"Five banks - JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and Goldman Sachs - held $8.5 trillion in assets at the end of 2011, equal to 56 percent of the US economy"
And that's why they get big old taxpayer bailouts.
Related: Who REALLY Runs Washington
Now you know why. They will crash this f***ing economy and their servants political careers if they don't get what they want$.
"Wall Street funds Tea Party stars" May 01, 2012
WASHINGTON - Tea Party movement favorites such as Stephen Fincher of Tennessee were swept into Congress on a wave of anger over government-funded bailouts of banks.
Now those incumbents are collecting thousands of dollars for reelection campaigns from the same Wall Street firms whose excesses they criticized. They have taken no significant steps to curb them or prevent future taxpayer-financed rescues....
It's called being bought off.
The antibailout fervor that drove the messages of Republican candidates during the campaign cycle of 2009 and 2010 has dissipated, and those same lawmakers are collecting money from the firms bailed out by President George W. Bush’s $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program bailout program.
Five banks - JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and Goldman Sachs - held $8.5 trillion in assets at the end of 2011, equal to 56 percent of the US economy, according to central bankers at the Federal Reserve....
Lawmakers collecting contributions from industries they oversee is a common practice in Congress, and both parties take advantage of it, according to Anthony Corrado, a political scientist at Colby College in Waterville, Maine.
That's what is wrong with the system and why this country is in a state of shambles despite what our leaders and their mouthpiece media spew.
“One of the reasons why financial services has become a particularly important committee in recent Congresses is that the parties know they can put individuals on that committee and they will be successful raising money,’’ Corrado said. “It shows how the money culture on Capitol Hill can affect even those who come to Washington hoping to fight against it.’’
--more--"
