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In a rare departure from Wall Street rules of decorum, Goldman Sachs Executive Greg Smith made a noisy departure from the investment giant when he resigned yesterday. In a New York Times Op-Ed, Smith wrote a scathing critique of Goldman Sachs’ business practices, which he says puts profits before the interests of investors. The accusation is not new, but it has not been leveled so publicly by a Goldman insider before, and Smith’s missive has shed more light on Goldman’s practices than any Congressional hearing has been able to. Smith wrote that his employer of 12 years had devolved from one with a culture of, “teamwork, integrity, and spirit of humility” to a one with a toxic and destructive environment. More specifically, he confirms what outsiders have been saying for years, which is that, these days, business as usual at Goldman means pressuring clients to invest in stocks for Goldman’s benefit, even if the stocks are known to be unprofitable or not suited to the needs and wants of the client. Smith says the client has become so low on the Goldman totem-pole that multiple managing directors have referred to them as “muppets.”

The reaction to Smith’s Op-ed has been mixed. Rolling Stone writer Matt Taibbi, who famously referred to Goldman Sachs as a blood sucking “vampire squid,” called the piece, “devastating.” In other corners of the media world Smith has become a punchline, with parody “I Quit” letters scattering the internet. Yet others have issued droll statements of support for the status quo. Forbes contributor Tim Worstall told the public yesterday to, “[d]o nothing… for one of the great joys of this mixed capitalism and free markets system is that mistakes like those [at Goldman]…. are self-correcting.” Think Progress evaluated yesterday’s media coverage and concluded that Goldman Sachs has been effective in coordinating a smear campaign against Smith, with outlets like the Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times citing anonymous sources who characterize Smith as a low-level employee disgruntled over a small annual bonus. Goldman Sachs lost $2.15 billion in market value yesterday.

GUEST: Bart Naylor, Financial Policy Advocate with Public Citizen’s Congress Watch Division

Visit www.citizen.org for more information. Submit public comments directly to Congress online here.