“I love these members, they get up and say, ‘Read the bill,’” said Conyers.

William Jefferson, a Democrat who represented parts of New Orleans, is accused of receiving more than $400,000 in bribes and seeking millions more in exchange for using his influence to broker business deals in Africa.

If convicted on all 16 counts, which include money laundering and racketeering, Jefferson could face up to 235 years in prison. The trial has dragged on for eight weeks. Jefferson's attorneys argue that their client was essentially acting as a private business consultant and never violated bribery laws.

The president recently confessed he is "not familiar" with key provisions of the legislation.

According to a Heritage Foundation post, Obama's embarrassing admission came during a conference call with left-leaning bloggers.

Obama urged the bloggers to continue pressuring Congress to pass health-care reform immediately. During that call, Heritage reports, a blogger referenced an article in Investor's Business Daily indicating Section 102 of the House bill would "outlaw" private insurance.

"Is this true?" the blogger asked Obama. "Will people be able to keep their insurance and will insurers be able to write new policies even though H.R. 3200 is passed?"

The president's response on behalf of the legislation he is pushing through Congress: "You know, I have to say that I am not familiar with the provision you are talking about."

MUMBAI, India -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton opened a three-day visit to India on Saturday by urging India not to repeat American mistakes in contributing to global pollution, and she passionately defended U.S. demands for help in fighting terrorism.

"We acknowledge now with President Obama that we have made mistakes in the United States, and we along with other developed countries have contributed most significantly to the problem that we face with climate change," she said. "We are hoping a great country like India will not make the same mistakes."

She was referring to Obama's statement in Italy earlier this month that the U.S. had "sometimes fallen short" of its responsibilities in controlling its carbon emissions.

An Obama administration official told FOXNews.com that "it is not as simple as looking where the money goes. You could have someone who lives in Maryland and works in Virginia and they are benefited from money given to the Virginia firm even though they live in Maryland." She also noted that it didn't really matter who got the money because "giving out money is good for everyone. If you give the money to an old person, they will spend it and that will create more jobs."

 

She also said that Congress was responsible for deciding where the money would go. "We didn't write the bill. We let Congress write the bill," she said.

 

 

"Our training staff felt that at a time whe employees are working extra house, it might have been helpful." Ken Treat, spokesman for the bureau.

"Of all the agencies, the Bureau of Public Debt shoudl know that there is very little that is funny about today's economic conditions." Seantor Byron Dorgan, D-ND.

 

The videos played Tuesday are a key piece of evidence in the bribery trial of William Jefferson, a Democrat who represented parts of New Orleans. He's accused of accepting more than $400,000 in bribes to broker business deals in Africa.

The FBI recorded the pickup from four different angles, all of which were shown to the jury.

On the video, Jefferson seemed wary of accepting the money in public. When asked by an FBI informant if he wanted to peek inside the suitcase at the contents, he tersely replied, "No, I would not."

Assistant Secretary Herbert M. Allison, Jr. Opening Remarks Before the Congressional Oversight Panel

June 24, 2009
TG-184

Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability Herbert M. Allison, Jr.
Opening Remarks Before the Congressional Oversight Panel
Opening Remarks – As Prepared for Delivery

Chair Warren, Representative Hensarling, Senator Sununu and members Neiman and Silvers, thank you for the opportunity to introduce myself and to discuss Treasury's efforts to repair the nation's financial system so that it works for, rather than against, recovery.

Last October, Congress established the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP), and gave Treasury the necessary tools to help break a downward spiral in our financial system that was causing tremendous  harm, not only to financial firms of all sizes, but also to ordinary families and businesses across the country.

Our mandate is two-fold: Stabilize the system while protecting the financial interests of the taxpayer. Hee! Hee!

Although our work is far from finished, Treasury has accomplished a great deal in a short amount of time. It has: 

• Invested nearly $200 billion in 633 financial institutions through the Capital Purchase Program.
• Helped to re-start securitization markets, which are vital in enabling consumers and businesses to borrow.
• Helped begin the difficult, but necessary process of re-making our nation's auto industry, which is at the heart of our industrial base. Just taking control of it and ruining it some more.
• Helped tens of thousands Americans stay in their homes by securing modifications of their at-risk loans to lower their monthly mortgage payments and making their mortgages more affordable. Really? I would like to see those numbers please.
• To manage these complex efforts, Treasury has built the Office of Financial Stability from the ground up. Last October, the OFS staff was zero. As of Monday, it numbered 166. And government grows and grows some more.

There are tentative signs that the financial system is beginning to stabilize, and that our efforts made an important contribution. Key indicators of credit market risk, while still elevated, have dropped substantially.

More than 30 firms have repaid $70 billion in CPP investments. In addition, the taxpayer has received an estimated $5.2 billion in dividend payments from CPP investments. After of course we kept changing the rules every single day. What divident payment. Who got this? And how? Sign me up.

There are also some signs that the economy is beginning to mend. Consumer confidence rose to its highest level in eight months in May. Housing starts rose at an annual rate of 17% in May, and house purchases have begun to pick up in some parts of the country.

But our financial system and our economy remain vulnerable, with unemployment still rising, house prices falling and pressure on commercial real estate continuing to build. This is why we must remain vigilant. We must press ahead with our financial stabilization and our economic recovery efforts.

I began my career as an officer in the U.S. Navy, spending four years on active duty, including one year in Vietnam. After business school, I joined Merrill Lynch and spent 28 years there, leaving as president in 1999.

I learned from my experiences at Merrill that the long-term success of financial institutions depends on sound corporate governance, including independent checks and balances, tight control over risk, and executive compensation geared to long-term performance on behalf of clients, as well as shareholders. I believe that I contributed to strengthening Merrill's governance practices in the 1990s.

Since leaving the firm a decade ago, I've led two other major financial institutions through transitions necessary for their long-term success.

In 2002, I became chairman and C.E.O. of TIAA-CREF, a leading provider of retirement and asset management services. We adapted the company to changing markets, created independent risk management and doubled the company's capital so we could withstand a harsh investment climate. As a result, TIAA-CREF is now one of very few financial companies that carry triple-A ratings. And during my tenure, TIAA-CREF became the first company in the Fortune 100 to allow its stakeholders an advisory role on executive compensation. Last September, I was named C.E.O. of the Federal National Mortgage Association as that company was placed into government conservatorship.

The work of OFS, which I now head, is essential to President Obama's and Secretary Geithner's plans for recovery.

Our economy declined sharply last year, in substantial measure, because credit stopped flowing. Without access to credit, small businesses cannot buy the new equipment, raw materials and inventory that they need to expand. Larger businesses cannot make the continuous adjustments required to function in a changing global marketplace.