President Barack Obama wants to protect the people and stop the problems we've seen in the banking industry. Here are some excerpts from President Obama's weekly radio address.
WhiteHouse.gov:
....Here’s what this plan would do. First, it would enact the strongest consumer financial protections ever. It would put consumers back in the driver’s seat by forcing big banks and credit card companies to provide clear, understandable information so that Americans can make financial decisions that work best for them.
Next, these reforms would bring new transparency to financial dealings. Part of what led to this crisis was firms like AIG and others making huge and risky bets – using things like derivatives – without accountability. Warren Buffett himself once described derivatives bought and sold with little oversight as “financial weapons of mass destruction.” That’s why through reform we’d help ensure that these kinds of complicated financial transactions take place on an open market. Because, ultimately, it is a marketplace that is open, free, and fair that will allow our economy to flourish.
We would also close loopholes to stop the kind of recklessness and irresponsibility we’ve seen. It’s these loopholes that allowed executives to take risks that not only endangered their companies, but also our entire economy. And we’re going to put in place new rules so that big banks and financial institutions will pay for the bad decisions they make – not taxpayers. Simply put, this means no more taxpayer bailouts. Never again will taxpayers be on the hook because a financial company is deemed “too big to fail.”...
This sounds like very important legislation. Unfortunately, Sen. Mitch McConnell and the Republican elected officials he controls, are against this bill. Why? Republicans must have gotten accustomed to the huge financial contributions coming from banks, bankers, bank PACs, and the financial industry. This is the reason that the Republicans have abandoned the idea of protecting citizens from greedy bankers. Republicans now want to work with the greedy bankers against the people.
Let the Republicans in the Senate hear from you. Let them know that you want and need their support on this legislation. Here is the contact list for the U.S. Senate.
