Rick Santelli
Encyclopedia
Rick Santelli is an American on-air editor for the CNBC
Business News network. He joined CNBC as an on-air editor on June 14, 1999, reporting primarily from the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade
. He was formerly the vice president for an institutional trading and hedge fund
account for futures-related products. He is also credited with being a catalyst in the early formation of the Tea Party movement
via a statement he made on February 19, 2009.
In the course of his normal production schedule at CNBC Business, Santelli appears on-air approximately 12 to 16 times a day.
immigrants, Santelli was born near Taylor Street in Chicago
's old Italian neighborhood and at age 6 moved with his family to Lombard, Illinois
. After graduating from Willowbrook High School
in Villa Park, Illinois
, Santelli graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
and has been a member of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the Chicago Board of Trade. He began his career in 1979 as a trader and order filler at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in markets that included gold
, lumber, CD's, T-bills, foreign currencies, and livestock. While at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
, Santelli joined Alpha Sigma Phi
fraternity.
in various markets
, including commodities, CD
's, Treasuries, and currencies
.
During the time he spent as a financial trader and executive, Santelli worked for Drexel Burnham Lambert
as the Vice President of Interest Rate Futures and Options
.
.
. While broadcasting from the floor of the CME Group
during pre-market hours
, Santelli accused the government of "promoting bad behavior", and raised the possibility of a "Chicago Tea Party". He also suggested that individuals who knowingly purchased high-risk mortgages (and faced impending foreclosure as a consequence) were "losers".
Scattered cheers, whistles, and applause could be heard from some of the personnel around the floor. Some subsequent protests in American cities, dubbed Tea Parties, may have drawn inspiration from Santelli's outburst, but were not directly associated with him. During a White House
press briefing, White House Press Secretary
Robert Gibbs
was asked about Santelli's comments and expressed skepticism over whether Santelli had actually read the government's plan.
Santelli later clarified his comments and addressed concerns that the event was staged.
CNN.com reported that some compared Santelli to fictional reporter Howard Beale, the protagonist of the 1976 satirical
film Network
. Santelli has said, "I think that this tea party phenomenon is steeped in American culture and steeped in the American notion to get involved with what’s going on with our government. I haven’t organized. I’m going to have to work to pay my taxes, so I’m not going to be able to get away today. But, I have to tell you — I’m pretty proud of this."
On April 20, 2009, Santelli participated as a panel member in an Economic Leadership Forum hosted by the George Bush Presidential Library
Foundation at Texas A&M University
.
organization confirmed in an email to their members that Santelli's comments did in fact start the Tea Party movement:
In addition to this acclaim from the Tea Party movement
, Santelli has also garnered some praise from libertarians
:
Santelli has also been heavily criticized from the left, for example from George Monbiot
:
CNBC
CNBC is a satellite and cable television business news channel in the U.S., owned and operated by NBCUniversal. The network and its international spinoffs cover business headlines and provide live coverage of financial markets. The combined reach of CNBC and its siblings is 390 million viewers...
Business News network. He joined CNBC as an on-air editor on June 14, 1999, reporting primarily from the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade
Chicago Board of Trade
The Chicago Board of Trade , established in 1848, is the world's oldest futures and options exchange. More than 50 different options and futures contracts are traded by over 3,600 CBOT members through open outcry and eTrading. Volumes at the exchange in 2003 were a record breaking 454 million...
. He was formerly the vice president for an institutional trading and hedge fund
Hedge fund
A hedge fund is a private pool of capital actively managed by an investment adviser. Hedge funds are only open for investment to a limited number of accredited or qualified investors who meet criteria set by regulators. These investors can be institutions, such as pension funds, university...
account for futures-related products. He is also credited with being a catalyst in the early formation of the Tea Party movement
Tea Party movement
The Tea Party movement is an American populist political movement that is generally recognized as conservative and libertarian, and has sponsored protests and supported political candidates since 2009...
via a statement he made on February 19, 2009.
In the course of his normal production schedule at CNBC Business, Santelli appears on-air approximately 12 to 16 times a day.
Early life
The grandson of four ItalianItalian people
The Italian people are an ethnic group that share a common Italian culture, ancestry and speak the Italian language as a mother tongue. Within Italy, Italians are defined by citizenship, regardless of ancestry or country of residence , and are distinguished from people...
immigrants, Santelli was born near Taylor Street in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
's old Italian neighborhood and at age 6 moved with his family to Lombard, Illinois
Lombard, Illinois
Lombard, "The Lilac Village", is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage County, Illinois. The population was 42,322 at the 2000 census. The United States Census Bureau estimated the population in 2004 to be 42,975.-History:...
. After graduating from Willowbrook High School
Willowbrook High School
Willowbrook High School is a public four-year high school located approximately half a mile North of Illinois Route 38 on Ardmore Ave in Villa Park, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois in the United States. It is part of School District 88, which also includes Addison Trail High School...
in Villa Park, Illinois
Villa Park, Illinois
Villa Park is a suburb of Chicago in DuPage County, Illinois. The population was 22,075 at the 2000 census. A special census in 2003 set the population at 22,517...
, Santelli graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
and has been a member of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the Chicago Board of Trade. He began his career in 1979 as a trader and order filler at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in markets that included gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
, lumber, CD's, T-bills, foreign currencies, and livestock. While at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
, Santelli joined Alpha Sigma Phi
Alpha Sigma Phi
Alpha Sigma Phi Fraternity is a social fraternity with 71 active chapters and 9 colonies. Founded at Yale in 1845, it is the 10th oldest fraternity in the United States....
fraternity.
Financial
After college, Santelli began trading in 1979 at the Chicago Mercantile ExchangeChicago Mercantile Exchange
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange is an American financial and commodity derivative exchange based in Chicago. The CME was founded in 1898 as the Chicago Butter and Egg Board. Originally, the exchange was a non-profit organization...
in various markets
Financial market
In economics, a financial market is a mechanism that allows people and entities to buy and sell financial securities , commodities , and other fungible items of value at low transaction costs and at prices that reflect supply and demand.Both general markets and...
, including commodities, CD
Certificate of deposit
A certificate of Deposit is a time deposit, a financial product commonly offered to consumers in the United States by banks, thrift institutions, and credit unions....
's, Treasuries, and currencies
Foreign exchange market
The foreign exchange market is a global, worldwide decentralized financial market for trading currencies. Financial centers around the world function as anchors of trading between a wide range of different types of buyers and sellers around the clock, with the exception of weekends...
.
During the time he spent as a financial trader and executive, Santelli worked for Drexel Burnham Lambert
Drexel Burnham Lambert
Drexel Burnham Lambert was a major Wall Street investment banking firm, which first rose to prominence and then was forced into bankruptcy in February 1990 by its involvement in illegal activities in the junk bond market, driven by Drexel employee Michael Milken. At its height, it was the...
as the Vice President of Interest Rate Futures and Options
Interest rate future
An interest rate futures is a financial derivative with an interest-bearing instrument as the underlying asset.Examples include Treasury-bill futures, Treasury-bond futures and Eurodollar futures....
.
Media
In the 1990s, Santelli felt that the financial industry was changing in a way "not beneficial to me and my family", and in 1999, accepted a full-time job with CNBCCNBC
CNBC is a satellite and cable television business news channel in the U.S., owned and operated by NBCUniversal. The network and its international spinoffs cover business headlines and provide live coverage of financial markets. The combined reach of CNBC and its siblings is 390 million viewers...
.
Criticism of government Homeowners Affordability and Stability Plan
Santelli drew attention for his remarks made on February 19, 2009, about the Homeowners Affordability and Stability PlanHomeowners Affordability and Stability Plan
The Homeowners Affordability and Stability Plan is a U.S. program announced on February 18, 2009 by U.S. President Barack Obama. According to the US Treasury Department, it is a $75 billion program to help up to nine million homeowners avoid foreclosure, which was supplemented by $200 billion in...
. While broadcasting from the floor of the CME Group
CME Group
The CME Group bases prices for US gasoline on Brent Crude rather than West Texas Intermediate Crude , which many believe is responsible for artificially high gas prices for US consumers...
during pre-market hours
Extended hours trading
After-hours trading is stock trading that occurs after the traditional trading hours of the major exchanges, such as the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq Stock Market. Since 1985, the regular trading hours in America have been from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m...
, Santelli accused the government of "promoting bad behavior", and raised the possibility of a "Chicago Tea Party". He also suggested that individuals who knowingly purchased high-risk mortgages (and faced impending foreclosure as a consequence) were "losers".
Scattered cheers, whistles, and applause could be heard from some of the personnel around the floor. Some subsequent protests in American cities, dubbed Tea Parties, may have drawn inspiration from Santelli's outburst, but were not directly associated with him. During a White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
press briefing, White House Press Secretary
White House Press Secretary
The White House Press Secretary is a senior White House official whose primary responsibility is to act as spokesperson for the government administration....
Robert Gibbs
Robert Gibbs
Robert Lane Gibbs was the 28th White House Press Secretary. Gibbs was the communications director for then-U.S. Senator Barack Obama and Obama's 2008 presidential campaign...
was asked about Santelli's comments and expressed skepticism over whether Santelli had actually read the government's plan.
Santelli later clarified his comments and addressed concerns that the event was staged.
CNN.com reported that some compared Santelli to fictional reporter Howard Beale, the protagonist of the 1976 satirical
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
film Network
Network (film)
Network is a 1976 American satirical film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer about a fictional television network, Union Broadcasting System , and its struggle with poor ratings. The film was written by Paddy Chayefsky and directed by Sidney Lumet...
. Santelli has said, "I think that this tea party phenomenon is steeped in American culture and steeped in the American notion to get involved with what’s going on with our government. I haven’t organized. I’m going to have to work to pay my taxes, so I’m not going to be able to get away today. But, I have to tell you — I’m pretty proud of this."
On April 20, 2009, Santelli participated as a panel member in an Economic Leadership Forum hosted by the George Bush Presidential Library
George Bush Presidential Library
The George Bush Presidential Library and Museum is the presidential library of George H. W. Bush, the 41st President of the United States. It was dedicated on Nov. 6, 1997 and opened to the public shortly thereafter...
Foundation at Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
.
Praise and criticism
On November 4, 2010, the Tea Party PatriotsTea Party Patriots
Tea Party Patriots is an American political organization that promotes "fiscally responsible" activism as part of the Tea Party movement. It claims to have over 1,000 local chapters...
organization confirmed in an email to their members that Santelli's comments did in fact start the Tea Party movement:
"Tea Party Patriots wishes to extend a special thank you to Rick Santelli for his rant on February 19, 2009, which started this entire movement. Without Rick's rant, this movement would never have started. Many others will try to take credit but don't be fooled. He was the spark that began this fire."
In addition to this acclaim from the Tea Party movement
Tea Party movement
The Tea Party movement is an American populist political movement that is generally recognized as conservative and libertarian, and has sponsored protests and supported political candidates since 2009...
, Santelli has also garnered some praise from libertarians
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
:
In the world of financial "journalism," CNBC’s Rick Santelli stands out as a refreshing and intelligent antidote to the hoards of perma-bulls, fed apologists, and chart sorcerers that otherwise pollute the financial airwaves. Apart from his wonderfully energetic and quirky manner of speaking, and apart from his fantastic last name, Santelli is never afraid to challenge economists, Fed officials, and other mainstream talking heads. Talking points that are taken for granted or left unchallenged by Santelli’s mind-numbing colleagues are passionately attacked by the bond-tracking Italian dervish.
Santelli has also been heavily criticized from the left, for example from George Monbiot
George Monbiot
George Joshua Richard Monbiot is an English writer, known for his environmental and political activism. He lives in Machynlleth, Wales, writes a weekly column for The Guardian, and is the author of a number of books, including Captive State: The Corporate Takeover of Britain and Bring on the...
:
it is the most alarming example of cheap demagoguery you are likely to have seen.