Tester grills top Goldman Sachs executives, demands ‘answers and accountability’

Senator puts top Wall Street officials in hot seat during fraud hearing

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – Senator Jon Tester today grilled some of Wall Street’s top big-bank executives, telling them Americans want “answers and accountability.”

Goldman Sachs has been charged with fraud for activities that allowed them to profit off of the nation’s financial collapse of 2008.  As the Senate seeks the votes to begin to debate Wall Street reform, executives from the investment giant were called to testify today before a Senate committee.

During a hearing on Capitol Hill, Tester questioned the executives on accusations that Goldman Sachs sold, and then betted against, investments they designed to fail.

Tester blasted the move, adding that people in Montana and across rural America were forced to pay the price.

“You guys made money going both directions,’” said Tester, the only Senate Democrat to vote against both the bailouts of Wall Street and the U.S. auto industry.  “And there’s a lot of folks who didn’t make money going both directions.  There’s a lot of guys who lost their retirement.  They lost everything they’ve got when it dropped off.”

Tester, a member of the Senate Banking Committee, is calling on the Senate to debate the Wall Street reform plan, which:

• Ends taxpayer-funded bailouts,
• Ends the era of “too big to fail”,
• Puts referees back on the field to enforce the rules,
• Puts Main Street ahead of Wall Street.

Tester delivered a Senate floor speech earlier this month urging his colleagues to pass Wall Street reform.