JP Morgan Chase Throws Brushback Pitch to Obama
The actual story, which is pegged to a relatively-insignificant $30,000 donation by Chase's political action committee to Republican Congressional campaign committees, doesn't quite live up to its headline. But the donation, from a company that has been semi-aligned with the Obama administration, opens the door to Wall Street griping about a White House that has shifted to a less conciliatory approach on reforming the financial system.
And that seems to be the point: The story has the feel of an effort by JP Morgan Chase to let the White House know that it's not happy, and is willing to apply public pressure to get its message heard. It's an opportunity for an unnamed industry lobbyist to get quotes like this one into the paper of record: "If the president wanted to turn every Democrat on Wall Street into a Republican, he is doing everything right."
In other words: Back off, or the industry that gave $89 million to help get you into the White House will be throwing its lot in with the other team.
The piece also includes the claim that Wall Street bankers are feeling "buyer's remorse" about the Obama administration – a phrase that Hotsheet heard uttered by one prominent JP Morgan Chase official back in 2009.
The banking community is genuinely frustrated with the Obama administration these days -- less for the president's rhetoric about "fat cats" than the administration's embrace of the relatively strong plan to tighten financial regulations championed by former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, including restrictions on proprietary trading.
Banks like JP Morgan Chase have little interest in making a high-profile stink over the administration's efforts, not when the populist backlash over bailouts and bonuses has made them less than sympathetic figures. But that doesn't mean they aren't looking for ways to make their complaints heard, both publicly and privately.
The Times story signals a ratcheting up of the perhaps inevitable conflict between an administration trying to placate its liberal base and quell populist anger and a Wall Street community that didn't expect lawmakers from either party to push regulations that could have a significant impact on their bottom line.