Quote Originally Posted by Schmedlap View Post
or (depending on how cynical you are) they like having someone who can network with the regulatory agency to influence decisions.
Not cynical enough. It has gotten so bad that some of these officials are abdicating their duties during their time in government service for the prospect of a fat payday down the road. The old play-along to get-along. The SEC just recently settled an embarrassing case in which SEC officials engaged in such disgraceful activity.

Senator Grassley knows all about this stuff, he oversaw the joint staff report by the Senate Finance and Judiciary Committees into the Pequot matter (PDF: "The Firing of an SEC Attorney and the Investigation of Pequot Capital Management", caution: 24mb file). My guess, as this latest incident suggests, is that these are not isolated incidents.

I will get back to your broader question. I apologize for being so literal about this matter, but it just makes my blood boil.