Monthly Archives: May 2011

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Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Head Accused of Lying at House Committee Hearing

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The first and second rules of Congressional Fight Club is that you don’t talk about Congressional Fight Club. The third rule is that if a new bureau head spends her time in front of a committee hearing being evasive and, allegedly, lying … she has to fight.

Or something like that.

What happened during today’s hearing was that Representative Patrick T. McHenry (R-NC), chairman of the House Oversight Committee, accused Consumer Financial Protection Bureau head Elizabeth Warren of misleading lawmakers in earlier testimony about her role in talks between government authorities and mortgage-servicing companies. McHenry also called Warren out for, according to him, reneging on her agreement to appear before the committee this week.

After an hour in which Ms. Warren repeatedly parried efforts by Mr. McHenry and other Republicans to nail her down with “yes or no” answers to questions concerning her testimony in March and about the bureau’s powers and responsibilities, Mr. McHenry moved to temporarily recess the hearing to allow members to travel to the House floor for a vote on an unrelated matter.

Ms. Warren objected, saying that she had juggled her schedule as the committee repeatedly changed the time of the hearing in recent days and had agreed to be present for only an hour.

A vigorous back-and-forth ensued.

“Congressman, you are causing problems,” Ms. Warren said. “We had an agreement.”

“You’re making this up,” Mr. McHenry replied. “This is not the case.”

The argument, an unraveling of the decorum that usually characterizes discussions among even the most fervent opponents during Congressional hearings, demonstrated the level of frustration that some Republicans apparently feel over the consumer agency, which was established as part of the Dodd-Frank Act that followed the financial and mortgage crisis.

The hearing Tuesday was intended to address the oversight that Congress should require for the agency.

Instead? Nothing got accomplished.

So … it looks like, nearly one year later, everyone is still totally thrilled with Dodd-Frank and that its implementation will continue to go swimmingly for all involved parties.

Reform is so easy.

Rep. Patrick McHenry.

The Deadliest Tornado to Hit the United States in 50 Years Kills More Than 100 in Joplin, Missouri

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This weekend, a massive tornado struck Joplin, Missouri, devastating yet another Midwest town with vicious winds. At least 90 people are dead and some 2,000 structures are no longer standing.

Residents received a 24-minute warning that a tornado was headed toward the city, giving many a few precious moments to gather children and run for safety. When the tornado struck, it caused what officials are estimating to be a path of damage through Joplin that was a mile wide and four miles long, with wind speeds reaching 166 miles per hour.

As much as 30 percent of the town was damaged, including more than 2,000 buildings, among them a nursing home and several schools, firehouses and large stores, including a Wal-Mart and a Home Depot. Water treatment and sewage plants were also hit by high winds, and authorities cautioned residents to boil water.

It was the deadliest tornado to hit the United States in more than 50 years. (video above also via this Telegraph article)

Officials said the last twister to cause such loss of life in the US occurred in 1953 in Worcester, Massachusetts, and killed 90 people.

The Joplin tornado was one of 68 reported across seven Midwest states over the weekend, from Oklahoma to Wisconsin. An outbreak of twisters killed more than 300 people and caused more than $2 billion (£1.24 billion) in damage to the US South last month.

For more info and media related to the twister, visit Mashable, the Weather Channel and The Lede.

And for those affected, the Insurance Information Institute has some good advice on how to get your tornado insurance claims paid quickly.

The I.I.I. offers the following advice to speed the insurance claims settlement process following a tornado:

  • Be prepared to give your agent or insurance company representative a detailed description of the damage to your property. Your agent will report the loss to your insurance company or to a qualified adjuster who will contact you as soon as possible in order to arrange an inspection of the site.
  • If it is safe to access the area, take photographs of the damaged property. Visual documentation will help with the claims process and can assist the adjuster in the investigation.
  • Prepare a detailed inventory of all damaged or destroyed personal property. Make two copies—one for yourself and one for the adjuster. Your list should be as complete as possible, including a description of the items, dates of purchase or approximate age, cost at time of purchase and estimated replacement cost.
  • Collect canceled checks, invoices, receipts or other papers that will assist the adjuster in obtaining the value of the destroyed property.
  • Make whatever temporary repairs you can. Cover broken windows and damaged roofs and walls to prevent further destruction. Save the receipts for any supplies and materials you purchase as your insurance company will reimburse you for reasonable expenses incurred by making temporary repairs.
  • Secure a detailed estimate for permanent repairs to your home or business from a licensed contractor and give it to the adjuster. The estimate should contain the proposed repairs, repair costs and replacement prices.
  • If your home is severely damaged and you need to find other accommodations while repairs are being made, keep a record of all expenses, such as hotel and restaurant receipts.

The Nations Most Likely to Default

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This week, President Barack Obama is visiting Britain, France, Poland and Ireland, which is the first stop on his European tour and the site of a driving snafu today in which the presidential stretch, armored Cadillac got stuck on a ramp. Whoops. (See video above … via HuffPo)

Obviously, chief among the commander in chief’s reasons for talking to EU leaders face-to-face is to get a better understanding of the ongoing sovereign debt crisis in the region that is straining relations on the continent and may continue to threaten global economic recovery.

We have heard much about the so-called PIGS economies (Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain) — and rightfully so; Athens and Dublin in particular both have a lot of economic finagling to do to figure out some real solutions to what is a major long-term challenge for each country. And while Obama will certainly trying to be figure out what the United States can do to help smooth the austerity and economic transitions Ireland will have to make (in addition to exploring his personal roots), there are many other locations across the world with troubles of their own.

Along these lines, Business Insider ranks the 21 countries most likely to default in terms of the cost to insure each country’s debt. Here’s their list in full. Head over there for more detailed economic profiles of the nations.

21. Russia
20. Poland
19. Israel
18. Kazakhstan
17. Belgium
16. Turkey
15. Italy
14. Lithuania
13. Bulgaria
12. Romania
11. Hungary
10. Croatia
9. Spain
8. Vietnam
7. Lebanon
6. Ukraine
5. Argentina
4. Ireland
3. Portugal
2. Venezuela
1. Greece

Volcanic Eruption Disrupts Airlines and Business Again

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The Grimsvotn volcano, Iceland’s most active, began erupting Saturday, sending large plumes of ash into the atmosphere and halting air traffic in the region. As of this morning, Iceland’s main airport in Reykjavik remained closed while airlines and airports across Europe brace for possible disruptions. This brings back unpleasant memories of last year’s volcanic eruption as Europe clings to hope that the effect will not be nearly as dreadful.

Officials appeared to be responding to the ash with a radically different approach than last year, when European aviation authorities were sharply criticized for closing large swathes of airspace in response to the April 2010 eruption of another Icelandic volcano. Many airlines said authorities overestimated the danger to planes from the abrasive ash, and overreacted by closing airspace for five days. Thousands of flights were grounded, airlines lost millions of dollars and millions of travelers were stranded, many sleeping on airport floors across northern Europe.

Though meteorological officials predicted the ash to miss the European mainland, recent news reports claim that the Civil Aviation Authority expects disruption to UK flights.

We here at the Monitor followed last year’s eruption of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano very closely, posting about it’s amazing power with pics and video, about airports closing and how it was one of the top 10 disasters of the past decade, according to Zurich.

Stay tuned as we continue to post about Grimsvotn’s most powerful eruption in 100 years and its effects on travel and business. And visit The Atlantic for some amazing images of the eruption.