http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/top-stocks/blog.aspx?post=1743068

SEC case is weak, but push to sell is strong

Goldman sells to sophisticated clients who can do more due diligence than just ask a ratings agency.

Posted by Jim Cramer on Friday, April 16, 2010 3:56 PM

By Jim Cramer

If Goldman Sachs (GS) owned a piece of Abacus, it is hard for me to believe this case is as open-and-shut as the government is making it. Yet that is my understanding of the situation. In other words, what is Exhibit A against the government's case? That Goldman believed in the paper itself.

I also think that there is simply an important issue here that the government is leaving out. >sophisticated clients. They have the ability to look over the material they are shorting or buying. The information is available. They have the ability to do more due diligence than just asking the rating agency.

I think this is very important to consider: If Goldman owned a piece of the paper, as I understand to be the case, and if Goldman did not have discretion over the German bank that bought the paper, and if Paulson & Co. didn't pick knowingly fraudulent pieces of paper that Goldman was in on, I just don't think the case is a great one.

But it's a terrific excuse to sell.

At the time of publication, Cramer was long Goldman Sachs.

>TheStreet. He contributes daily market commentary for sites and serves as an adviser to the company's CEO.