Bush blames worldwide woes on dot-com phenomenon

Recent economic turmoil in the US and across the world's markets has inspired President George Bush to start pointing the finger of blame.

In a speech to Wall Street, Bush said there is a need to get tough on corporate fraud - doubling the prison sentences for those found guilty of shredder-related crimes.

He also demanded that companies stop giving loans to senior execs after WorldCom boss Bernie Ebbers walked away with more than $400m and called for greater clarification when it comes to compensation packages. Bush said any large settlements should be detailed in "plain English" in the annual reports.

With the corporate integrity of America crumbling further and faster with every high profile bankruptcy or fraud revelation, Bush is eager to stop the rot with a hastily assembled corporate fraud taskforce which will be deployed within the department of justice.

Bush also freed up an extra $100m for the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Although many may suggest Enron and WorldCom's own improprieties were the reason for their respective downfalls Bush told Wall Street the damage was really done in the heady days of the dot-com boom. The get-rich-quick (get bankrupt shortly after) mentality which epitomised the dot-com boom is the reason why corporate America has lost touch with the standards that would have protected it from the recent wave of scandals, according to Bush.