Did Jon Corzine Commit Perjury Before Congress? Oh, You Betcha!

Well, he did tell us beforehand he was going to lie - Corzine hedged his testimony by saying he had too little time to prepare for the hearing and only limited access to records “essential to my being able to testify accurately..” - but an oath to tell the truth, so help you God, does not allow for if, buts, candy, or nuts...

The first piece of testimony contradictory to Corzine's came out yesterday in the Senate. And it was germane to the most serious potential charge against Corzine, that he knowingly used customer funds to cover MF Global's bad deals:

In a hearing before the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, Terrence A. Duffy, the chief executive of CME Group, said a senior female executive of MF Global told a CME auditor that Corzine — the former chief executive officer and chairman of the firm — was aware of a $175 million loan of customer money to a European affiliate of the now-bankrupt commodities brokerage.

“Mr. Corzine was aware because our employee had heard this, on the phone—‘Send back 175’ — and said he was aware of this loan,” Duffy told the Senate committee. …

“The only thing I can tell you [is] that MF Global transferred customer money to its broker dealer, and that Mr. Corzine was aware of the loans being made from segregated accounts,” he said. When asked for elaboration, a CME spokesman said the firm would not comment beyond the remarks Duffy made at the hearing.



That statement, sworn under oath, puts lie to Corzine's now-famous “I simply do not know where the money is, or why the accounts have not been reconciled to date"...

Corzine knew all along where the money is - or was - and knows exactly why they can't reconcile customer accounts. Like a pathetic, down-and-out drunken gambler, he stayed at the table too long, convinced of his invincibility, bet the mortgage, and lied about it the next day.

Of course, it comes down to whom you believe: CME Executive Chairman Terry Duffy, or Jon Corzine. Or better yet: Given their character, which man is more likely to be an oath-breaker?

An easy one. And so are the perjury charges...