Every House Republican but one (Walter Jones [NC]) voting on Thursday voted to repeal Dodd-Frank, while every Democrat voting rejected it. That means Republicans and Republicans alone want a return to the days when Wall Street can abuse and defraud consumers and destroy the global economy with impunity. The bill guts every essential element of the Wall Street reform law intended to protect Americans and the economy, and to keep big banks from running amok.
Crafted by House Financial Services Chairman Jeb Hensarling, the bill passed despite vehement objections by Democrats to preserve the sweeping law aimed at preventing another financial crisis and protecting American consumers. […]
Hensarling's bill would give the president the power to fire the heads of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a consumer watchdog agency created under Dodd-Frank, and the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, at any time for any—or no—reason.
It also gives Congress purview over the CFPB's budget, meaning lawmakers could defund the agency entirely.
The GOP proposal would also bar the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. from overseeing the so-called living will process, which requires banks to write up plans on how they would safely be unwound in the event of a collapse. The FDIC and the Fed are the two regulators responsible for overseeing this requirement under the 2010 law.
As of now, though, the so-called "Financial Choice Act" has an unlikely path in the Senate, unless Majority Leader Mitch McConnell decides to nuke the filibuster for legislation like he did for Supreme Court nominees. Even then, Senate Banking Chairman Mike Crapo (R-ID) has made an effort to work to a degree with ranking member Sherrod Brown (D-OH) on crafting something that could get some Democratic support, and Brown is holding the line. "Democrats have shown we're willing to work with Republicans to tailor the rules where it makes sense, but not if it means killing the reforms that have made the financial system safer and fairer," Brown said before the House vote. Crapo is setting low expectations for quick work, saying his target is early 2018.
By early 2018, everything could change. The Republican Congress could be facing the rage of a nation for repealing Obamacare. Popular vote loser Donald Trump could be completely mired in the Russia investigation and effectively neutered. But the House vote shows there is a very strong will among Republicans, spurred on by emboldened Wall Street banksters, to steal it all while they can.