Privileged Access: From GM to Congress about Taxpayers’ Investment

When GM’s CEO, Daniel Akerson, arrived to brief Congressional leaders today, he did so in a 2014 C7 Corvette Stingray to emphasize the return of the financial benefits firm, nee automaker. The thing is, the discussion — designed to soothe concerns about the government’s $49.5 billion bailout of the company — raises its own concerns. The briefing, reports Bill McMorris of the Washington Free Beacon, took place behind closed doors at the Capitol Hill Club.

One would think that concerns raised by Peter Schweizer 15 months or so ago about Congress using material, nonpublic information received as part of their duties for their own benefit might lead to a more public briefing. As my colleague, Claire Fargeot, describes in a nearby post, the issue of conflicted interests remains a serious problem globally. CFA Institute has expressed strong views about the dangers of conflicted interests and related ethical lapses in the realm of investment management, because trust is a fickle quality. Official D.C., it seems, continues to operate on a different standard than that which they (correctly) expect of the financial sector.

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