A blurb in today's Financial Times notes, "France is seeking help from its European partners as it seeks to limit US punishment of BNP," the big French bank caught up in financial irregularities.
The U.S. has been on the warpath, taking to task and levying fines against other banks such as HSBC, ING, JP Morgan and is about to punch Citigroup where it hurts most, the wallet. Now France is France and it will try to weasel out of whatever it can weasel out of. That's a given and not the point here.
Maybe France and Argentina ought to get together and form their own union and we could all watch to see which one evaporates first. Maybe some Chinese free enterprising sucker could even make it into a successful video game. U.S. consumers will consume almost anything, especially if it's edible.
The strong arm policy and money grab of U.S. regulators leaks over into foreign policy, a fact that apparently never dawns on these bureaucrats. A few short weeks ago this administration was asking for foreigners to help sanction Mr. Putin during another one of his passive-aggressive moods.
Shareholders of Citigroup are calling for the bank's leaders to suddenly grow a pair and take the matter to court, owing to the excessive amount of the fines and harsh sanctions the U.S. government has been ladling out. Has anyone asked where that money goes? And even more important does anyone ever get an accurate report.? Before that happens you could probably commandeer the keys to Fort Knox and discover all the gold that isn't there.
If the former Bush administration had it feet held to the flames for its black-and-white, you're-either-with-us-or-against us attitude--and it did--this administration from the Justice Department to the IRS to Benghazi has taken intransigence to whole new level.
The message has been clear: Disagree with us at your own peril. For an administration that will most likely go down in history as one of the most corrupt in history to hold the office, it's not surprising. Bill Gross may have his New Normal or New Neutral, but these people are the New Neocons. The only difference is these guys and gals are from the left.
That's our view. We hope you know yours.
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