Lehman Collapse 2 year Anniversary

(Fairfield County Democratic Party)

Yesterday marked the two-year anniversary of the collapse of the financial giant Lehman Brothers, a collapse that led to the global recession and caused Ohioans to lose their homes, their jobs and their pensions. Congressman John Kasich served as a Managing Director of Lehman Brothers from 2001 until its collapse. During his time at the firm, he urged Ohio public pension funds to invest in Lehman Brothers assets, and when the firm collapsed, Ohio’s public pensions lost $480 million. That same year, Congressman Kasich collected a $432,000 bonus, and he made millions during his tenure.

The candidates at the top of the Republican ticket – Congressman Kasich, Congressman Portman and Congressman DeWine, spent a combined 50 years in Washington. During that time, they supported policies that helped Wall Street and hurt Main Street – policies like NAFTA, free trade with China and tax breaks for companies that shipped jobs overseas. 

To mark this anniversary, the Ohio Democratic Party organized events across the state at which Attorney General Rich Cordray, mayors and other public officials talked about how Wall Street greed got us into this mess and how our Republican opponents represent Wall Street values. They compared the Republican record to that of Governor Strickland, Lt. Governor Fisher and Cordray.