Note that the group confronted was non TARP, which is to say that they didn't wear the government collar and thus couldn't be controlled so easily. The White house is furiously spinning that Lauria is lying.

"The charge is completely untrue," said White House deputy press secretary Bill Burton, "and there's obviously no evidence to suggest that this happened in any way."

The "no evidence" qualifier says it all. However, as Zero Hedge notes:

What is strangest is that Lauria would stake his career and reputation on the line by stating on the record the facts previously disclosed. As such his downside is much bigger than that of Mr. Burton or of the PW[b]...

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Note that the group confronted was non TARP, which is to say that they didn't wear the government collar and thus couldn't be controlled so easily. The White house is furiously spinning that Lauria is lying.

"The charge is completely untrue," said White House deputy press secretary Bill Burton, "and there's obviously no evidence to suggest that this happened in any way."

The "no evidence" qualifier says it all. However, as Zero Hedge notes:

What is strangest is that Lauria would stake his career and reputation on the line by stating on the record the facts previously disclosed. As such his downside is much bigger than that of Mr. Burton or of the PW's spokesperson, as they effectively side with the Obama's side of the story.

Indeed, I find it highly unlikely that the senior partner of a major New York law firm would toss his career in the dumpster to score a few political points. That said, obviously someone is lying here and it will be interesting to see how the story unwinds. If Mr. Lauria's accusations are true then we may have just seen the first preview of how the federal government will roll out its plan to take over huge swaths of the private sector and dole awards to political constituents such as the unions.