The story of those remorseful industry tycoons testifying under oath is not new. The following are six meetings between famous business leaders and members of Congress.
1。 Andrew carnegie was in Stanley Steel Committee 5438+09 12+0 in June.
Andrew carnegie testified before Senator Augustus Stanley of Kentucky as part of an antitrust investigation into American steel companies. The tycoon is in his twilight years and his position in American industry has long been established. More than ten years ago, his Carnegie Steel Company merged with other major enterprises to create an industrial giant: American Steel Company, the first company worth one billion dollars in American history.
However, the anti-monopoly enthusiasm cannot represent such a huge Panyu and Stanley. They are considered as advocates of the progressive era and preside over the meeting. First of all, they are whimsical. Stanley apologized to Carnegie and asked him to testify in court. His answer caused a lot of laughter at the meeting: "I am very happy to give this official document to my successor." Chairman Stanley's autograph will help.
The next day, the sweet atmosphere condensed into resentment in Congress. Carnegie declared that he knew nothing about the financial arrangements that led to the merger of American steel companies, and even said that he had "never seen the inside story of Carnegie Steel Company". After another fruitless hearing, a congressman could not hide his anger: "We have been sitting here for two days, but we have learned nothing.
Stanley may have won praise for his keen personality-an early report claimed that he could "pick a person's pocket with his eyes"-but he couldn't crack Carnegie. The Supreme Court finally ruled in favor of American steel companies. Although Carnegie didn't live to see the final decision, the always cunning steel tycoon had the last laugh a long time ago. J, Morgan of Wall Street
Defense, this is a political cartoon, and Morgan's famous words can be seen from his listening. 191219 and February 20th, the famous banker and "king of money" John Pierpont Morgan appeared in front of the Phuk-Hom Committee of new york Marble Town Hall. Samuel Untermyer's lawyer is responsible for investigating the scope and power of the richest members of Wall Street. He confronted the famous rude and indifferent businessman with a series of thoughtful and heartless questions. On the other hand, Morgan thinks that the "currency monopoly" proposed by the Committee is impossible. He admitted that he had revoked the railway company's * * * book, and announced that he liked "a small * * * book". At another famous moment, Morgan thought that his bank was not responsible for the value bonds it issued. On the contrary, "it takes on something more important, which is a moral responsibility, and you must defend it as long as you live." Morgan later mistakenly stated that he had no "slightest" control over any department or industry in the United States, and even had no "final decision" on the decisions made by the companies he directly supervised.
"kds" Despite Morgan's poor performance and arrogant attitude, Untermyer and the Pujo Committee named after Louisiana congressmen could not prove their major economic conspiracy. Nevertheless, they exposed a complicated and chaotic situation: 78 large companies cooperated with Bank of JPMorgan Chase, controlling billions of dollars of capital and many important positions of power on the board of directors. In response to the hearing, President Wilson will sign the Federal Reserve Act to lift the federal dependence on Morgan and its allies. More broadly, Untermyer's clever questioning led to an increase in public support for the 16 amendment and Clayton's anti-monopoly law. Perhaps even more frustrating, Morgan's son and other bank executives later claimed that just a few months later, in March of 19 13, Untermyer's investigation led to his father's death. John D Rockefeller Jr. thinks that j·d· Rockefeller Jr. of the Ludlow Massacre took this position before Congress. (Library of Congress) From 19 13 to 19 15, the Senate Labor Relations Committee conducted a comprehensive inspection of the labor situation in the United States and summoned hundreds of witnesses from all over the country. Under the leadership of Frank Walsh, this committee interrogated many American business tycoons, including oil tycoon john D Rockefeller Jr.
), although Walsh had a wide range of exams, he was particularly interested in the miners' group Ludlow massage and the Colorado Fuel and Steel Company owned by the Rockefeller family. In April the year before last, members of the Colorado National Guard set fire to the tents where miners and their families lived and fired machine guns at the camp. 19 people died in subsequent incidents, including 12 children. Armed conflict broke out, and President Woodrow Wilson had to send federal troops to finally restore order.
Violence triggered a national sex scandal: * * Events broke out in cities from San Francisco to new york. At the hearing in Colorado, a witness said Rockefeller was guilty of treason and should face murder charges. But Rockefeller testified with nothing but restraint. During the long hearing, * * * called him "cautious and gentle". Despite the subsequent inspection, Rockefeller remained calm, even though Walsh accused him of knowing * * * directly and directing * * * route.
When the Committee compiled the final report in 19 16, there were many differences of opinion. Eight of its members published three different sets of conclusions and restatements. However, some historians say that these events proved to be the inspiration for franklin roosevelt's New Deal plan decades later, and described Ludlow as a key event in American labor history. Titanic
After the shipwreck, Joseph Bruce Ismail faced the Senate, and the Senate investigation committee questioned Joseph Bruce Ismail, the core figure of the Titanic sinking. Less than a week after the sinking of the Library of Congress, both houses of Congress launched a comprehensive investigation into this tragedy. On April 19, the first day of the hearing, Joseph Bruce Ismay, general manager of White Star Company, who built the ship, came to the glove led by Senator william smith.
In his opening speech, he announced, "We will conduct the most comprehensive investigation. We have nothing to hide and nothing to hide. " However, during the hearings for several days, Ismail always gave up the responsibility for the shipwreck, avoided the details of the construction drawings, and boldly declared that the Titanic had enough lifeboats to accommodate every passenger (which was not the case). Subsequent testimony questioned his remarks, and the American mass media accused him of putting his life before women and children as spineless and greedy (back in Britain, his critics were more friendly; My lawyer instructed him not to testify. He continued to ask individuals "not to draw any negative conclusions because I support my Fifth Amendment."
His excuse didn't stop the public from disclosing their dissatisfaction. A woman in Tampa, Florida, wrote in an interview with * * * *: "These men are obviously lying, cheating and stealing. They are doing this as a gesture of power and should freeze the blood of every hardworking American. " Mr. Lei is legally innocent, but there is no doubt that he has committed a series of atrocities and violated our sense of collective dignity. "Make him uneasy," Gary Parker added in a letter to the editor and the post. Despite his anger, Lei won't spend a day in prison: in June 2006, he died while on vacation, and about a month ago, he was convicted of 65,438+00 counts of fraud, conspiracy and lying to a bank.