last year, we held two hearings in regard to the bernard madoff fraud. those hearings contributed to reforms that we included in the consumer protection act to better and power and equipped the sec to do its job. today's hearing build on those and reflects our work with ranking member richard selby. the hearing looks to the past performance but also the future commission actions for improvement. let me review very quickly the situation. in january 2009, the sec charged robert allen stanford's and several associates with orchestrating and $8 billion ponzi scheme. according to the complaint, the defendants promised and probably high interest rates and misrepresented to purchasers that their deposits were safe, that the bank rate invested clients' funds primarily in liquid financial instruments. although the examination staff found strong evidence that stanford was likely operating a ponzi scheme as early as 1997, the commission did not bring charges against him until 2009, 12 years later, only a month after bernard madoff's boehner on the scheme was expose

unintelligible] host: guest: thank you guest: social security is like a ponzi scheme to predict remember bernard madoffhe was taking money from people who he was intending to make an investment. there was nothing there. that is what social security is. but the time i am ready to retire, very soon, social security will start paying out more money to baby boomers then from what is taking in from people like me who work. by that time i am ready to retire, there is the whole trust fund of social security is likely to be completely gone. this is a ponzi scheme it. we need to reform this in one way or another. just by mentioning the problems, the insolvency, all of the democrats in congress started booing him for just mentioning it was a problem. that is the definition of putting your head in the sand when you see a problem. it is like telling my kids it is time for bed time it. they cover their ears and start shouting. you can do as much as you like, social security is a train wreck. you have to do something. barack obama just said he will not raise taxes. what is he going to do? i don't know. democrats boo