Brown Statement On Meeting With Treasury Secretary Nominee Jack Lew
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown released the following statement on Jack Lew’s nomination for Treasury Secretary:
“Jack Lew is clearly qualified for the job and has a long and impressive record of public service. In our meeting today, Mr. Lew underscored the commitment President Obama made in his inaugural address to stand up for the middle class. I did raise my concern with Washington’s long held bias towards Wall Street, particularly the largest megabanks that have only grown bigger since the financial crisis. I also pressed Mr. Lew on the need for Treasury to take decisive action when countries like China cheat by manipulating currency. While the Treasury Department has taken modest steps, American manufacturers and workers deserve a level playing field when competing with other industries and other countries.”
Brown is the author of the Currency Exchange and Oversight Reform Act, legislation that represents the biggest bipartisan jobs bill—at no cost to U.S. taxpayers—passed by the Senate in 2011. The legislation would allow the U.S. government to stand up for American jobs when China cheats by manipulating its currency to give its exports an unfair advantage.
He also introduced a bill to protect American taxpayers by placing sensible size and leverage limits on our nation’s largest financial institutions. As he explained in The Washington Post in June, the Safe, Accountable, Fair & Efficient (SAFE) Banking Act of 2012, would hold Wall Street accountable, prevent future bailouts, and protect American homes, jobs, pensions, and businesses.
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