Five Dumbest Things on Wall Street: Nov. 21

We Have Words to Describe Ken Lewis

One of them is ungrateful. Hypocrite is another.

Bank of America(BAC Quote) CEO Ken Lewis slammed a potential auto-industry bailout this Tuesday. The banking bigwig made his remarks just as auto executives from GM (GM Quote), Ford(F Quote) and Chrysler were on Capitol Hill begging for a $25 billion emergency bridge loan to avert a collapse of one or more of their companies.

"I think there's one too many" automakers, Lewis said to the Detroit Economic Club during a meeting in Cobo Center, the downtown convention center that's home to the North American International Auto Show each January.

"I think the American people are suspect of just giving more money and buying more time," he told reporters following the speech, according to The Associated Press. "They want to see that the companies have, in fact, changed and the strategies have changed."

Sorry Ken, but bankers in glass houses shouldn't toss grenades.

Lewis shouldn't balk at anyone getting a handout, after nine large banks, including Bank of America, Wells Fargo(WFC Quote), Citigroup(C Quote) and JPMorgan Chase(JPM Quote), received $125 billion last month.

Oh, and what did Lewis do with the $25 billion of the government's largesse that you said you didn't need? Instead of lending it out to Americans being crushed by the credit crisis, like he was supposed to do, he announced this week that Bank of America is buying more shares of China Construction Bank, raising its stake to 19.1% of the company.

If a Big 3 bailout fails, at least taxpayer dollars will be squandered over here, not half a world away.

Dumb-o-meter score: 95 -- Banks had their turn to beg Congress, let automakers have theirs.