Van Hollen, Moore, Andrews, Perlmutter Discuss Wall Street Reform Bill
Highlight Continued Efforts by the GOP to Protect Wall Street Banks and Corporate Special Interests over Main Street
Washington,
Dec 10, 2009 -
Today, Congressman Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Congressman Dennis Moore (D-KS), Congressman Robert Andrews (D-NJ), and Congressman Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) discussed the Wall Street Reform legislation, and Republicans’ continued and dogged opposition to holding big banks and financial firms accountable, strengthening consumer protections, and ending taxpayer-funded Wall Street bailouts.
“Democrats continue to stand on the side of families and small businesses who worked hard and played by the rules, and this important legislation caps a year of common sense reforms and stronger consumer protections. The Wall Street Reform bill finally holds Wall Street banks accountable, and brings much needed transparency to a financial system run amuck. It helps ensure taxpayers are never again on the hook for Wall Street’s risky behavior and bad bets, and protects families’ financial futures from unnecessary risk by Wall Street lenders and high-paid corporate executives,” said Van Hollen. “This bill addresses the regulatory disaster left behind by the Bush Administration, Republicans, and big banks. It is mindboggling that our Republican colleagues have decided to stand with the big bank lobbyists and oppose this important bill – in the same way they have opposed almost every common sense reform measure this year. We still hope that they will join us in supporting consumers rather than the special interests.”
“I am glad to say much progress has been made on H.R. 4173, the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2009, and I look forward to voting on it tomorrow. This bill is just the most recent example of how we are putting the consumer and the American taxpayer back in the driver’s seat – fighting the interests of some of the largest financial institutions that helped get us in the current financial situation,” said Moore.
“While Republicans are trying to derail legislation like the Affordable Health Care for America Act and the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act, we are standing up for working families to put real reforms into place to fix our flawed health care system and provide affordable, quality education opportunities,” said Andrews. “Scrambling to serve Wall Street’s special interests and allowing them to make their own rules is not the way to lift America out of recession.”
“We are taking on the special interests and addressing the Wild West era of lax regulation that existed and was encouraged through the policies of the Bush Administration,” said Perlmutter. “We are addressing consumer protection, investor protection, hedge funds, credit rating agencies, insurance, derivatives, say-on-pay, mortgage reform, and ‘too big to fail’.”
This year alone, Republicans have opposed efforts to reform our health care system, provide consumer protections against credit card company abuses, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and address the causes of the housing crisis. In each instance, they have aligned themselves with big special interests instead of working families and businesses that worked hard and played by the rules. Earlier this week the GOP made their alliances clear when they huddled with industry lobbyists in an effort to oppose the Wall Street Reform bill, instead of listening to the American people and supporting much needed reform.
Congressman Chris Van Hollen
