Category: Commercial Intelligence

Huh?

Exclusive: How Goldman Sachs Rigs the Game

Andy Rowell

SpinWatch, 20 March 2011

In light of Sunday Times’ revelations concerning MEPs being paid cash to place amendments on financial reform, a report published today by SpinWatch exposes financial lobbying in Brussels.

The report, entitled, Doing God’s Work: How Goldman Sachs Rigs the Game details Goldman Sachs’ secret lobbying activities in the UK and Brussels and links to politicians. It exposes:

The extensive links between Goldman Sachs and the Conservative Party;

* Political donations totalling £8.5million to British politicians in the past decade from Goldman and ex-Goldman people;

* Goldman Sachs’ immense lobbying machine in Brussels, including active membership of over a dozen financial sector lobby groups;

* Extensive meetings between Goldman Sachs and Conservative MEPs including: 9 meetings in six months with a key MEP on the Parliament’s Economics and Monetary Committee; and a total of 36 meetings between just four Tory MEPs and Goldman Sachs, its lobby groups or PR companies acting on their behalf;
* The bank’s lobbying campaign to undermine political reform on derivatives and alternative investment funds including: private dinners and unminuted “after office hours” meetings, high-level conferences and targeted campaigns to Commission officials, MEPs and their assistants;

* How Goldman Sach’s lobbyists tried to undermine amendments in a key report on derivatives, seen as “financial weapons of mass destruction”;

* The bank’s lobbying enabled them to gamble on food futures and drive up prices.

Report author, journalist Andy Rowell said: “A year ago, David Cameron said that lobbying was the next big scandal waiting to happen. This report shows that banks like Goldman Sachs – who are intricately connected to the Tories – continue to lobby to get what they want.”

Rowell continued: “The entire regulatory process – and the lobbying activity that surrounds it – has to become significantly more transparent and accountable. If it is allowed to be captured by bankers, the next financial crisis will only be a matter of time.”

The report is being published just as the debate on financial reform in Brussels reaches a crucial stage. The parliament and commission are finalising plans for reform of the OTC Derivatives market as well as Credit Default Swaps.

It also comes as the government  is due to launch a consultation on a statutory register of lobbying, for the UK.

The report can be downloaded here.

Safety copy:  How Goldman Sachs Rigs the Game (SpinWatch March 2011)

Integrity at risk, extending from an invasive government cloaked under the guise “protection” to the sell out by commercial organizations…..

CISPA supporters list: 800+ companies that could help Uncle Sam snag your data

As the campaign against the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) heats up, it's important for the opposition movement to understand just how many companies directly or indirectly support the legislation (i.e. through a trade group). Here, the complete list of CISPA supporters.

During the week of April 23, the House of Representatives is expected to vote on the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act of 2011 (CISPA). And starting on Monday, a variety of organizations, including the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Center for Democracy and Technology, The Constitution Project, Demand Progress, Engine Advocacy, Fight for the Future, Free Press, Reporters Without Borders, Techdirt, and TechFreedom plan to launch a “week of action” campaign against CISPA, a bill they believe remains dangerously broad in its language, which could result in abuse by the government, and damages to our civil liberties.

While many are comparing CISPA to the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), the two bills are entirely different for a number of reasons. First, CISPA is a cybersecurity bill that pertains to the sharing of information between the government and private companies. SOPA was an anti-piracy bill that sought to block access to “foreign rogue” websites that illegally distributed copyrighted material. Second, SOPA was opposed by many of the technology and Internet industry’s biggest players. CISPA, on the other hand, effectively has the support of hundreds of technology and Internet companies — a key difference that could drastically affect whether the anti-CISPA crowd can successfully block passage of the bill.

To give you a full picture of just how much political firepower the CISPA has in Congress, we’ve listed most, if not all, of the companies and organizations that have voiced either direct support for CISPA (by writing a letter, or otherwise expressing support for this specific bill), or indirect support through the direct support of a trade group. The organizations or companies listed in bold have voiced direct support. Those companies not in bold have not necessarily given direct support (though quite a few have), but have supported the bill through the trade group, which is listed in bold. The links go to the .pdf files of the letters the company sent to the House Intelligence Committee to express their support of CISPA.

As you can see, the list of CISPA supporters is massive, and should give anyone who thinks this will be an easy political fight a dose of reality. Not that CISPA can’t be stopped but, well, scroll down and you’ll see what we mean.

See full list here.