“Bring on the International Soccer Federation…” - December 2, 2009

The ADP jobs report this morning showed more deterioration in the jobs market, but that was not unexpected and the markets should not react much at all to this report.

The real drama du jour today will be when Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner testifies this morning before the Senate Agricultural Committee on OTC derivatives.

On the surface, this doesn’t sound as sexy as yesterday’s drama where the Chairman of GM seized the wheel from CEO Fritz Henderson. But there will be a lot of people watching to hear what he has to say about regulating these instruments…and instruments of its type.

Here’s why this is important.

The Washington policy focus of the past year has correctly been on bailouts and stimulus programs. But very little has been done to prevent a similar crisis from happening again – to regulate what Goldman Sach’s Chairman Lloyd Blankfein has called irresponsible and damaging products created by Wall Street over the past decade, and for which he has even apologized for publicly.

We need to take a lesson from the International Soccer Federation who is meeting in Cape Town, South Africa today to consider adding more referees to World Cup matches to prevent blown calls from determining outcomes…which happened last month in a game between France and Ireland.

Geithner’s comments will be a barometer as to whether this Administration is willing to do to add more referees to the capital market playing field so that blown judgments don’t create a second crisis.