Organization of the SEC
Why does John McCain think he can fire an SEC Commissioner?
The SEC consists of five presidentially-appointed Commissioners, with staggered five-year terms (see SEC Organization Chart; text version also available). One of them is designated by the President as Chairman of the Commission — the agency’s chief executive. By law, no more than three of the Commissioners may belong to the same political party, ensuring non-partisanship. The agency’s functional responsibilities are organized into four Divisions and 19 Offices, each of which is headquartered in Washington, DC. The Commission’s approximately 3,500 staff are located in Washington and in 11 Regional Offices throughout the country.
It is the responsibility of the Commission to:
- interpret federal securities laws;
- issue new rules and amend existing rules;
- oversee the inspection of securities firms, brokers, investment advisers, and ratings agencies;
- oversee private regulatory organizations in the securities, accounting, and auditing fields; and
- coordinate U.S. securities regulation with federal, state, and foreign authorities.
The Commission convenes regularly at meetings that are open to the public and the news media unless the discussion pertains to confidential subjects, such as whether to begin an enforcement investigation.
I’m tempted to believe that having this many gaffes is a strategy to keep changing the subject from previous gaffes.
September 18th, 2008 at
Was the question leading your post supposed to be a Letterman list?
10) because Sarah Palin taught him that you just “do it” and worry about what the lawyers say later? Kinda like ignoring legitimate subpoenas…
9) because after being totally exhausted after inventing both the BlueBerry and the outernet, he forgot just how he invented the SEC?
7) because, because, because… he was a Prisoner of W for 5 1/2 years and didn’t have the support of the SEC?
6) because crashing the economy is kinda like crashing government planes, you get up to five chances?
5) Zzzzzzzzzzz Slowly fading, someone else can step-in and fill my shoes (but only if they are a Hockey Mom)
September 30th, 2008 at
This article doesn’t really say if the President can or can’t remove a commissioner. The information you took from the SEC website does say that the President appoints them, congrats on figuring that one out.
September 30th, 2008 at
Congratulations on being a moron. Staggered terms in an independent regulatory agency mean they serve the terms and not at the pleasure of the President. But thanks for playing.