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The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission: Meaningful or Milquetoast? by Les Leopold, OurFuture.org | January 11, 2010
Every once in a long while a commission can change America. The 1954 Army-McCarthy hearings destroyed Senator Joe McCarthy by revealing his out-right viciousness and insincerity through the new media of television. The Watergate hearings helped to bring down a president. And the Pecora hearings in 1933 uncovered Wall Street scam after scam that enriched the bankers who crashed the financial system. read more »Bernanke: Time's Man of the Year by Robert Borosage , OurFuture.org | December 16, 2009
Time Magazine's naming Ben Bernanke "Man of the Year" is a little bit like celebrating an arsonist for his heroics in putting out a fire that he set. Bernanke has done creative and bold work in staving off a fianancial free fall. But he would also be on any list of the 10 people most responsible for creating the free fall. read more »Bernanke: 'The Definition Of Moral Hazard' by Isaiah J. Poole, OurFuture.org | December 3, 2009
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke employed his characteristic smoothness and conciliatory nature as he navigated the questioning at today's confirmation hearing before the Senate Banking Committee, helped by the largely gentle questioning by Democrats on the committee. Ironically, the most pointed progressive critique of Bernanke's stewardship of the Fed did not come from any of the Democrats but from the far right. read more »Sanders Puts Hold on Bernanke Nomination by Robert Borosage , OurFuture.org | December 2, 2009
Senator Bernie Sanders has announced he will put a hold on the Bernanke nomination. Sanders wants the Finance Committee to hold serious hearings probing Bernanke's actions leading up to the financial collapse, and the emergency measures he took, committing literally trillions to bolster private financial institutions without a vote of Congress. read more »Before You Appoint Ben, Audit Ben by Robert Borosage , OurFuture.org | December 2, 2009
In this video, Robert Borosage lists the questions that members of the Senate must get answers from Ben Bernanke on if he is to earn re-appointment to chair the Federal Reserve. A related action campaign emailed to Campaign for America's Future supporters calls on them to tell their senators: "Before You Appoint Ben, Audit Ben." read more »Bernanke Breaks the Law. His Own. by Eric Lotke, OurFuture.org | November 30, 2009
Thursday December 3 is the date of both the President’s Jobs Summit and the reconfirmation hearing of Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke. We should seize the opportunity to examine the statute that creates the Federal Reserve: read more »Obama’s Jobs Summit and Bernanke’s Reappointment: Connect The Dots by Eric Lotke, OurFuture.org | November 30, 2009
How ironic that President Obama’s jobs summit should be scheduled on the same date (Thursday, December 3) that the Senate Banking Committee has scheduled the reconfirmation hearing of Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke. read more »The Independence of the Fed by Dave Johnson, OurFuture.org | November 27, 2009
Reps. Ron Paul and Alan Grayson are trying to get the Federal Reserve audited. Last week the House Financial Services Committee passed an amendment to their financial regulatory reform bill that would mandate an audit. read more »In The Fed We Trust? Will The Senate Reward The Architect Of The Wall Street Bailout? by Robert Borosage , OurFuture.org | November 25, 2009
Will the Senate vote another term for Ben Bernanke as head of the Federal Reserve? Should it? read more »Watchdogs And Lapdogs On Financial Reform by Isaiah J. Poole, OurFuture.org | November 20, 2009
There was a major victory for accountability this week in the financial reform fight, but there was also a demonstration that when it comes to protecting the profits of bankers at the expense of ordinary people, no institution does it better than the Party of No. read more »
The Latest
In Deficit "Town Meetings," People Reject America Speaks' Stacked Deck , Huffington Post | June 28, 2010
On Saturday, the group known as America Speaks (funded by Wall Street mogul Peter G. Peterson and two other foundations) brought together several thousand people in meetings in 60 cities. They gave participants misleading background information about the federal deficit and economic options to achieve fiscal "balance" and future prosperity.
Democrats Court Republican Votes on Wall Street Reform, thehill.com | June 24, 2010
Democrats finalizing a 2,000-page bill that would overhaul Wall Street are moving to satisfy a handful of Republican senators whose votes may be necessary to pass the legislation.
The Democrats’ vote-counting strategy is strikingly different than on healthcare reform, which every congressional Republican opposed.
Final Derivatives Showdown Thursday: Read The House Offer , Huffington Post | June 24, 2010
The long-awaited showdown between banks and Sen. Blanche Lincoln over her derivatives reform section of the Wall Street bill begins Thursday morning. more »
Blanche Lincoln Holds Ground as Democrats Seek Deal, Politico | June 24, 2010
Salazar Pledges New Order to Bolster Deepwater Drilling Ban, thehill.com | June 23, 2010
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar on Tuesday said he will soon issue a new order that freezes deepwater oil-and-gas drilling in response to a federal judge’s decision to block the existing ban.
A federal judge on Tuesday issued an injunction against the six-month deepwater drilling ban that Salazar imposed in late May in response to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Landrieu Urges White House to Reconsider Appeal, thehill.com | June 23, 2010
Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) told The Hill that the White House should reconsider its plan to appeal a court decision that blocked a federal ban on deepwater offshore drilling.
A federal judge on Tuesday granted an injunction against the administration's six-month moratorium on deepwater wells, which the Interior Department imposed in the wake of the BP oil spill.
Lawmakers Agree to Broad Terms for Consumer Protection Agency, mcclatchydc.com | June 23, 2010
Oversight Exemption for Auto Dealers Gaining Traction, The Washington Post | June 23, 2010
Banking Lobbyists Make a Run at Reform Measures, The New York Times | June 21, 2010
Study: Speculation Tax Would Make Wall Street Pay, blog.aflcio.org | June 18, 2010
The AFL-CIO and the global union movement have been demanding that Wall Street pay for creating the global economic meltdown, in part through a financial speculation tax. more »
