TW: The SEC under Bush has been a mess. Culturally Bush pushed an agenda of de-regulation and minimal oversight. His SEC leader, Chris Cox, is a long-standing conservative idealogue. John McCain was reviled for suggesting in September that Cox be fired. While the timing of McCain's suggestion was wrong, the sentiment was correct. This week's Madoff debacle is merely the latest transgression.
Obama appears to have appointed a more competent successor. Lets hope so.
From Floyd Norris at NYT:
"Mary Schapiro, a veteran and diligent regulator if ever there was one, is...Obama’s choice to head the SEC. It is a choice that should please those who hope the S.E.C. can recover from what must be the worst year in its history...
She helped clean up Nasdaq and now runs Finra, the industry self-regulator. She has been appointed to jobs by Republicans and Democrats...
During his tenure, [Cox] moved to make it harder for the staff to file charges against companies, and the commission delayed settlements while commissioners negotiated to impose smaller penalties than the companies had agreed to pay...
In picking Ms. Schapiro, Mr. Obama has chosen someone who knows all the issues and all the players and who is committed to effective and rational regulation."
http://norris.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/12/17/can-she-save-the-sec/
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