Jesse’s Café Americain nails it in this commentary on Simon Johnson’s piece at Baseline Scenario about the possibility of an audit of Goldman Sachs by the European Commission over Goldman’s role in helping the Greek government hide its debt:

“…the American Wall Street banks have become dominated by a culture of compulsive sociopaths who are incapable of reforming or restraining their greed. Like all addicts, they push the envelope, emboldened by each successful scam, the weakness of regulators, and the craven support of politicians, going further and further until at long last they go one step too far, with spectacularly destructive results.

Goldman Sachs may have reached that point… the rebuke may be coming from foreign nations who become weary of the extra-legal antics of the rogue American banks.”

Johnson posits:

“..the US government, at the highest levels, has to ask a fundamental question: For how long does it wish to be intimately associated with Goldman Sachs and this kind of destabilizing action?  What is the priority here – a sustainable recovery and a viable financial system, or one particular set of investment bankers?”

Given the infestation of the Obama administration with Rubin/Goldman acolytes, I’m betting on the latter.