Hillary Clinton's Promise to Goldman Sachs

During the 4th Democratic primary debate, the moderator had asked Hillary Clinton what the biggest differences were between her and Bernie Sanders regarding the danger of big banks and the fraudulent behaviors of their executives that led up to the crash of the economy in 2008. Clinton replied:

"Well, there's no daylight on the basic premise that there should be no bank too big to fail and no individual too powerful to jail. We agree on that. But where we disagree is the comments that Senator Sanders has made that don't just affect me [her paid speeches and campaign donations] — I can take that — but he's criticized President Obama for taking donations from Wall Street, and President Obama has led our country out of the Great Recession. Senator Sanders called him weak, disappointing. He even — in 2011 — publicly sought someone to run in a primary against President Obama. Now, I personally believe that President Obama's work to push through the Dodd-Frank...(audience laughter) ... the Dodd-Frank bill, and then to sign it, was one of the most important regulatory schemes we've had since the 1930s. So I'm going to defend Dodd-Frank; and I'm going to defend President Obama for taking on Wall Street, taking on the financial industry and getting results."

Within seconds, the remark was tweeted out to Hillary Clinton's five-plus million Twitter followers; but many of the responses were not what Clinton's campaign had hoped for. All throughout her 2016 campaign, she has repeated this same talking point (verbatim) numerous times during the debates, in interviews and at her campaign rallies: "No bank is too big to fail and no individual too powerful to jail."

But who really believes this? No one does — especially the executives at Goldman Sachs — because there are far too many personal, professional and financial ties between her, the investment firm, and their executives. They have a longstanding history together. If Obama's U.S. Attorney General wouldn't, what could possibly make anybody believe that Hillary Clinton (following in Obama's footsteps) would break up big banks or put their CEOs in jail?

When Clinton says, "No bank is too big to fail and no individual too powerful to jail" — it's nothing more than a disingenuous campaign slogan. And most of us (who follows this) knows this. The media knows this. The Democrats know this. The Republicans know this. So how does Clinton continually get away with telling this huge lie? (Because it certainly can't be attributed to her lousy acting skills.)

All throughout 9 democratic primary debates, Hillary Clinton has never once dare utter the name Goldman Sachs. Bernie Sanders, on the other hand, has mentioned it 21 times. But Clinton did mention Lehman Brothers (7 times), AIG (5 times) and Countrywide (twice.) But not once did the name of Goldman Sachs ever leave her lips. Why?

Clinton also mentioned Dodd-Frank and Obama numerous times. The Dodd-Frank Bill was initially proposed by the Obama administration in June 2009, and revised versions were introduced in the House of Representatives by the then-Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank — and in the Senate Banking Committee by former Chairman Chris Dodd.

As Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, Chris Dodd received mortgage financing at noncompetitive rates at Countrywide Financial because the corporation placed the officeholders in a program called FOA's — "Friends of Angelo" — because Countrywide's CEO was Angelo Mozilo. Also, an adviser to then-Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama (James A. Johnson) had also received these friendly loans from Countrywide. In February 2011, despite repeatedly and categorically insisting that he would not work as a lobbyist, Chris Dodd became the chief lobbyist for the Motion Picture Association of America (More here: Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac controversy, Irish Cottage controversy, and AIG federal assistance and bonuses controversy)

Barney Frank, who's often on MSNBC as an extreme critic of Bernie Sanders, was the Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee from 2007–2011. He was a leading co-sponsor of the 2010 Dodd–Frank Act. Frank later retired from office and joined the board of directors of the New York-based Signature Bank on Wednesday, June 17, 2015 (Many people in Congress walk through this revolving door to work for the very same people that they were once responsible for regulating and taxing.)

During the debates, Hillary Clinton always mentioned AIG, Lehman Brothers and Countrywide as the banks that brought down the U.S. economy in 2008. She even blamed Bernie Sanders twice during the debates for passing a law that allowed Lehman Brothers to fail. But she never once mentioned Goldman Sachs as one of those banks that destroyed our economy. Why?

Here are some of Hillary Clinton's ties to Goldman Sachs:

• Hillary Clinton gave 3 speeches to Goldman Sachs for $225,000 each at 3 events in 2013. Those were only 3 of the 91 speeches she made over the course 2 years between being Secretary of State and a 2016 presidential candidate (averaging $225,000 each). I didn't see her speeches from 2014 and 2015 listed on her website. Some of these speeches were only 20 minutes long. And the speaking fees almost look like regular "installments".

• October 29, 2013 - The Goldman Sachs Group - Tucson, AZ - $225,000
• October 24, 2013 - The Goldman Sachs Group - New York, NY - $225,000
• June 4, 2013 - The Goldman Sachs Group - Palmetto Bluffs, SC - $225,000

• Hillary Clinton's son-in-law (Marc Mezvinsky, married to Chelsea) worked at Goldman Sachs for 8 years. Her son-in-law's father (Edsward Mezvinsky) went to prison for fraud after cheating friends and family out of millions of dollars, many times using the Clinton name.
• During the debates Clinton often drops Obama's name as taking more money from Wall Street than anyone else, but that he still passed the Dodd-Frank bill. Yes, Goldman Sachs was Obama's biggest donors. And pro-big-bank Democrats have also worked to block Dodd-Frank's rules.
• Goldman Sachs, with total assets approaching $1 trillion (that we know of, because of secret tax havens), was recently fined $5 billion for various fraudulent violations that ruined perhaps millions of people's lives. But thanks to Obama's appointed U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, no one went to jail. Eric Holder once worked for Bill Clinton and has known the Clintons for 25 years. He also endorsed Hillary for president. But while campaigning and during the debates, Hillary claims "no executive is too big to jail". (Oh really?!?!)
• Goldman Sachs' CEO Lloyd Blankfein attended an event at the Clinton Initiative in 2014 (who was introduced by Hillary) — and Goldman Sachs was a big donor to the foundation and her campaign (Obama also attends the annual events at the Clinton Foundation.)
• Ironically, actor George Cooney, who is currently taking heat from Bernie Sanders' supporters for hosting fundraisers for Hillary Clinton, is in a way a new spin doctor for Goldman Sachs.
• People involved within both the Bush and Obama administrations have worked for Goldman Sachs — and were involved in the bailouts — while at the same time, benefiting from the same bailouts. There are almost as many articles on Goldman Sachs online as there are billion of dollars that were swindled because of Goldman Sachs' fraud.
• I've created several videos tying this all together — with one embedded below — and a few others posted here at YouTube > link, link, link, link, link, link, link)

So Hillary Clinton's promise to Goldman Sachs is really very simple: "Don't worry boys, I got your back!" And that's just one of the big banks who participated in the fraud.

Below is every single exact quote from all 9 debates from both Bernie Sanders and Clinton whenever the name Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, AIG or Countrywide was ever mentioned. So before you vote, refresh your memory.

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1st Democratic Debate

Sanders: "And you know what I said to Hank Paulson? I said, "Hank, your guys — you come from Goldman Sachs. Your millionaire and billionaire friends caused this problem. How about your millionaire and billionaire friends paying for the bailout, not working families in this country?"

Clinton: "But we also have to worry about some of the other players — AIG, a big insurance company; Lehman Brothers, an investment bank. There's this whole area called shadow banking. That's where the experts tell me the next potential problem could come from." [She never mentioned Goldman Sachs.]

Tuesday, October 13, 2015
CNN Democratic Primary Debate
Location: Wynn Las Vegas
Sponsors: CNN, Nevada Democratic Party
Moderators: Anderson Cooper, Don Lemon, and Dana Bash
Candidates: Clinton, Sanders, O'Malley, Webb, Chafee

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2nd Democratic Debate

Sanders: "The business model of Wall Street is fraud ... All Americans understand is, whether it's republican administration or democratic administrations, we have seen Wall Street and Goldman Sachs dominate administrations. Here's my promise Wall Street representatives will not be in my cabinet."

Clinton: "I've laid out a very aggressive plan to reign in Wall Street not just the big banks. That's a part of the problem. And I am going right at them. I've got a comprehensive, tough plan. But I went further than that. We have to go after what's called the shadow banking industry, those hedge funds. Look at what happened in '08, AIG a big insurance company, Lehman Brothers, an investment bank helped to bring our economy down. So I wanna look at the whole problem. And that's why my proposal is much more comprehensive than anything else that's been put forth." [She never mentioned Goldman Sachs.]

Saturday, November 14, 2015
CBS News Democratic Debate
Aired On: CBS
Location: Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa
Sponsors: CBS News, KCCI, the Des Moines Register
Moderator: John Dickerson
Candidates: Clinton, Sanders, O'Malley

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3rd Democratic Debate

Clinton: "And there is only one person on this stage who voted to take away authority from the SEC and the Commodities Future Trading Commission that they could no longer regulate what are called swaps and derivatives, which actually contributed to the collapse of Lehman Brothers, and that was Senator Sanders." [She never mentioned Goldman Sachs.]

Saturday, December 19, 2015
ABC News Democratic Debate
Location: Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire
Sponsors: ABC News, New Hampshire Democratic Party
Moderators: David Muir and Martha Raddatz
Candidates: Clinton, Sanders, O'Malley

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4th Democratic Debate

Sanders: "Well, the first difference is I don't take money from big banks. I don't get personal speaking fees from Goldman Sachs ... Let me give you an example of how corrupt -- how corrupt this system is. Goldman Sachs recently fined $5 billion. Goldman Sachs has given this country two secretaries of treasury, one on the Republicans, one under Democrats. The leader of Goldman Sachs is a billionaire who comes to Congress and tells us we should cut Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Secretary Clinton — and you're not the only one, so I don't mean to just point the finger at you — you've received over $600,000 in speaking fees from Goldman Sachs in one year. [Actually, it was $675,000] I find it very strange that a major financial institution that pays $5 billion in fines for breaking the law, not one of their executives is prosecuted, while kids who smoke marijuana get a jail sentence ... So here's a promise that I make — and I mentioned a moment ago how corrupt the system is — Goldman Sachs, paying a $5 billion fine, gives this country, in recent history, a Republican secretary of treasury, a Democratic secretary of treasury. Here's a promise. If elected president, Goldman Sachs is not going to have -- bring forth a secretary of treasury for a Sanders administration."

Clinton: "Both the governor and the senator have focused only on the big banks. Lehman Brothers, AIG, the shadow banking sector were as big a problem in what caused the Great Recession, I go after them." [She never mentioned Goldman Sachs.]

Sunday, January 17, 2016
NBC News Democratic Primary Debate
Aired On: NBC
Location: Charleston, South Carolina
Sponsors: NBC, Congressional Black Caucus Institute
Moderator: Lester Holt
Candidates: Clinton, Sanders, O'Malley

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5th Democratic Debate

Sanders (after Rachel Maddow asked Clinton about speaking fees from Goldman Sachs, and after Clinton dodged the question): "Let me just say this. Wall Street is perhaps the most powerful economic and political force in this country. You have companies like Goldman Sachs, who just recently paid a settlement fine with the federal government for $5 billion for defrauding investors. Goldman Sachs was one of those companies whose illegal activity helped destroy our economy and ruin the lives of millions of Americans. But this is what a rigged economy and a corrupt campaign finance system and a broken criminal justice is about. These guys are so powerful that not one of the executives on Wall Street has been charged with anything after paying, in this case of Goldman Sachs, a $5 billion fine. Kid gets caught with marijuana, that kid has a police record. A Wall Street executive destroys the economy, $5 billion settlement with the government, no criminal record. That is what power is about. That is what corruption is about. And that is what has to change in the United States of America.

Clinton: "You’re the one who voted to deregulate swaps and derivatives in 2000, which contributed to the over-leveraging of Lehman Brothers, which was one of the culprits that brought down the economy." [She never mentioned Goldman Sachs.]

Thursday, February 4, 2016
MSNBC Democratic Debate
Aired On: MSNBC
Location: University of New Hampshire in Durham, NH
Sponsors: MSNBC
Moderators: Chuck Todd and Rachel Maddow
Candidates: Clinton, Sanders

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6th Democratic Debate

Clinton: "I go further in the plan that I’ve proposed, which has been called the toughest, most effective, comprehensive plan for reining in the other risks that the financial system could face. It was an investment bank, Lehman Brothers, that contributed to our collapse. It was a big insurance company, AIG. It was Countrywide Mortgage. My plan would sweep all of them into a regulatory framework so we can try to get ahead of what the next problems might be. And I believe that not only Barney Frank, Paul Krugman, and others, have said that what I have proposed is the most effective. It goes in the right direction. We have Dodd-Frank. We can use it to break up the banks, if that’s appropriate." [She never mentioned Goldman Sachs.]

Thursday, February 11, 2016
PBS Democratic Primary Debate
Location: UW-Milwaukee in Wisconsin
Sponsors: PBS
Moderators: Gwen Ifill and Judy Woodruff
Candidates: Clinton, Sanders

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7th Democratic Debate

Sanders: "I don’t give speeches to Wall Street for hundreds of thousands of dollars...when we talk about being tough on Wall Street, and this galls me and the American people. Recently Goldman Sachs, among many other major financial institutions on Wall Street, as you know, reached a settlement with the federal government for $5 billion because they were selling worthless packages of subprime mortgages ... You know how many people, executives on Wall Street have gone to jail? If you are a kid caught with marijuana in Michigan, you get a police record. If you are an executive on Wall Street that destroys the American economy, you pay a $5 billion fine, no police record."

Sunday, March 6, 2016
CNN Democratic Debate
Location: The Whiting Auditorium in Flint, Michigan
Sponsors: CNN, MLive, The Flint Journal
Moderator: Anderson Cooper
Candidates: Clinton, Sanders

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8th Democratic Debate

Sanders (when asked by the moderator of Sanders' demand to see Clinton's Goldman Sachs transcripts) "When you get I believe it is $225,000 for giving a speech, and she gave several speeches to Goldman Sachs, one of the Wall Street financial institutions whose greed and illegal behavior helped destroy our economy a number of years ago, when you get paid $225,000, that means that that speech must have been an extraordinarily wonderful speech ... And I am proud that the gentleman who is head of Goldman Sachs, now, he didn't give me $225,000 for speaking fees, he said I was dangerous and he's right. I am dangerous for Wall Street."

Wednesday, March 9, 2016
Univision Democratic Primary Debate
Aired On: CNN and Univision
Location: Miami Dade College in Miami, Florida
Sponsors: Univision, The Washington Post
Moderators: Karen Tumulty, Maria Elena Salinas and Jorge Ramos
Candidates: Clinton, Sanders

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9th Democratic Debate

Sanders: "A few days ago Goldman Sachs formally reached a settlement with the United States government for $5 billion dollars. What Goldman Sachs acknowledged was, essentially, that they were selling fraudulent packages of subprime mortgage loans. Goldman Sachs was not the only bank, other banks, of course, did the same. Now, I don't need Dodd-Frank now to tell me that we have got to break up these banks — A) because they're based on fraudulent principles, and B) because when you have six financial institutions that have assets equivalent to 58% of the GFP of this country, they are just too big, too much concentration of wealth and power ... Secretary Clinton was busy giving speeches to Goldman Sachs for $225,000 a speech. So the proper response in my view is we should break them up. And that's what my legislation does. [The moderator Dana Bash also asked Clinton twice about releasing the Goldman Sachs transcripts, which Clinton dodged again.]

Clinton: "Now, if you're going to look at the problems that actually caused the Great Recession, you've got to look at the whole picture. It was a giant insurance company, AIG. It was an investment bank, Lehman Brothers. It was mortgage companies like Countrywide." [She never mentioned Goldman Sachs.]

Thursday, April 14, 2016
CNN Democratic Debate
Location: Duggal Greenhouse in Brooklyn. NY
Sponsors: CNN, NY1
Moderators: Wolf Blitzer
Candidates: Clinton, Sanders

**  BONUS 5-minute video: Segments showing a contrast of Clinton vs Sanders, Trump and Ted Cruz on campaign finance reform.