Carl Levin

You may not think a half-a-billion dollars is a lot, but the fact that you were able to get through 2007, when the bubble burst, was because you went with the big short.

There is a necessity that we take some regulatory steps in the conflict of interest area.

Did you bet big time in 2007 against the housing mortgage business, and you did.

You said what your investments were in November 2006 and what your investments--this is on the long side now--of August 2007.

But the facts still are that you got $2.5 billion of taxpayers' money on a private deal.

That was taxpayers' money, Mr. Blankfein.

The only reason you lost money on the ACA deal was because you ended up with a piece of the long on that----

I don't think that is the vision that most Americans have of how this Nation and its economy should function.

Do they have a belief that you, at least when you are going out peddling securities, that you want that security to succeed?

You don't think there is any moral obligation here? Put aside the legal obligation.

I think in those transactions in which we underwrote, I believe, and I am not looking at specific--in fact, my understanding is that is disclosed, that we can have a short or a long position in those securities.

I am just calling it in an inhuman context.

That seems to me to be misleading, as well.

As we put it in the vernacular, the big short allowed you to have a year in the black, is that----

Business has taken proactive steps to position the firm strategically in the ensuing mortgage credit and liquidity crisis.

You had a changing view of the market.

Did your group have a pretty good year for 2007?

You did not disclose to ACA that Paulson was on the short side of this deal. Is that correct?

And that party with the reverse inquiry is somebody who wants to sell short. Is that correct?

The short positions that they were taking during that year were the major contribution to that, is that correct?

Well, we will let the record speak to that.

It was intended that Goldman not have any long stake on that piece. Is that correct?

Is that accurate? Did that reflect the facts at the time?

That is why we have got to do some regulation and reregulation.

You are out there selling these securities. This isn't someone walking in the door.