"The Washington Post asked me about it," recalls Seidman. "I remarked brightly that we used to get a toaster when we opened up an account, but now we'll get a tax. I guess we should call it 'the toaster tax.' The idea was literally laughed out of town. That infuriated Sununu."
Seidman's glib remark reverberated throughout the remainder of his tenure as chairman of the FDIC and the RTC. Sununu pressured Seidman to resign, but Seidman resisted. "I said I wouldn't go. The president would have to fire me for cause." When Sununu himself was forced to resign (his exceptionally abrasive manner led to his demise), someone remarked to Seidman, "Poor John was his own worst enemy." Seidman's reply: "Not while I'm alive."
Recalling his battles with Sununu and others, Seidman says he's delighted that he doesn't have a starring role in S&L Part II. Which begs the question, Who will seize the enforcer's mantle and hold Enron -- and future Enrons -- accountable?
Bill Breen (bbreen@fastcompany.com) is a Fast Company senior editor.
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