and Exchange Commission Chairwoman Mary Schapiro as a new Bernard Madoff scandal engulfs the agency, this one involving charges of conflicts of interest by her own general counsel. Pajamas Media has obtained a copy of the letter sent to the SEC chairwoman. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) today sent a sharply worded joint letter to the SEC chief, demanding she explain why the she appointed General Counsel...

The Securities and Exchange Commission inspector general has agreed to a request from Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., to probe the timing and political motivations of the SEC’s $550 million settlement with Goldman Sachs in a mortgage securities fraud case:m SEC Inspector General H. David Kotz agreed in April to a request from U.S. Representative Darrell Issa, a California Republican, that he probe whether politics prompted the lawsuit against Goldman Sachs. (Snip) Aside from the timing, many observers scoffed at the settlement. The $550 million settlement is pocket change compared to Goldman’s $162 billion in assets

Tonight the Inspector General of the Securities & Exchange Commission gives us Bernie Madoff in his own words — A jailhouse interview that Madoff granted to the SEC’s watchdog during his stay at Metropolitan Correctional Center in lower Manhattan on June 17. Madoff spent much of the interview slamming the SEC: “Everything the SEC did prior to 2006 was a waste.” He said that the inspectors who combed through his books found only “ridiculous violations.” Madoff adds that he never supplied false documents to the SEC, but that it was “amazing to me” that he didn’t get caught.

Madoff: It's 'Amazing' I Didn't Get Caught Sooner Posted By: Scott Cohn Senior Correspondent, CNBC 30 Oct 2009 | 07:26 PM ET Jailed swindler Bernie Madoff said it was "amazing" that he didn't get caught sooner in his multi-billion-dollar Ponzi scheme, and that everything the SEC did to investigate him prior to 2006 was a waste of time, according to a jailhouse interview he gave to SEC Inspector General H. David Kotz. Madoff also told Kotz that SEC Chairwoman Mary Schapiro was a "dear friend," although she "probably thinks, 'I wish I never knew this guy.'" For the SEC's Full...

Bigger Than Watergate?By Olivier Garret, CEO, Casey Research Posted Wednesday, 6 May 2009 Reportedly, Bill O’Reilly referred to a recent story out of our nation’s capital as “bigger than Watergate.” Whether the story is bigger than Watergate or not, it is definitely a scandal of huge proportions. To sum it up, on April 23, 2009, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo sent a letter to Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Chris Dodd; Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee Barney Frank; SEC Chairwoman Mary Schapiro; and Chairwoman of the Congressional Oversight Panel Elizabeth...

WASHINGTON – House lawmakers on Wednesday accused the Securities and Exchange Commission of impeding their probe into the agency's failure to uncover the alleged $50 billion Bernard Madoff fraud. The clash between lawmakers and high-ranking SEC officials at a House Financial Services subcommittee hearing came after the man who waged a decade-long campaign to alert the regulators to problems in Madoff's operations denounced the agency for its inaction. ... In loud, angry exchanges, lawmakers threatened to issue subpoenas to SEC officials to compel their testimony in the case.

Mr. Markopolos Regrets His Failure to Persuade Investors; Tips for the SEC Harry Markopolos, the Boston-based investor-turned-investigator who for years warned regulators that Bernard Madoff was running a huge Ponzi scheme, has received pitches to appear on television shows, make movies and write books elaborating on his experience. Later this month, he is scheduled to appear before Congress to present recommendations to improve the Securities and Exchange Commission. But rather than enjoy a sense of vindication, Mr. Markopolos says he is miserable. He has trouble sleeping and is haunted by the apparent suicide of Thierry Magon de La Villehuchet, a...