The virtual loss in 2008 of the large investment bankers on Wall Street was shocking. The forced sale of Bear Stearns, the bankruptcy of Lehman, the controversial sale of Merrill Lynch and the changes at Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley have rocked the world.

This program addresses several areas that led to our system almost going down:

- Where were mistakes made and by whom? What changes are needed and by whom?
- What is the current mood of investors and how do they feel about corporate performance?
- What about Madoff, Stanford and other frauds?

Panelists Include:

• Max D. Hopper: Founder, Max D. Hopper Associates
• Robert J. Potter: President, R.J. Potter Company
• Shad Rowe: President, Investors for Director, Accountability Foundation

Dennis McCuistion starts by chronicling the above, “our nation’s source of building capital has instead become merely the capitol of greed.” He follows the statement by asking Shad Rowe why he is so angry.

Shad replies,

“I don’t look that angry. But I am angry at what’s happening in corporate America. Our system almost went down the drain. Why? The real cause in my opinion is that corporate boards are not representing owners, not thinking like owners and are allowing chief executives to make ‘heads’ I win; ‘tails’ shareholders lose, bets that have jeopardized our system.

Shareholders are directly represented by their corporate directors. It’s the law, but it’s not conventional wisdom and… it needs to become so, so we can preserve and enhance our system … Ownership is the litmus test. Private companies treated money like it was their own money. Directors are the legal representatives of shareholders!”

Bob Potter adds,

“Directors are absolutely responsive/responsible to stockholders. In the companies I serve as director, we have created incentive plans to management that are tied to stockholder performance. Some companies have allowed management to not act in the best interests of shareholders. We see excessive salaries, for instance. But they were approved by the compensation committee.”

Max Hopper says,

“Most corporate board directors really do represent shareholders. But some companies have gotten so big, that directors can not get their arms around what’s going on within the companies themselves. Too large a growth may be detrimental to their shareholders.”

All agree that more stringent rules need to be applied and that directors must act in the best interests of the shareholders. They also state that most companies are in fact doing their best to do so, yet we hear the bad news, not the good. Tune in for lively, straightforward talk about greed and Wall Street and what needs to happen to preserve capitalism.

As always we’ve been talking about things that matter with people who care. Thanks for joining us.

—

Niki Nicastro McCuistion
Executive Producer/ producer

And a special thank you to the Institute for Excellence in Corporate Governance, University of Texas at Dallas, School of Management, (http://som.utdallas.edu/iecg/) for providing the guests for this 4 part series on Corporate Governance.

***

12.27.09 – 1810

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Critically acclaimed investigative journalist and CNBC TV personality, Charles Gasparino, joins Dennis McCuistion for an intense discussion and look at the last 30 years that led to today’s financial meltdown.

Charles Gasparino talks about Wall Street’s “love affair” with risk. From the 1980’s and the advent of mortgage-backed securities, to the packaging of mortgages to bonds, to the selling of those to Wall Street.  He speaks on the bond market situation in 1986 and Alan Greenspan, the former Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank, who in 1987 lowered interest rates and  bailed out Wall Street.

Charles Gasparino explains the trail of culpability, including the Government’s encouragement of home ownership which prompted mortgage brokers to give loans to people who did not have the means to pay back the money loaned and the underwriters who invested in risky debt.  He states the outcome was an abdication of collective responsibilities on the part of government, homeowners and financial institutions and for Wall Street – greed and risk taking.

Overall, Charles Gasparino says it was about avarice, arrogance, stupidity and greed… and the “selling off of the American Dream.”

Niki Nicastro McCuistion
Executive Producer/ Producer

***

1812 – 01.24.10

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After more than a year of work and two weeks of negotiations, lawmakers early Friday finished melding different versions of Wall Street reform. Today we cover Wall Street reform.

Wall Street Reform: What’s in the bill?

WASHINGTON (CNNMoney.com) — After more than a year of work and two weeks of negotiations, lawmakers early Friday finished melding different versions of Wall Street reform.

The final bill won’t be ready for a few days, but here’s CNNMoney.com’s breakdown of key provisions that aim to protect consumers, prevent firms from getting too big to fail and crack down on risky bets that leave taxpayers on the hook.

First Thoughts: Wrapping Up Wall Street Reform (MSNBC)

Negotiators wrap up work on Wall Street reform, giving Obama and Democrats another potential victory… You can’t say this is a Do-Nothing Congress (though Republicans would argue it’s a Do-Too Much Congress)… Reform deal also is a feather in Obama’s cap as he heads to the G-8/G-20 in Canada… He was expected to make a statement about last night’s agreement before departing to Toronto… Remember Elena Kagan?… Rory who?… And Branstad picks his running mate.

From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Ali Weinberg
*** Wrapping up Wall Street reform: Over the last few weeks, the work to reconcile the already-passed House and Senate financial reform bills has taken a back seat in the news to the Gulf oil spill, the midterm primaries, and the now the war in Afghanistan. But early this morning, negotiators finished their work, and Congress is expected to vote on the product next week — with President Obama set to sign it into law before July 4. The Wall Street Journal writes: “The bill is expected to have enough support to become law. Both chambers plan to vote next week. The margin in the House and Senate will likely be close because most Republicans are expected to oppose the measure.” (The details of what’s in the legislation can be found in our “Congress” section.)

China Shares End Down On Wall Street Weakness, Export Concerns

SHANGHAI (Dow Jones)–China’s shares ended lower Friday for the third consecutive day, as Wall Street’s weakness overnight exacerbated lingering uncertainties about the country’s export outlook.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which tracks both A and B shares, ended down 0.5%, or 13.93 points, at 2552.82, but was up 1.6% on the week. The Shenzhen Composite Index fell 1.8%, or 18.62 points, to 1028.61.

The Shanghai index is likely to face support at the key 2500 level next week, as investors await more economic cues from the Group of 20 summit in Toronto over the weekend.

“Investors are waiting for cues from the G-20 summit regarding the quality of the economic recovery,” said Zhang Gang, an analyst from Southwest Securities, adding that uncertainties about the pricing of Agricultural Bank of China’s upcoming mega initial public offering also weighed on the market. “The press has reported some possible prices like CNY2.70 per share, et cetera, but some investors want confirmation before they make trading decisions,” Zhang added.

Today’s news updates include links on Wall Street, K-State Goes ‘Green’ and Air Traffic in Europe.

Wall Street gives much to lawmakers in reform debate

The political action committees of six Wall Street banks spent the first quarter of 2010 giving handsome donations to Republicans and Democrats who are critical to passing legislation that could determine the future of the U.S. financial sector.

The banks — JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs — gave about $106,000 to 12 members of the Senate and House of Representatives who sit either in leadership positions or on the committees that forged the measures.

K-State listed as ‘green school’

MANHATTAN — Move over, purple. Kansas State University is going green.

That is the view of new guidebook about institutions of higher education that have demonstrated an above-average commitment to sustainability in terms of campus infrastructure, activities and initiatives.

K-State is the only school in Kansas to be included in the newly released “Princeton Review’s Guide to 286 Green Colleges,” a free comprehensive guidebook that profiles the nation’s most environmentally responsible campuses. The book was developed by The Princeton Review in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council.

Europe seeks new air traffic control system

BRUSSELS — The European Union speeded up action on a sweeping reform of its air traffic control system Friday after a crisis over volcanic ash turned much of the continent into a no-fly zone for days.

“The worst is now over, but there is a huge amount of work to be done to deal with crisis management,” EU Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas told reporters.

Updates In Haiti

Haiti aid efforts hampered in critical hours

Port-au-Prince, Haiti (CNN) — Impassable roads, a bottleneck at the damaged airport, an unreachable dock and not enough equipment to unload supplies kept much of the world’s help Friday from desperate Haitians.

With thousands of people trapped under the rubble since Tuesday’s 7.0-magnitude earthquake, every minute mattered. Officials said the window of opportunity to save many lives was closing.

Burst of Mobile Giving Adds Millions in Relief Funds

In the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti, many Americans are reaching for their cellphones to make a donation via text message. And plenty of them are then spreading the word to others on sites like Twitter and Facebook.

The American Red Cross, which is working with a mobile donations firm called mGive, said Thursday that it had raised more than $5 million this way.

Health Reform

Massachusetts vote could threaten health reform

Democrats envisioned a smooth passing of the baton in the January 19 special election to fill the seat of the late Edward Kennedy, a political giant who died of brain cancer in August after holding the seat for 46 years.

A victory would maintain the Democrats’ 60-seat Senate majority, allowing them to overcome Republican procedural hurdles that could block reform of the $2.5 trillion healthcare sector, Obama’s top legislative priority.

Wall Street

Intel shares fall on ‘peaking’ fear despite strong quarter

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) – Shares of Intel Corp. fell early Friday after the semiconductor giant reported strong fourth-quarter results that won rave reviews from Wall Street, but also triggered worries about a peak in earnings growth.