sec. a lot of people work there and this is not part of my prepared remarks. i have a high regard for the many, manyeople who work at the sec and do a terrific job every day. and so i don't want this to be seen as some sweeping indictment ofverybody who works at this organization, far from it. i have a high regard for people who dedicate their lives and work long hours to ferret out problems that exist. and so this is really trying to find out where we go from here. obviously, how this happened and how we can step forward. and i'm pretty confident i speak for all of us up here to reflect for literally hundreds of people who dedicate their lives at this agency and i thank you personally for the kind of work that you do and we're going to ask you to help us to make sure we minimize, if not prohibit and stop forever this kind of an event ever occurring again. i literally get emails every day, almost every day from constituents of my from connecticut. these are not wealthy people who work ever

we focused on the sec. i do not know if i can give an educated answer on that question. >> why do you not give an uneducated answer? >> i could do that on any answer, i guess. it seems to be that, with a pretty large enterprise, that it would be very hard for him to pull it off himself. but that is not based on any information that i found in the investigation. >> what i am driving at is this. you probably hear it -- you probably have people in the hearing room who were victims and have people who are watching this on tv that are victims. their lawyers and themselves are trying to figure out where this tangled web leads. if we follow in this direction, there may be assets out there that we have not tapped into yet. people are so the only wanted pennies on the dollar by pursuing that, but that is still something. that is why i think that question is enormously important. if we have any role, it is to protect the public. and i think you are saying, beyond any shadow of a doubt, the federal government, with th

i also believe the sec can do better. we are going to talk today about the sec. the many, many people that work at the sec and do a terrific job every day. i don't want this to be seen as some sweeping indictment for everybody that works at this organization. i have a high regard for people that dedicate their lives and work long hours. this is trying to find out where we go from here, how this happened, and how we can step forward. there are hundreds of people who dedicate their lives to this agency and i think you personally for the work that you do. we want to prevent this even from ever occurring again. i get e-mail's everyday from my constituents. these are people who work hard every day to save and retire. they have been ruined by what has happened. they have been wiped out because of what has happened. a constituent of mine testified in january in front of this very committee about what happened to him and the people and his medical practice. these people have been devastated. i don't know if there is any way we can compensate them adequately. i would like

we focused on the sec. i do not know that i could give uneducated answer on that question -- that i could give an educated answer. >> why don't you give an uneducated answer? it seems to me it was a pretty large enterprise. it would be difficult even for bernie madoff to pull off by himself, but that is not based on the intermission i found during the investigation. it is just based on some understanding of how this worked. >> what i am driving at is this. you probably have people in the hearing room who were victims. you have people who are watching this on tv who were victims. their lawyers and probably themselves are trying to figure out where does this tangled web lead to, and if we follow in this direction, there may be assets out there that we have not yet tapped into. although people may only get pennies on the dollar by pursuing that, it is still something. that is why i think that question is enormously important. if we have any role here, it is to protect the public. i think you are saying beyond

good work, sec.t's time to start tackling the real issues, helping home gamers who watch "mad money" get a fair shake while putting the actual bad guys away. is that too much to ask? >> now you can find each full episode of "mad money" on iphone and download it for free. take it with you on the go. get "mad money" on iphone today. e >>> i want to wish a happy new year to our jewish and nonjewish viewers alike. i always say there's a bull market somewhere and i promise to try to find it for you on "mad money." see you monday.

good work, sec.he real issues, helping home gamers who watch "mad money" get a fair shake while putting the actual bad guys away. is that too much to ask? >> now you can find each full episode of "mad money" on iphone and down load it for free. take it with you on the go. get "mad money" on iphone today. welcome to the now network. population: 49 million. right now 1.2 million people are on sprint mobile broadband. 31 are streaming a sales conference from the road. eight are wearing bathrobes. two... less. - 154 people are tracking shipments on a train. - ( train whistles ) 33 are im'ing on a ferry. and 1300 are secretly checking email... - on a vacation. - hmm? ( groans ) that's happening now. america's most dependable 3g network. bringing you the first and only wireless 4g network. sprint. the now network. deaf, hard of hearing and people with speech disabilities access www.sprintrelay.com. >>> i want to wish a happy new year to our jewish and nonjewish viewers alike. i always say there's a bull ma

i am now honored to cheer the sec. i have argued from every direction whether the two agencies should be merged. my current view -- it has been for a little while, there would be tremendous efficiency for both industry and investors in the merger of the two agencies. clearly not going to happen anytime soon. we have embarked on a program with the cftc to try to work together as effectively as we can for the categories of products that really are very similar under each of our jurisdictions. we have held a couple of days of harmonization hearings. we have a robust work plan as we begin to look at -- where appropriate, try to harmonize regulatory regimes and work together more effectively. if you look at the otc derivatives legislation, you will see that it calls for a significant amount of joint rulemaking between the two agencies. it is hard enough. it is hard enough to get five commissioners to agree to move forward. now we will have to get tenants moving forward coming from very different philosophical places. we are

do the personnel at the sec have those skills? >> senator, they either have the skills, they have the capacity to develop them and together with some of the reforms that we've undertaken, we will get to the place that we need to be in order to be ready to -- >> are you able and willing to fire people who just aren't up to the job? >> well, senator, there's various restrictions on what we're able to do in that regard, but we can get to where we need to be through a variety of methods. >> uh-huh. >> we are creating specialized unitshich will really through repeated investigations of the same nature, additional training and hiring specialists who are focused on these areas go a long way toward cating the kind of expertise that we need. >> all right. one example, sec has a lot of lawyers, sort of lawyer-heavy. i think in the division of enforcement, most of the people are general litigators. i'm a lawyer. being a lawyer doesn't necessarily make you good with numbers. that's what you need to know to figure these things out. so my quest

south he is actually coaching a witness on how to trick sec investigators.ow you know how he will pull it off. he will not believe what he said on the state about the government's ability to do anything about what he was doing. imperial can convert your long-term payout into a lump sum of cash today. announcer: you could buy 750 bottles of water or just one brita faucet filter. ( drop plinks ) brita-- better for the environment and your wallet. are more than words here. it's personal. i have diabetes. rodney's kid too. so we're so proud to manufacture... the accu-chek® aviva meters and test strips... here in the u.s.a. plus, we've proven you'll waste 50% fewer strips... when you use our meter, which means greater savings... for people with diabetes, like me. now that's a true american value. accu-chek® aviva. born in the u.s.a. martha: this is "the live desk." trace: brand new stories and breaking news this hour. we begin with a fox news alert. breaking information on the trial of the kentucky football coach. this could change the future of coaching and high

i have chaired the cftc to the i am now honor to chair the sec. so i have argued from every direction on this issue of whether the two agencies should be merged. my current view is that -- [laughter] it is that there actually would be tremendous efficiency for both industry and investors in the merger of the two agencies. clearly, not going to happen anytime soon. so we embarked on a program with the cftc to try to work together as effectively as we can for those categories of products that really are very similar on each of our jurisdictions. we had two days of harmonization hearings to talk to us some of the big issues between us. we have a very robust work plan as we begin to look at where it is appropriate and where does not for us to harmonize the regulatory risk team and work together more effectively. if you look at the derivativesotc legislation, you will see that it calls for a significant amount of joint rule making between the two agencies. it is hard enough -- we have done it diet -- nine major role making said the sec this year. it is

he could get charged by the sec based on everything we're hearing. and amid that investigation, it's probably -- and i'm not saying he will. i'm just saying he could. there's clearly a likelihood. you know, cuomo's office as well. >> what i'm saying, when those two things come together, i think he just took one for the team. >> is this a scalp for new york ag andrew cuomo who's certainly going to run for governor? is that a skal snp. >> yeah, it is. and it's unfortunate. because listen, larry, i'm not going to defend everything ken lewis did. but i tell you, in my book, i did monday morning quarterbacking about whether ken lewis should have done more disclosure, whether he did the right thing in terms of buying merrill lynch and whether john thain was completely honest with him about everything. doi monday morning quarterbacking, but in doing that monday morning quarterbacking bs, i just write a book. i don't bring charges against somebody. eliot spitzer, one of the most damaging things about eliot spitzer is he kind of laid the template for these ot

. >>> bernie madoff caught on tape talking to executives about how to throw the sec off his trail. adam shapiro with the revelations. >> reporter: disbl first of all, this conversation never took place. >> reporter: an ominous start to a phone call between bernie madoff and top executives at fairfield greenwich group, a multibillion dollar madoff feeder fund. you actually hear madoff telling the executives how to dodge questions from securities and exchange commission investigators. >> we want them to think -- [ indiscernible ] >> we try to be cool and just cooperate and get it over with and get them out of here. >> reporter: madoff called the case a fishing investigation adding investigators developed close relationships with the irms they're supposed to regulate. the release of these tames comes as the senate banking committee holds a hearing on the sec's negligence and failure to uncover the madoff fraud. the committee is reviewing a report submitted by the sec inspector general who says the agency failed to conduct a competent and thorough examination of madoff despite years of

these people risked their lives to come to the sec. they did nothing. sec examiners didn't understand the strategy madoff claimed to be pursuing, buying puts on the index. meaning repeated investigators had no idea how options work. didn't take the time to learn. they should bring in that guy that we had from "options s"o "optionss xpress this week. i don't want justice to make the same mistake as aig or lehman. oild love to be brought in by both of them, really on both of these matters. i would like to be brought in myself. but at the very least, i hope to get their attention. we can't have the doj falling victim to the eye on the prize logic of the sec and have the prize turn out to be the wrong one, causing the government to lose what should be open and shut cases. just read the december analyst meeting transcript and look at the e-mails that led to what was said there for aig and simply look at what lehman was saying april, may and june to the analysts. you've got a closed case. the prosecution never rests, at least if i'm not on the team. >> i aim

one of the most complicated issues facing the sec involves pricing structures. under the new -- facing the f c c in false pricing structures but under the new rules, -- facing the f c c involves pricing structures. @@@@@@ again, i think that implementation is the $64,000 question from the consumer's standpoint. from a process standpoint, one of the things i like about the chairman's proposal, and i am talking about the study and how the digital sector is trying to use more technology to improve the system, the sec unveiled a new web site -- the sec unveiled a new web site, and i went to it to see what was there. what i like about the process that is going to went bald is that they are going to give have new opportunities for consumers, businesses, applicants, people one side -- all sides of the issues to really give their input over the next couple of months on this issue. of months on this issue. openinternet.gov is already active. if you love the chairmean's proposals or hit the proposals, you can enter your comments. -- or hate the proposals, you can enter yo

the sec has a lot to atone for. they can do it by doing their jobs. reinstating the uptick rule and getting rid of the double and triple-leverage and try to catch the bad guys. charles in california? >> caller: hey, jim, a big boo-ya to you. >> not bad. how you doing? >> caller: pretty good. i have a question pertaining to the derivatives market. it's gone unregulated for 36 years. according to a report i read from the bank of international settlements, the derivative's market has a value over a ton of money. when the bailout money is used up is the derivatives' market going to start breeding again? >> i don't think so. we need transparency. when i was a salesman at goldman sachs or hedge fund manager i didn't like to sell or buy anything where there was no real market. if we had transparency then we wouldn't have had this problem. one of the things that happens is, it's like a great disinfectant. and if we knew what the prices were, then we'd have thicker markets and then you're worried about the destructive capabilities of the derivatives would go a

the sec is not the only organization suffering from stovepipe mentality. but here, you share knowledge arriving at decisions deciding whether or not to go forward in matters like this. lastly, there should be hints and allegations, involving articles in the press. many americans have been following this event since last fall. i'm stunned and angry, as are many people in the country, that this frog was allowed to happen. but i also believe that the sec can do better. a lot of people work there. this is not part of my prepared remarks. i have high regard for the many people who work there and do a terrific job every day. i do not want this to be seen as a sweeping indictment of everybody who works in this organization. far from it. i have high regard for people who dedicate their lives and work long hours to ferret out fraud. we need to find out how this happened, and how we can step forward. to reflect respect for the hundreds of people who dedicate their lives to this agency. i thank you for the work you do. we're going to ask you to help us to make sure w

the fdic chairwoman and the sec is really putting the sec on the hot seat. they will have to answer more questions now. this is a sprawling investigation by the attorney general. it continues tonight. shepard: sandra smith from a fox business network. president obama said this afternoon that there will be no quick decision on whether to send more troops into afghanistan. that is in response to yesterday's testimony from the highest ranking military official involved, admiral mike mullen. he told a u.s. senate committee that winning the war in afghanistan would probably require more troops. some democrats on capitol hill say they will not approve the request. the president said the priority should be on strategy. >> i want to be absolutely clear because there has been a lot of discussion in the press about this. there is no immediate decision pending on resources because one of the things i am absolutely clear about is that you have to get the strategy right, and then make determinations about resources. you do not make determinations about resources and send

attorneys away from any indication that madoff was connected to their firm. >> reporter: the rks sec was fooled time and again. it looked at madoff's books five times and failed to discover that he really wasn't investing his clients' money. just running a giant ponzi scheme. shufling clients' money and taking plenty for itself. >> the rks ec never conducted a competent and thorough investigation of madoff for running a ponzi scheme. >> reporter:. >> clearly the people doing the inspections were inadequate. were underfunded. >> reporter: madoff is now serving a 150-year prison sentence. he swindled thousands of investors out of billions of dollars. he fooled regulators, and even as he was telling fairfield greenwich executives how to deceive the sec, he was trying to deceive them as well. during much of phone conversation madoff brags about his supposed investment strategy. >> reporter: which, of course, was all a lie. fairfield greenwich this week agreed to pay $8 million to settle civil fraud charges with the massachusetts secretary of state whose office supplied the madoff tape. t

they risked their lives to come to the sec brsh they did nothing.understand the strategy madoff claimed to be pursuing, buying puts. investigators had no idea how options worked, didn't take the time to learn. they should bring in that guy that we had from the express this week. they're just too focused. they're too focused on the wrong target. i think it was a little bit of both. i don't want justice to make the same mistakes with aig or lehman. these are cases that must be made. i would lot of to be brought in by both of them on -- really on both of these nights i would like to be brought in myself, but at the least i hope to get their attention. we can have the doj falling victim to the eye on the prize logic of the sec and then have the prize turn out to be the wrong one, causing the government to lose what should be open and shut cases. memo to justice, just read that december analyst meeting transcript and look at the e-mails that led to what was said there for aig and simply look at what lehman was saying april, may, and june to the analyst.

but the sec says in fact bank of america did agree to let merle pay $6 billion in bonuses. today a new york federal judge refused to let bank of america pay a $33 million fine to settle a lawsuit the sec filed accusing the bank of misleading investors. the judge said it is absurd that bank of america shareholders having been lied to blatantly need to lose another $33 million. he said that would have the victims of the lie pay an additional penalty for their own victimization and would violate justice and morality. the judge said the sec should be doing more to find out who at bank of america was responsible for misleading shareholders in the first place, brian. >> pete williams it the other story out of the financial world tonight. pete, thanks. while bank of america is taking fire for the big bonuses, banks are being hit with criticism for something else tonight. scooping up some huge fees on what are sometimes very small transactions every day made with debit cards. our report on this tonight from our senior investigative correspondent lisa myers. >> reporter: when privat

this is not just sec regulated. it happened there. >> who got hurt in this fraud? they're a major contributor to earnings in bank of america. >> whoa, whoa. >> taxpayers are going to have to fill the coffers of our pension funds because our pension funds in new york state lost so much money -- be. >> but they're the ones who decided where to invest it. jack berkman, weigh in here, too. regina, please yield when i call on someone else. >> you have such a prominent lawyer arguing the hook is the fraud that happened on new york soil. let me tell you something andrew cuomo doesn't have so much as a statutory hook to launch the investigation, much to go to this point. if anything, it's a federal matter. it's no kind of matter. cuomo is rung for governor. this is like organized crime getting involved with the banking industry. what he wants to do is shake these people down and shake down people around them for blil contributions. he wants to fill his coffer, running for governor. >> if he wanted to shake them down, he would tell them he's going to drop the case. >> that'

and they point out that they told the sec ahead of time they were going to be talking to madoff whichhow fairfield greenwich investors should deal with upcoming questions by the sec. listen to some of what he says. >> you don't have to be brilliant with these guys. . >> mad offsays in the conversation that lasted more than an hour, he says oftentimes when he would get inquiries from the se c would look at them and laugh and say what, are you writing a book and that worked. according to the inspector general the sec botched no more than six investigations of mad offand three years before madoff confessed to a fraud and sec never did catch it. >> even when madoff gave them his account number and thought oh, now this time i'm really toast, never checked it. never went in and checked the account and missed the opportunity. makes you question who is behind the wheels. scott, thank you. >> sure. >>> health care reform and money. fact checking the proposals outlined by president obama in his speech to congress last night. here is what he said about the cost of the program. >> i will not sign

the $3.60 billion was taken from the shareholders, and the sec found out about the hidden bonuses and worked out a deal where the bank was given only a certain fight, and the culprits got away, and that is where a bold judge stepped in and stopped this cozy deal, saying it does not comport with the basic tenets of justice. a wall street reporter for "the new york times," i know a federal judge had to see your story in "the new york times" every day, but what an interesting turn of events. >> it is interesting, but the judge is someone who has -- people have watched him for a while. they said that as soon as they saw he was having a hearing on this, they knew that there would be something different and that he would take a stand. greta: i am delighted that a federal judge would do this. he is not rubberstamping this. >> no, that is not what he does. greta: throwing the civil penalty out between bank of america and the sec, is he going to find out who is responsible? >> he is looking at accountability, and who made the decision not to include the bonuses, and, in fact, they have been lo

our recent sec proposals require disclosure concerning variable rate debt and obligations about ratings downgrades and other events in the life levine and our statutory authority in this area so we will work with congress to promote a more robust disclosure information regime for the future. yet again it is a little bit of information for investors who want to make an informed decision. and finally we are trying to open a window into the world of short selling. just this summer the fcc set out to increase public availability of short sales related information. as a part of this initiative the self-regulatory organizations or publishing the aggregate volume of short sales that occur on a given day for a given security and they will be publishing on a delayed basis the data on individual short sale transactions as they occurred in real time. this, too is a little information that can help and foreign investors as they consider what stocks to buy and sell pubic in each of the cases involving corporate disclosure you can see we are not necessarily dictating how a firm should act. but i beli

tt government was regulating and the sec was closely washington bernie madoff.ernment registration doesn't stop that sort of thing. what stops that, people knowing you're investing with this guy the at your own risk. competition enforces that. >> i don't believe that, i believe that. >> it's not people being thrown off. >> i think that competition drives the prices. i think that competition can drive the prices down, but it cannot make an insurance company honest. only the federal oversight committee. >> all right, like the sec with bernie madoff. >> well, bernie madoff got away with it because the sec under republican chris cox wouldn't investigate it, that's why he got away with it. >> that's the government regulation, government regulation does not solve the problems competition does. if blunt belonged to a health insurance company that threw me off when i got hit they would hear about it, magazine articles. not just people being me-- >> why is it easier to get-- >> there's nothing wrong with strict oversight. you're going to hope that people are going to hir

like the sec with bernie madoff.ill: bernie madoff got away with it because the sec under a republican chris cox simply wouldn't investigate him. that's why he got away with it. >> that's the government regulation. why do you keep thinking a different regulator will be better? government regulation does not solve these problems. competition does because if i were to belong to an health insurance company that threw me off when i got sick, people would hear about it. there would be magazine articles and i don't mean it being me. i mean people -- why do you never not have problems like that with your apple computer. why is it easy to go to a genius bar and get it fixed? because there is competition bill o'reilly. bill: there is nothing wrong with having district government oversight and hoping they hire people to enforce it? >> no. it makes people think they are being protected and they are not. bill: you told those guys you liked that south carolina pinhead congressman wilson. >> yeah. bill: yelling out at president ob

how did the sec recognize this.>> it's clearly heartbreaking. >> and how the economists and so on, and the s.e.c. has always attracted young people right out of college for the examination function and they are no match for anyone who is sophisticated and who is also intending to commit a fraud. is it a problem where they want the jobs in practice so they are just not as hard on people that are delinquent as they should be. >> i don't think so. the s.e.c. throughout the history has been an incredibly tough agency. people have complained that it's been too tough. this is obviously not part of that. but that is the reputation that the s.e.c. has always enjoyed. what i think really it amounts to is that this cannot be done on a government compliance or examination program. i recommended that we adopt a new approach in which every portfolio manager, like a madoff, would have to be examined, either yearly or every other year by. >> after proposing it and to pursue and and this is as embarrassing for federal agents. >> th

the internet, the sec chairman says, is at a crossroads. >> we could see the internet stores shut down for entrepreneurs, the spirit of inknow skbrags stifled. a full of free throw of information compromised or take steps to preserve internet openness. helping insure a future of opportunity, innovation and a vibrant marketplace of ideas. >> internet traffic doubles every two years. more and more consumers watch videos and download music and a host of other services that eat up a lot of band width. net neutrality is a win for google and amazon.com who hope to profit from expanding streaming and downloading demand. but the sec in the end may lock horns with telecom giants like at&t, verizon and comcast, who don't like the government telling them how to run their networks. >> this is not about government regulation of the internet. i had about fair rules of the road for companies that control access to the internet. we will do as much as we need to do and no more, to ensure that the internet he mains an unfettered platform for competition, creatity and being an entrepreneur. >> you're abs

>> bernie madoff coaching a potential witness on how to fool the sec. how did the fed get it so wrong and miss so many clues? >>> good afternoon. i'm david shuster. live in washington. >> i'm tamron hall live in new york. big picture this hour, president obama accepts congressman joe wilson's apology. republican house member from south carolina yelled out you lie during the president's health care speech to congress last night. and later apologized. take a listen to the outburst heard around the world. >> the reform -- the reforms i'm proposing would not apply to those who are here illegally. >> you lie! >> not that the outburst would have been inexcusable behavior but add this to the equation. here is the exact wording approveded by three house committees. congressman wilson said today he still believes illegal immigrants, as he said, illegal aliens, will get health insurance under the president's plan and also told reporters exactly what happened after he heckled the president. >> last night heard from the leadership they wanted me to contact the whit

this afternoon a panel will grill the sec.ons will center on the sec's failure to identify bernie madoff's multi-billion dollar ponzi scheme. >> lavish, luxurious. bernie madoff's lifestyle was just as elaborate as his alleged $65 billion ponzi scheme. >> your eyes are drawn to the baby grand steinway piano. >> his access to billions of other's people's money afforded him the finest things in life, which he collected in abundance homes, boats and bulls. >> he named he is boats after them. he liked bulls. >> this two-story penthouse apartment in manhattan where madoff is on house arrest is now up for sale. inside a custom-made bed and mattress in the master bedroom, his and hers closets where he kept his 40 pairs of hand-made belgian shoes. even his and her dens. >> this is where he spent the last few days of his free life. >> his home in the hamptons went on the market with an asking price of 8.75 million. his 6,500 square foot waterfront estate in palm beach also for sale and appraised at more than 7.5 million. >> more money

-- and their $3.60 billion in bonuses, and they try to settle with the sec, and some judge said no.was a little late. they should have been doing them when they are tossing out the cash. >> acorn has also been receiving tens of millions of dollars over the years from the federal government to provide this kind of foreclosure counseling, and so, i am sure the federal government -- they looked at the situation of people who came before them and suggested pay at periods, i believe, things like that -- and suggested pay out periods. there was the u.s. house voted to cut off all funding for acorn. that should have been a leading indicator to bank of america, which has $45 billion of u.s. backing through the tarp fund, that because they had so much federal tax money, maybe they should be careful about where that money is going. greta: bank of america executives, because it was not taxpayer money, that they care about shareholder money? these are people to shelled out $3.60 billion during the takeover of merrill lynch -- visa the people who shelled that money out. -- these are the people.

. >> this week, two perspectives on recently announced proposals by the sec chairman that would affect international that travels over the internet. chris mccabe and ben scott our interview. >> this week, the chairman of the federal communications commission announced network neutrality. here is a little bit from the german. >> >> the fifth principle is one of non-discrimination. broadband providers cannot discriminate against particular applications. they cannot block ordered agreed -- they cannot walk or degrade more thacan they disfavr the. to give service. the internet must continue to allow users to decide what content and what applications succeed. this principle will not prevent broadband providers from reasonably managing their networks. during times of congestion, it may be important to make sure that certain providers do not crowd out everyone else. this is vital that illegal conduct be curtailed on the internet. open internet principles apply only to lawful content services and applications, not to activities like unlawful distribution of copyrighted works, that have serious

this is half of an hour before the sec -- president is scheduled to address the congress on the topic of health care reform. as happens every time a president comes in, some members arrive early to jockey for a spot on the aisle, where they can shake hands with the president on television. however, there is one lawmaker that will be on every network tonight, no matter where he sits. charles boustany is going to deliver the gop response. even though you are not familiar with him, he is very familiar with health care. >> i have seen the sec in america. i have dealt with the heart of the problem. shepard: literally. congressman charles boustany, a heart surgeon, rarely missed an opportunity to talk about the decades he spent working in operating rooms. he said that his father used to take him on house calls when he was a boy. he met his wife in college in 1982. they had two kids. he opened his own private practice. who ran for his district's congressional seat in 2004 and one in a runoff. the congressman stepped into the national spotlight in the days after hurricane katrina, taking laur

they direct a system -- they sat down and they derive a system where it would go in to pay for the sec. that number has been reduced over time, because of the volume of trades. would you favor some type of -- when we have to grapple with how to pay for this -- would you favor some type of system, some track -- some transaction fee for example, that would help fund all of this? we have many of our constituents that do not tell an ira or money in the stock market yet. they will be paying for this system that they do not necessarily benefit directly from. i was wondering if you leave -- if we could have your thoughts of how congress pays for some of the regulations the we are about to implement. >> this question has arisen from time to time in the past but of is rose poignantly 20 or 30 years ago. as to whether a little tax would not do some good for raising revenues and discouraging suppletive activity. i think the conclusion of fuel the looked into it was too full. it is very hard to do it for one country in any significant amount. you forced the market to another country that does not

the front row movie series begins at sec and m street southeast. it is the site of the future canal park. . rsght's showing star wa it begins at . 7:30. you are encouraged to bring a blanket and food. they run every thursday for the next few week and we will hear whether we need an umbrella. >>> in three minutes kristin fisher has a hero central update date and in ten minutes protecting your dog from dognappers. learn why pet theft is on the rise. a check on maryland's weather fi c.r beginning with howard. >> start with doppler hd. i zoomed in to southern maryland where spotty showers to accokeek accokeek. as far as this afternoon in maryland we have a better chance of rain east than west. in hagerstown and cumberland low 70s. 68 north beach with rain late. angie is watching the maryland highways. >> that am. hello, everybody. we come to you live from quince orchard road. very traffic light. next shot, great seneca highway and middle brook and looks like a few cars are stopped at a light and they are moving. bw parkway parkway, flying it from 32 to

a federal judge is working on that with the sec and bank of america, and the judge wants to know whosem shareholders, and there is important news tonight about a man who was fired around the time of that merger. who is he? why was he fired? a wall street reporter for "the new york times" joins us now. she tipped us off on this. who got fired, and what was the timing in this saga? >> obviously, he plays a very important role. he was dismissed days around these disclosure decisions last september, so some people are looking at this now and asking what he was dismissed? was he dismissed because he wanted the bank to do something that they did not want him to do? greta: all right, which would have been either -- if the decision had been that he wanted to tell the shareholders, for instance, about these bonuses, the condition of merrill lynch -- all right. now, what is interesting in your story among a lot of things is how he got fired. >> he was meeting with merrill lynch executives to talk about what it should look like. he was called up to the office. "we do not have a place for you anym

hey, karen. >>> you know how the sec goes.eep south. it means the rainfall will continue. the area of low pressure has been in play for quite sometime. to give you an idea, as it taps the moisture from the gulf, we have seen already eight inches of rainfall right around nashville, tennessee where typically, for this, we should see about two inches. so they're grounded absolutely saturated to. the northern tier, those temperatures will be warm. in some cases, it will be high. what do we mean by that heavy rainfall? take a look at this. in northern sections of alabama where you're seeing some of the purple shaded areas between six and eight additional inches of rain as we go to the next 48 hours. but all across the deep south, we've seen various flooding situations in memphis. they had to evacuate a day care. no injuries there. but the flooding was the second building. i'm cnn meteorologist karen mcginnis. that's the look at the forecast. >>> when a huge water main broke, there was nothing to do but scramble for higher ground. >

look at the sec in the aftermath of what happened last fall and the questions of how they should changetheir operations. what is one of the first things that has come to the floor this suggestions to delegate the authority to take investigator steps lower down to make them be able to build cases more quickly the same thing we saw in the fbi and that is the natural reaction with a overly complicated system in place. >> with the sec is that how goldman sachs could have the biggest profit in the second quarter and some was supposedly overseeing fed is also on their board met treasury secretary gates gave him a waiver from that conflict. >> the gentleman's time is expired. >> could i have the last panelists' comments. >> you can respond briefly. >> i agree that stronger internal oversight mechanisms are very important but and i would also argue outside oversight is critical and the strongest internal oversight will not be as effective. >> what do you mean biosite? >> this body. where it is applicable by the accords pfizer corporation, a criminal court but also the up the scope was so broad

. >>> iran agreeing to you know on inspections of the sec nuclear facility. the country's nuclear chief says iran has no problem of the of inspection of the unfinished nuclear facility. iran has said its nuclear program is only to generate nuclear power. >>> two sides met for two hours at the capital. amondayhe issues discussed was the i don't know going effort to make corrections to the shooting investigation report. many family members tonight think it is an accurate account. cane has promised transparency. >>> georgia flood victims are back in they are homes. -- in their homes. more rain expected to fall in the area this weekend. some residents say they will apply for money to help them remaker the damages. >>> next month the supreme court will take up arguments over a cross in california's -- in the mahabi desert. but a former employee filed a lawsuit claiming it is a religious symbol on public land. >> traveling from all corners of the nation, these soliders travel to the dessert in support of this cross, a tribute to fallenservicemen and women. not for

a federal judge is working on that with the sec and bank of america, and the judge wants to know whoseere is important news tonight about a man who was fired around the time of that merger. who is he? why was he fired? a wall street reporter for "the new york times" joins us now. she tipped us off on this. who got fired, and what was the timing in this saga? >> obviously, he plays a very important role. he was dismissed days around these disclosure decisions last september, so some people are looking at this now and asking what he was dismissed? was he dismissed because he wanted the bank to do something that they did not want him to do? greta: all right, which would have been either -- if the decision had been that he wanted to tell the shareholders, for instance, about these bonuses, the condition of merrill lynch -- all right. now, what is interesting in your story among a lot of things is how he got fired. >> he was meeting with merrill lynch executives to talk about what it should look like. he was called up to the office. "we do not have a place for you anymore." personnel came,

released a conversation madoff leincturg colleagues on t how to avoid being scriewt tinnized by the sec reporismonth the montet median sales pricicfor a local meas wa just under 357,0 two% less than the most rent list price, nationwide selling n r 3.3% less. they say 22.1% ueen ay s 22.1% of inshwagton area selfers have lowered their original list price at least once in the last 30 days, the average reduction, 6.8%. moy neshmoney saving tip of the day. this 1 for you golfers out there. longing to a country club can cost 500 dollars or month, to cut the cost consider volunteering at a golf course, if you work a couple of hours many will give you free golf any time you want to play and some even bring you guests at noadaldiseonti ongearch anatthd will save you money and make an you popular write your friends. for more information check me out on line. i would love to be your friend on facebook. >> that is a good deal. >> not so bad, huh? >> thank you. >> you are welcome. >> the former vice-president is heckled at his alma mater and severe flood storms leave behind flood damage in the sout

but the point really is beyond the substance of this movie, what the sec held previously was that the movie could not be distributed on demand because it constituted a campaign ad and it thus fell within the jurisdiction of sec regulation. so again the court could have really taken the easy way out and say it's not so much a campaign ad because my understanding is that citizens united want to distribute the movie on demand. they could have gotten around the much larger trickier issue. but they really have instead chosen to take the much more dramatic course which is to potentially overturn a decision that they made just not six years ago when they upheld these campaign restrictions. >> there are nine justices that will be weighing in on this ultimately, but it's one justice, the newest one, sonia sotomayor, all eyes may be on her to see exactly how she argues or what kind of points that she just might make. what kind of performance, if you will, for lack of a better word, do you expect from her? >> fredicka, justice sotomayor was known on the appellate bench to be a very aggressive qu

. >>> meanwhile, a judge has rejected a $33 million settlement between the sec and bank of america overhe government's accusations of inadequate disclosure by the bank. it all stems from billions of dollars in bonuses paid out to merrill lynch employees just before the company was acquired by bank of america. at the very same time b of a was being bailed out by taxpayers. >>> beginning next year, home depot will begin selling martha stewart brand. it comes with stewart's deal with k-mart which has been in place more than a decade ends in january. >>> federal officials are warning small businesses to prepare for the fallout from a new outbreak of swine flu. they're recommending streamlining the central operations, bracing for some staff shortages, and allowing sick employees to work from home. >>> and speaking of taking days off, don't look at one 68-year-old missouri man. he is being honored for 50 years of service at the state's first mcdonald's restaurant. he's been on the job since 1959 and still works five days a week. pretty impressive. >>> a stunning and historic tennis upset and

he tells them, whatever you do, don't tell the sec you have anything in writing. >> the best thing toot get involved that you sent written instructions. anytime you say you have something in writing they ask for it. >> okay. >> the next thing to do is to say it's a phone call. >> not that bernie madoff is worried, he says. he knows how these sec guys work. >> it's a fishing expedition. >> right. >> that's what they do, okay. so they typically, you know, we run through this all the time. the guys come in to do books and rorsds examination and they call it -- you know, they ask you a zillion different questions and we look at them and laugh and say are you guys writing a book? >> well, the tactic worked. and again and again it's one of several investigations that they botched. three year s to the date of the that conversation, madoff pled guilty. >> great reporting. i have a million yeses but time is just too tight. we appreciate your report very much this evening. coming up, we have bob dole on the markets. stocks hit a yearly high. the dollar hit a yearly low. and by the way, we're go

. >> madoff was filing sec filings in 2006, 2007 and 2008 which claims that the advisory businesses with only overseeing $17 billion and it was completely legitimate but that was lie. so just on that, he could probably be indicted. i think the funds they may have a -- the sons, they may have a more difficult time linking them because, again, they were working at a legitimate brokerage firm. >> the court apointed tropesty working the case has filed 13 lawsuits, seeking the return of roughly $15 billion. so far, only 1.5 billion has been found of an estimated 65 billion invested. hear more of our interview with erin arvedlund on-line and why she leaves madoff played a key role in the fraud. >> and automatic machines make up $35 billion in the industry and sending machine sales have been hit hard by the recession but many are hoping new technology will help the business get back on track when the economy recovers. the numbers may surprise you. there are over seven million sending machines across america today. it is an industry that employs over 7 million workers. because of the recession,

. >> more from the red carpet in a sec, but first, i want to catch you up with the other big rumors todayre's carlos. >> david has sell hoff treated for alcohol poisoning again. hoff in a drunken stupor was reportedly so smashed yesterday that his other daughter had him rushed to the hospital. but hoff's reps don't believe it, telling "extra" a combination of drugs he was taking for an ear infection and to block him from drinking alcohol messed up his equilibrium. hoff is fine and even reported for gyroduty today. john travolta, forced to relive the death of his son, testifying against his alleged extortionist. believe it. a paramedic and a former bahamian senator are accused of shaking down travolta for $25 million in exchange for a private medical release form travolta purportedly signed after his son suffered a seizure. his lawyer says it's a slam-dunk case. >> there is evidence to support the case. >> reports say believe it. while hunter was spotted yesterday with john's alleged look-alike daughter, news broke that edwards is ready to fest up. he's being outed as the daddy. more "rumo