Today, Sen. John McCain said that if he were president, he would fire SEC Chairman Chris Cox for his “betrayal of trust” leading up to this week’s financial market crisis. Watch it:
But while the president nominates and the Senate confirms the SEC chair, a commissioner of an independent regulatory commission cannot be removed by the president. From time to time, presidents have attempted to remove commissioners who have proven “uncooperative.” However, the courts have general upheld the independence of commissioners. In 1935, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt fired a member of the Federal Trade Commission and the Supreme Court ruled the president acted unconstitutionally.
In another case of McCain not speaking for the McCain campaign, McCain adviser Douglas Holtz-Eakin walked back McCain’s proclamation, stating that the senator “made clear what his standards are for performance.” Holtz-Eakin said McCain would “ask for the resignation” of Cox, rather than fire him.

McCain’s plan to fire SEC commissioner is unconstitutional
Remember, McCain is a Republican and supported Bush. You know, the same guy that calls the Constitution “that goddamned piece of paper”.
What has happened in the last 8 years that gives anyone the idea that Republicans give a flying flip about the Constitution enough to follow it?
September 18th, 2008 at 3:48 pmPardon me, my friends, whilst I speak out my ass…
I’m going to fire the Supreme court and replace it with a case of the world’s finest beer, Michelob!
September 18th, 2008 at 3:49 pmThat makes McCain honest when he said economics is the least he knows about.
September 18th, 2008 at 3:50 pmBut as a Congressman and a Senator for over 26 years,McCain should have known that President cannot fire SEC commissioner.
Hey, Bush 43 already said that the Constitution’s just a goddam piece of paper.
September 18th, 2008 at 3:51 pmWhen has a Republican paid any attention to the Constitution?
September 18th, 2008 at 3:51 pmOther than to abuse it or claim gun rights that is.
September 18th, 2008 at 3:52 pmThey really are just making it up as they go, aren’t they?
September 18th, 2008 at 3:52 pmMcCain’s plan to fire SEC commissioner is unconstitutional.
This is the GOP, remember? This is only a minor impediment.
September 18th, 2008 at 3:53 pmA president whose spent five years in captivity can, in fact, fire persons from a number of government related agencies, and some completely unrelated ones at that!
This guy blasts an allay yesterday and today he’s vowing to further extend executive powers into the ridiculous - when is this going to be over. The GOP doesn’t have another candidate? I am scared!
September 18th, 2008 at 3:53 pmI’m beginning to believe the only reason these people get up there and spew their crap is because they are seriously out to insult my intelligence. And it’s seriously beginning to piss me off.
September 18th, 2008 at 3:54 pmAnd after he cans the SEC Chairman, he going to fire Putin, Chavez and Zapatero.
What a total dead-head!
September 18th, 2008 at 3:55 pmMcCain’s plan to fire SEC commissioner is unconstitutional
- - How will Randy Scheunemann spin THIS? Carly? Anyone…..anyone…..Buehler??
September 18th, 2008 at 3:56 pmAnd again, the lie has been made the truth to those who stood and listened to this serial liar.
He made his point to his base. They won’t hear the retraction or walk back.
September 18th, 2008 at 3:58 pmDumfuk alert! Doddering Simp on aisle #6!
September 18th, 2008 at 3:59 pmJohn and Sarah are vocabulary whores!!!! They both throw words around like like they mean nothing. How any citizen could ever vote for the party that put us in this mess is a complete idiot. Let’s see how many we have?????
September 18th, 2008 at 4:02 pmThen, in a bold move. He fired his advisors, Phil Gramm, Palin and himself.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:02 pmUmm, disclaimer time LiberalVoter, reference to McIIIrd, not you!
September 18th, 2008 at 4:03 pmThere’s a line from the execrable “Top Gun” ( with Tom Cruise as “Maverick”) that fits McCain perfectly, and it is this:
“Son, your ego is writing checks your body can’t cash.”
September 18th, 2008 at 4:04 pmHi RUCerious. No worries. I did not take is as a reference towards me. I have seen enough of your posts to know you are one of the good ones! Cheers.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:05 pmHere’s a fact check on the ‘goddamned piece of paper’ charge:
http://www.factcheck.org/ askfactcheck/ did_president_bush_call_the_constitution_a.html
It don’t think it happened. And claims like it, only undermine the credibility of other more credible arguments:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wmc60JmaLbE
September 18th, 2008 at 4:06 pmNo bottom to the McWorse Cesspool; no end to this slow-motion train wreck. Regarding McWorse, I qoute Heinrich Heine, “Ordinarily he is insane, but he has his lucid moments when he is only stupid”.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:09 pmImpeach Pelosi, Cheney and Bush and Save the Constitution!
Impeach Palin and Restore the Rule of Law.
Shows, once again, the difference between someone who graduated within single digits from the bottom of his Annapolis class and someone who was at the tip top of Harvard Law and editor of the law journal (no one gets affirmative action to those heights–you EARN IT). After eight years of a cheerleader, dumbbass, we don’t need an Annapolis-legacy-admitted, skirt-chasing, goof off with his fingers on the buttons.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:11 pmDumbass McCain strikes again. I’m telling ya,, this guy is not very bright. He’s dumber then Bush if that’s possible.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:14 pmFire the SEC chairman????? Is that a solution?? The damage is done and will probably continue until the housing market and housing mortgage mess is stabilized somehow.
Definitely hollow words from the old deregulator guy (one cause of this mess) or is it the new regulator (could have possibly prevented this mess)guy?????
It must depend on how the markets and economy are going and where his mind and mouth are wandering.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:16 pmIsn’t this the same McCain who claims he’ll kick Russia out of the G-8? Does he realize how much of his swaggering “tough” talk consists of claims to do the impossible?
Is this the same McCain who claims that he’s “ready” for this job? I’m no longer convinced he has the mental acuity to keep his senate seat.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:16 pmI thought McCain “called for the creation of a commission to study the problem, along the lines of the commission that investigated the Sept. 11 attacks.”
What happened to that idea?
September 18th, 2008 at 4:20 pmDoes anyone know how the Resolution Trust Corp thing worked out for us? Financial matters are NOT my forte and now with today’s developments (privatize the profits, socialize the debt) it appears that we’re in for a new 2008 version of the above.
Dow jumps 410 on hopes for bank rescue plan
September 18th, 2008 at 4:25 pm‘The bank rescue concept, as reported by CNBC, would involve creating a federally-chartered company that would buy the bad assets of banks, investment banks and others. The financial institutions would then be able to raise new capital and lend money and finance new ventures.’
He should go back to the vetoing beers thing. That must be what he’s drinking too much of.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:25 pmsquidbilly Says
September 18th, 2008 at 4:16 pm
Fire the SEC chairman????? Is that a solution?? The damage is done and will probably continue…
____________________________________________________
Substitute “Impeach Bush and Cheney??????” for the first sentence and you basically have Pelosi’s position on impeachment.
No, getting rid of the party who caused the mess won’t fix the damage, but it might prevent more boneheaded acts from occuring.
That said — I’m not all that sure of how much of our current economic mess is Chris Cox’s fault. All of it, most of it, some of it, none of it? If any of this is due to misconduct or malpractice on his part, then yes — let’s make him accountable.
However, this sounds more like McCain intends to “solve” a problem by finding a scapegoat to throw under the bus, declaring the problem take care of, and moving on. It’s the Republican way. Only it never seems to make our lives any better.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:25 pmThe SEC? WTF does the SEC have to do with Credit Default swaps and mortgage writers? The Fed Chair, maybe. Treasury, maybe. Even the Comptroller of Currency, maybe. The Senate Banking Committee, maybe. The Chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, maybe. The SEC? Not so much.
But the whole point is that these predatory lenders and the credit default swaps which enabled their Ponzi scheme to balloon were outside the purview of regulators, thanks entirely to Phil Gramm, his GOP co-criminals and a few Dems *cough*Holy Joe*cough* in the pocket of Big Money.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:26 pmWhen has the Constitution ever stopped a good Republican?
September 18th, 2008 at 4:27 pmbackup Says:
Here’s a fact check on the ‘goddamned piece of paper’ charge:
It don’t think it happened. And claims like it, only undermine the credibility of other more credible arguments:
Seriously, backup.
You have been wrong more than you have been right.
You have no claims on credibility at all.
The facts show over the last 8 years, Bush, the Republicans and you trolls have considered the Constitution to be worthless. While Bush’s comments were not caught on video by the person that reported it, there are plenty of stupid statements for the excuses your party used to violate the Constitution, such as “The Constitution is not a death pact” etc.
If you are trying to run away from the record of the last 8 years, Seriously, F_ck you.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:33 pmHere’s the guy who can’t even learn to e-mail. How can anyone expect him to understand anything remotely complex. He just oughta get into his Model-T and drive off into the sunset. Ooogah! Ooogah!
September 18th, 2008 at 4:36 pmPerhaps Flippy’s Chippy has persuaded him to replace the Constitution with the KJV Buy-bull?
September 18th, 2008 at 4:37 pmMcSame: if I were president, I’d fire SEC Chairman Chris Cox for his “betrayal of trust” leading up to this week’s financial market crisis.
Forget, for the moment, that the current financial market crisis is the direct result of two decades of Republican policies.
As preznit, McSame could declare him a “enemy combatant” and have his ass shipped off to Gitmo so fast that his underwear would have to take a later flight. That’ll show’em. Or better yet, he could just have his VP go after his family.
Oh yeah, he’s a different kind of Republican alright…
September 18th, 2008 at 4:38 pmWayne. Here’s from the link a posted earlier. The arguments about Bush and Constitution are legitimate.
All I’m saying is, repeating the Bush called the Constitution a ‘goddamn piece of paper’ only puts you in the league of those that believe 9/11 was an inside job and Trig is really Bristol’s baby.
If you’re not concerned about credibility - have at it.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:59 pmAbout the only thing McCain is missing is a shuffling gait.
September 18th, 2008 at 5:01 pmSo, b-kup, are you trying to imply that Flippy McSpin didn’t express either ignorance of, or contempt for, the Constitution of the United States?
Personally, I consider either condition an “automatic disqualification”. Well. Another automatic disqualification. I think the Chippy/Flippy/Jebus ticket has several dozen, if not hundreds, of automatic disqualifications on intellectual and ethical grounds. And that’s before one even considers their politics.
September 18th, 2008 at 5:12 pmAlso, b-kup, is it your contention that the Bush administration has not acted in a manner which shows contempt for the Constitution? I must admit that it doesn’t matter much what he said, if he said it, his policies and actions are how I judge him and his party and I have found them sadly lacking.
September 18th, 2008 at 5:15 pmjoe. I googled for who pays the income taxes and came up with the link in your post. If you’re making the point that the source is biased, I’ll concede it. It doesn’t matter to me.
The point of my post was that it was the top 20% of income earners that pay 87% of the income taxes. I not sure that information is that controversial.
Do you dispute that? Do you have another, more unbiased source, to enlighten me?
September 18th, 2008 at 5:18 pmmary: “Does anyone know how the Resolution Trust Corp thing worked out for us?”
The RTC eventually liquidated all the failed and corrupt Savings and Loan companies at a cost to the taxpayers of about $125 Billion. The disaster was, of course, the result of Reagan-era deregulation of the Savings and Loan industry.
Will we ever learn?
September 18th, 2008 at 5:18 pmbackup Says:
“those that believe 9/11 was an inside job”
I’m holding judgement for when we have an unimpeded, non-time-restrained, properly funded investigation that actually addresses the nearly countless and well-documented “coincidences” that occurred.
Is that “incredible”, or what?
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t WANT to believe that anyone in my Government had anything to do with it. I’m just not a big fan of coincidence or blatantly incomplete official “answers” and time lines. Maybe that’s your thing… must be nice.
September 18th, 2008 at 5:22 pm‘The bank rescue concept, as reported by CNBC, would involve creating a federally-chartered company that would buy the bad assets of banks, investment banks and others. The financial institutions would then be able to raise new capital and lend money and finance new ventures.’
This “concept” is basically exactly what they are doing now. That is, all risk falls on the taxpayer. I, personally, don’t believe it’s the obligation of the taxpayer to fund “raising new capital, lending money and financing new ventures.”
As for Chris Cox, I would assume the Congress could remove him since a President cannot. Cox has been missing in action through all of this economic disaster…and yes, the SEC has substantial regulatory responsibility which it has failed to press. Cox stated that it is the SEC has a “strong objection” to bare short selling. Their objection didn’t include asking Congress to make it illegal, and thus, their regulations were weak to non-existent on those. If you don’t know the difference between regular short-sells and bare short-sells, do your research. In the real world, a bare short-sell would be me selling you a car that I didn’t own. In the real world, that’s called fraud. On Wall Street, that’s called making a huge profit without risking a dime. It’s also a terrific way to manipulate the market.
September 18th, 2008 at 5:27 pmBackup - it doesn’t matter one whit if Bush actually said the Constitution was a g-d piece of paper. Actions speak much louder than words.
September 18th, 2008 at 5:28 pmbackup’s link from yesterday:
http://www.atr.org/ content/ pdf/ 2008/ August/ 081408ot-federalincometaxandwhattheypay.pdf
from sourcewatch:
http://www.sourcewatch.org/ index.php?title=Americans_for_Tax_Reform
*
“If you’re not concerned about credibility - have at it.”
^
:)
September 18th, 2008 at 5:35 pmWell we had a chairman acting under what he could do with US Law. As the law allowed the practices, shouldn’t we fire the ones who wrote the law ?
September 18th, 2008 at 5:44 pmWTF? If the Constitution didn’t get in Bush’s way, why would it get in McCain’s?
September 18th, 2008 at 6:22 pmKeystone Kops Kontinues!
September 18th, 2008 at 6:38 pm