Paul Ryan Snookers The Press: TPM Edition

And now, in the continuing tradition of US media figures taking what known Republican liars like Paul Ryan say at face value, I give you this.

Team Ryan managed to shut down a media examination of the 58 individual-stock trades, 27 of them in large money-center banks, that Ryan made during the crisis of 2008 — and where he moved money back and forth between teetering banks like Wachovia and Citi and (drum roll, please) Goldman Sachs, this last of which was of course being propped up by Bush’s Treasury Secretary (and former Goldman Sachs CEO) Henry Paulson. Per Benjy Sarlin of Talking Points Memo:

It had the makings of a scandal: Paul Ryan traded banking stocks during the financial crisis the same day as a meeting with top Treasury Department officials, a Virginia blog wrote Monday. But the rumor, which spread rapidly across the Internet, doesn’t hold up to scrutiny.

[…]

The Romney campaign said Ryan had nothing to do with the trades in the first place. They were part of a Russell 1000 index fund that automatically traded stocks as part of a pre-set formula. Ryan’s disclosure forms include several similar trade patterns at various points throughout the year.

Sarlin also notes that the meeting happened outside of normal New York Stock Exchange trading hours, which for him means no trading was possible. The SEC begs to differ:

The New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq Stock Market—the highest volume market centers in the U.S. today—have traditionally been open for business from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Although trading outside that window—or “after-hours” trading—has occurred for some time, it used to be limited mostly to high net worth investors and institutional investors.

But that changed by the end of the last century. Some smaller exchanges now offer extended hours. And, with the rise of
Electronic Communications Networks, or ECNs, everyday individual investors can gain access to the after-hours markets. 
Before you decide to trade after-hours, you need to educate yourself about the differences between regular and extended trading hours, especially the risks. You should consult your broker and read any disclosure documents on this option. Check your broker’s website for available information on trading after-hours. As with trading during regular hours, the services offered by brokers during extended hours vary. You should therefore shop around to find the firm that best suits your trading needs.

Another entity that begs to differ is Fidelity Investments, which executes after-hours trades — and after hours, not waiting until the next business day.

But that’s only part of what’s wrong with Sarlin’s attempt at debunking. Here’s Brad DeLong: