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Congress' Choice: Real Derivatives Reform Or Another Wall Street Earthquake by Robert Johnson, OurFuture.org | November 18, 2009
This post is an excerpt of testimony presented to the Senate Agriculture Committee on November 18, 2009 in a hearing on legislation reforming regulation of financial markets. The testimony was presented on behalf of Americans for Financial Reform. read more »$140 Billion for Bonuses, Zero for America’s Future by Dave Johnson, OurFuture.org | November 11, 2009
Here is another story about Wall Street’s war on the real economy. US Steel was planning to invest $1 billion in building an environmentally-friendly new “coke battery” plant in Clairton, PA. The new battery would dramatically reduce the emissions used in the process, and use the gases to produce electricity. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, read more »The Angelides Commission: Tell America What Happened by Robert Borosage , OurFuture.org | September 17, 2009
Today the new Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, modeled after the New Deal-era Pecora Commission, begins its investigation into possible misconduct by the financial sector causing last year's market meltdown. read more »Pecora II Meets, Grassroots Mobilizes by Isaiah J. Poole, OurFuture.org | September 17, 2009
In their first meeting Wednesday, members of the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission—often characterized as the second coming of the Pecora Commission that investigated the causes of the Great Depression—clarified how they see their mission and what we can expect. read more »Wall Street Rules: The Bernanke Reappointment by Robert Borosage , OurFuture.org | August 27, 2009
The reappointment of Ben Bernanke as Chairman of the Federal Reserve -- cleverly timed to defuse the news of burgeoning federal deficits -- was preordained. The "markets" demanded it, and as James Carville noted, when the markets speak, presidents listen. read more »Let The Financial Inquest Begin by Isaiah J. Poole, OurFuture.org | July 15, 2009
Now that congressional leaders have named the members of the Financial Services Inquiry Commission—what is often referred to as the "Pecora Commission"—we are going to see once again who is prepared to lay the groundwork for real financial reform and who is going to stand in the way. read more »Financial Reform: Up To Us To Change The Game by Isaiah J. Poole, OurFuture.org | June 17, 2009
There's a reason why lawbreakers don't get to negotiate the terms of their punishment or their parole. There is no bartering to be done between the protectors of law and order and the violators of law and order. There are only two basic questions for the person who dared to stand outside the law: What is required of you to atone and what must be done to prevent that lawbreaking from recurring. read more »A New Player in the Banking Reform Fight: Citizens by Mike Elk, OurFuture.org | June 11, 2009
The fact that regular citizens have been largely excluded from the debate over financial regulation on Capitol Hill was underscored most vividly when Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill, said last month that "frankly the banks own the place." read more »The U.S. Chamber of Commerce: Threat To Capitalism by Eric Lotke, OurFuture.org | June 11, 2009
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce announced yesterday that it would “develop a sweeping national advocacy campaign … to defend and advance America’s free enterprise values in the face of rapid government growth and attacks by anti-business activists.” The Chamber doesn’t get it. They aren’t defending capitalism and free enterprise. They are all but destroying it. read more »Wall Street Journal Throws Citi Under The Bus by Robert Borosage , OurFuture.org | June 10, 2009
I stopped reading The Wall Street Journal editorial page when it soared off into wingnuttery, writing tomes on the imaginary conspiracy to off Vince Foster and other fantasies. The news pages remain useful; the editorial page hasn't improved much. read more »
The Latest
Goldman Sachs 'Most Aggressive' In Demanding Cash From AIG, Huffington Post | July 9, 2010
Goldman Sachs was the "most aggressive" financial firm to demand cash from AIG on what it viewed as souring deals during the financial crisis, the head of a federal investigative panel said Wednesday. more »
N.Y. Challenger Saujani Embraces Wall Street in Bid to Enseat Rep. Maloney, The Washington Post | July 8, 2010
They did not always feel this way about Maloney. The 64-year-old Democratic representative hasn't faced a serious challenge to her seat since she was first elected in 1992. For nearly two decades, they have viewed her as a solid, if unremarkable, member of Congress. more »
Lobbyist Urges Community Banks to Back Regulatory Reform, Not Wall Street, bloomberg.com | July 7, 2010
A lobbyist for community banks privately urged his industry not to oppose the U.S. regulatory overhaul, warning that smaller lenders are being used by Wall Street to derail the legislation. more »
Sen. Brown: 'I'm Liking What I See' on Financial Reform Legislation, thehill.com | July 6, 2010
Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) offered a hint that he may support the financial reform bill when it comes to a final vote later this month.
“I’m going to be making a decision soon, but I’m liking what I see,” Brown told WHDH television station in Plymouth, Mass., on Sunday. more »
Wall St. Plans Payback for Reg Reform, Politico | July 6, 2010
That compromise hasn’t stopped the financial community from singling out Lincoln for scorn.
"She told us she knew Congress had to be sensible in its approach to dealing with derivatives, and then she went and hit us with her amendment,” a financial executive said. “It was pretty amazing.”
Lincoln says she’s not worried, despite facing a difficult reelection fight this fall.
Democratic Campaign Committees Losing Big Wall Street Donors, The Washington Post | July 6, 2010
The drop in support comes from many of the same bankers, hedge fund executives and financial services chief executives who are most upset about the financial regulatory reform bill that House Democrats passed last week with almost no Republican support. The Senate expects to take up the measure this month.
Senate Dems Closer to Wall St. Overhaul as Cantwell Voices Support, blogs.abcnews.com | July 2, 2010
Senate Democrats took a big step towards passing the Wall Street reform bill tonight as Maria Cantwell, D-Washington, announced that she will vote for the measure.
Cantwell had opposed the bill when it first passed the Senate in May, but she now will support the version that emerged from the conference committee.
Regulators Made Sure Goldman Sachs Got All Of Its Bailout Money, truthdig.com | June 30, 2010
A devastating report in The New York Times documents how Timothy Geithner’s New York Fed worked tirelessly to make sure that AIG was forced to pay banks such as Goldman Sachs 100 percent on dubious contracts that might otherwise have been slashed or subjected to lawsuits. For his efforts, Geithner was promoted to run the rest of the nation’s economy. more »
Kagan Hearing Day One: The Battle To Define ‘Judicial Activism’ , wonkroom.thinkprogress.org | June 29, 2010
If someone does a word cloud of today’s opening statements in the Kagan hearing, the word “activism” will dominate the screen. And this is nothing new. Conservative senators figured out a long time ago that if they label anyone to the left of Samuel Alito a “judicial activist” then their more progressive colleagues will put their tail between their legs and cower.
Knocking Kagan's Experience, GOP Attack May Backfire , Huffington Post | June 28, 2010
As the Senate begins hearings for Elena Kagan’s Supreme Court nomination, Republicans are returning to a critique that separates Kagan from every sitting Justice. She has no judicial experience. more »
