Faced with a legal onslaught by a team of attorneys general hailing from every state in the nation, Bank of America (BAC) is taking a cunning step.
The nation’s heavyweight mortgage-servicing champ is bringing former Virginia attorney general Richard Cullen into its corner. Just when you thought there couldn’t be any more attorneys general involved!
Is Cullen some kind of bank-defending turncoat — a mole hand-picked by BofA for his attorney general-like attributes? Reuters reports:
Cullen has already been communicating with the offices of various state attorneys general, according to a source familiar with the investigation.
“Communicating,” eh? Sounds fishy.
Whether or not Cullen is attending attorney general five-year reunions to get the latest AG dish on the joint investigation in to shady foreclosure practices, there’s little doubt that he’s a formidable legal mind. The man headed up George W. Bush’s legal team during the 2000 Florida recount, and helped Tom DeLay duck federal charges.
Despite (or perhaps because of) his impressive resume, Bank of America ought to be careful. He could, after all, be a double agent — revealing dramatically in court: “Fools! I was working for the attorneys general the whole time!”
mtaylor [at] observer.com | @mbrookstaylor
