WASHINGTON DC - Today, Senator Chris Dodd, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, released new legislation to crack down on Wall Street abuses and reform our financial system. Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley issued the following statement:
“It’s been a year and a half since the risks and reckless behavior of Wall Street blew up our economy and cost Americans billions in taxpayer bailouts, lost jobs, foreclosed homes and evaporated savings. In the months since, the refrain from Wall Street has been, ‘Trust us – it won’t happen again.’
“Well that is not good enough for the American public which is demanding accountability and an end to the casino mentality of the large financial firms. We must act now and be very clear that taxpayer bailouts to cover the bad bets of big banks have come to an end. Our first priority must be the long-term economic stability and well-being of Main Street – not the short-term profits of Wall Street.
“The Restoring American Financial Stability Act is a significant stride towards a stronger financial system and I look forward to working with Senator Dodd and my colleagues to produce a bill that addresses several important challenges: ending ‘too big to fail’, getting risky investing out of the banks that families and business owners depend on, and protecting consumers from abuses.”
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