Monday, December 21, 2009, 11:59PM ET - U.S. Markets Closed.

Immunized for Swine Flu, Goldman's CEO Catches Foot-in-Mouth Disease

Posted Nov 09, 2009 10:43am EST by Aaron Task in Newsmakers, Banking
With Goldman taking a daily beating in the PR department for everything from its runaway profits to  "Government Sachs" conspiracies to swine flu vaccines, Goldman CEO Lloyd Blankfein decided to give his side of the firm's story in a lengthy interview with The Sunday Times of London.

But some things are probably better left unsaid, most notably Blankfein's declaration that Goldman is "doing God's work."

It's an unfortunate phrase on many levels. What Blankfein was trying to say is Goldman serves a "social purpose," as The Sunday Times reported he also did say. "We help companies to grow by helping them to raise capital," Blankfein said. "Companies that grow create wealth. This, in turn, allows people to have jobs that create more growth and more wealth. It's a virtuous cycle."

There is an element of truth to that statement but it shows a level of tone-deafness that's surprising, even coming from a Wall Street CEO. As Henry and I discuss in the accompanying video, there are concrete steps Goldman could take to refurbish its image, which is going to take another hit in the court of public opinion.

Given the ongoing outrage about Goldman's bonuses - estimated to exceed $20 billion for 2009 - a year after the company was rescued by the U.S. government (whether they admit it or not) - Goldman's supporters are probably wishing Blankfein had chosen to speak softly and carry a big checkbook.

143 Comments

The Truth
The Truth - Monday November 09, 2009 10:48AM EST

Hey, I didn't know that Swine could be immunized for Swine Flu. How does that work?

Rick
Rick - Monday November 09, 2009 10:49AM EST

I THINK I FINALLY GET IT! I have been scratching my head trying to understand … Good news, market goes up … no news, the market goes up …. bad news, the market goes up … how can this be possible. Logic says that smart people would be getting out when stocks are as overvalued as they are today. Then I talk with people and find out that the smart people are out of the market. The normal people are just letting their 401K go with the flow (and still contributing), and the dumb people do not have any money to be in the market. BUT the part I had not been getting is that the investors, banks, speculators, etc … all have free money with no risk (thanks to Obama). This market is not a market of earnings and performance; it is a market of government induced greed from free money! Each of them are feeding the market the billions of free government money … the value of stock has nothing to do with it. I guess the question becomes … when do they run out of free money … when will Uncle Sam shut off the printing presses … OR Is this the future, the stock market always rising because the government will not let it fall (too big to fail) … A subsidized market that will insure peoples 401ks are there for their retirement and replaces the Social security system (think justification) … A giant, never ending, government run, ponzy scheme … NOW I am thinking …. If I was smart, I’d be back in the market. The true indicator of when it is time to get out is … When will the government free money stop flowing.

Turner
Turner - Monday November 09, 2009 10:53AM EST

Outrageous self-aggrandizing view. The man has a messiah complex. Seriously, they are evil and nothing is godly about them!

Turner
Turner - Monday November 09, 2009 10:56AM EST

Goldman is a bunch of blood sucking psychopaths!

Yahoo! Finance User
Yahoo! Finance User - Monday November 09, 2009 10:56AM EST

Learn what awaits Goldmand in the coming months. Will they survive the coming crash? Learn about their history. Interesting write up about Goldman in this free Financial Forecast newsletter this week only: http://www.tradingstocks.net

Charlie
Charlie - Monday November 09, 2009 10:58AM EST

Goldman is right up there with the Pope. I think they're drinking the holy water and it taste a lot like koolaid.

franck s
franck s - Monday November 09, 2009 10:58AM EST

Companies of men which are issued truckloads of cash, take inordinate risks with that cash, at least with the part they do not pay to themselves.

LawrenceW
LawrenceW - Monday November 09, 2009 10:58AM EST

God's work ? With the kind of bonus they are getting, they sure have collected their rewards on earth. What does that leave them in heaven ??

LawrenceW
LawrenceW - Monday November 09, 2009 10:59AM EST

God's work ? With the kind of bonus they are getting, they sure have collected their rewards on earth. What does that leave them in heaven ??

Michael
Michael - Monday November 09, 2009 11:02AM EST

How do I get a bank charter and borrow at 0%. I think I might be able to make money and if I blow-it, declare my status as to big to fail and give me more. Sweet.

nine_up_and_one_down
nine_up_and_one_down - Monday November 09, 2009 11:02AM EST

Golmansucks should have said they were doing the devils work...

Helga
Helga - Monday November 09, 2009 11:05AM EST

Rick....you are writing what everyone else (including me) is slowly figuring out. Fundamentals mean absolutely nothing in the new 'Free Fed Money World'. BUT; Law of mean reversion will come into play eventually.....( If something cannot go on forever, then it won't) Tulip bulb mania, south sea bubble, new economy dot com bubble, housing bubble....bubble bubble toil and trouble.... And now an asset bubble.

mike
mike - Monday November 09, 2009 11:06AM EST

GS forgets that when Paulson stepped into save AIG and sell Mer to BAC, Mer was going down in the next few days. He saw that MS was next and his beloved GS right after that. GS was absolutely bailed out.

Tex
Tex - Monday November 09, 2009 11:07AM EST

God's work? Our pastor this past Sunday gave a sermon that included the story of the golden calf from Genesis in the Old Testament as an example of how the Jewish people disobeyed God's commands. My mind immediately raced to the analogy to Wall St. When we idolize money as some on Wall St. do, we are disobeying God's first commandment. Yes, his statement is an outrage.

YeeHaw
YeeHaw - Monday November 09, 2009 11:08AM EST

Whatever bitches. You all just keep complaining while others take your money cause you are to scared or stupid to unclench your asses to do anything about your sorry state of affairs. to hate a company for being captilistic is about as unamerican as you can be. LOSERS with a capital L. Look in the mirror. YOU ARE THE REASON YOUR LIFE SUCKS NOT ANY COMPANY INCLUDING GOLDMAN and the sooner you come to terms with it the sooner you will be a man again.

Mark
Mark - Monday November 09, 2009 11:08AM EST

What a tool. Just shows how out of touch these CEO's are. He actualy thinks his greed is justified because god is on his side. I'm sure god is happy he let a child or elderly person die so he could get a flu shot. His punishment should be death by swine flu. He's not worth a bullet.

LegalizeMe
LegalizeMe - Monday November 09, 2009 11:09AM EST

Goldman didn't need a bailout? That's a lie. Even if they didn't need the bailout they received directly I think it's fair to say that the AIG bailout padded Goldmans pockets very nicely. What a bunch of criminals.

Len T
Len T - Monday November 09, 2009 11:10AM EST

Government Sachs lol lol lol The financial system is so much healthier now that the too-big-to-fail banks have been saved. Go Wall Street Screw Main Street.

Yahoo! Finance User
Yahoo! Finance User - Monday November 09, 2009 11:11AM EST

what did obama shoot on the GOLF course on Saturday???... How about his Sunday scores??

jim
jim - Monday November 09, 2009 11:14AM EST

Canada will survive all of this nonsense when it blows up in the USA , and still have health care.

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