Ah, yes, another chapter in the saga of the great financial guru, Robert Rubin–you know, the guy who the entire political and media establishment fawned over for almost two decades as the all-knowing, all-seeing, wise man of the global financial world…until, of course, the entire financial house of cards collapsed in large part because of the pursuit of the Rubin strategy of debt-driven profits and de-regulated finance. Rubin, naturally, was never hurt himself financially: he pocketed $126 million from the shareholders of Citigroup before quietly slipping out of the company.

   Well, today, it looks like his timing was brilliant. Within The Wall Street Journal’s story this morning about the Bush Administration’s request to release the next $350 billion of the Paulson bankers’ bailout, we learn this:

Bank shares fell sharply Monday on news that Citigroup Inc. is likely to report a larger-than-expected operating loss of $10 billion for the October-to-December quarter.

Many investors were surprised by the extent of the likely losses at Citigroup, which has already received $45 billion in government funds. Citi shares fell 17% and financial companies overall ended down 5%, at their lowest level since Dec. 1.

   So, our money was sent in to back up Citigroup–and it still can’t get its act together.

   You don’t thin Rubin knew how bad the books were at Citigroup before he slipped out the door? Of course, he did–but when the choice is between sticking it out to help a deeply distressed institution which you helped guide–or, more accurately, you helped lead blindly into the financial abyss–versus getting out to try to protect your image, well, we know which choice Rubin took.

   He took the coward’s choice.