[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 12240]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   APPOINT WATCHDOG INSTEAD OF LAPDOG

  (Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, Members of the House, 
every day the people we represent receive devastating news from the 
results of the action of the Enrons, the Tycos, the Arthur Andersens, 
the WorldComs and the Merck Pharmaceuticals.
  They receive devastating news as employees when they are laid off, as 
pensioners when they see that their retirement is no longer secure, and 
as shareholders as they see that their net worth has gone down. It has 
gone down because of slipshod accounting, illegal activities, bias 
portfolio management, hundreds of millions of dollars in insider 
unsecured loans and tens of millions of dollars in golden parachutes 
for the economic elite in the corner offices. Nothing for the 
employees, nothing for the pensioners, and nothing for the 
shareholders.

                              {time}  1215

  Mr. President, this is not going to be solved by having the markets 
voluntarily clean themselves up. You appointed Harvey Pitt. You 
appointed Harvey Pitt as the lapdog of the industry, as a defender of 
the industry. What America needs is a watchdog. You are not going to be 
able to take a lapdog and turn him into a watchdog.
  Mr. Pitt should leave this office. You should appoint somebody who 
can get to the bottom of these scandals and protect America's 
shareholders, America's pensioners, and America's employees in the 
future from these kinds of scandals.

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