Steve Cohen: “So how does that jibe with what we hear from the other side about just trust business to hire people, that the jobs come…”

“So how does that jibe with what we hear from the other side about just trust business to hire people, that the jobs come from business and the private sector? They're making $7.8 billion. They benefited from the TARP--a President Bush/Secretary Paulson plan that I supported in a bipartisan manner that kept Bank of America alive. I think they're on the hook, maybe, since some Federal recent action considering their loans and all. But $7 billion, and they're laying off 30,000 to 40,000 people? Those people are going to need unemployment benefits, and it's not because they don't want a job. They've been put out. A lot of qualified people who can do jobs and are intelligent don't have jobs because they are not there. But the people at the top are making more money than ever. They're eating at Masa in New York. They're eating the $500 dinner at the Japanese restaurant and not thinking twice about it, and they're firing people right and left. The limousines are still moving. The wealthy are still doing whatever they've been doing. They've got their jets--not the football team-- their private jets. They're living great, but the American Dream is disappearing. The American Dream disappeared for my grocery workers. It's disappearing for Bank of America employees. It's disappearing for a lot of people.”