Liberal Lions Roar
This is where the tire hits the road. The great recession did not have to happen. It happened because constraints on Wall St. were eliminated leaving the savings and investments of Americans vulnerable to the greed and recklessness of Wall St.
Especially, the repeal of Glass-Steagall in 1999, which had been protecting American's savings since it was installed in response to the abuses of the Wall St. elite in 1933, left the country's pensions and livelihoods at great risk.
So our Liberal Lions in the Senate are taking matters into their own hands.
Jason Easley at Politicususa.
Two of the most prominent liberals in the Senate have joined forces to take on the big banks as Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has announced that he is teaming up with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) to co-sponsor her bill that would reinstate the Glass-Steagall Act.
In a statement, Sanders said:
I strongly support Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s bill to reinstate the Glass-Steagall Act.
On July 1, 1999, while Congress was voting on the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act to permit commercial banks, investment banks and insurance companies to merge, then-Rep. Sanders said: “I believe this legislation, in its current form, will do more harm than good. It will lead to fewer banks and financial service providers; increased charges and fees for individual consumers and small businesses; diminished credit for rural America; and taxpayer exposure to potential losses should a financial conglomerate fail. It will lead to more mega-mergers; a small number of corporations dominating the financial service industry; and further concentration of economic power in our country.”
Read the rest of Senator Sanders statement
here.
The repeal of Glass-Steagall was signed into law by former President Clinton, who has continued to defend his deregulation. Glass-Steagall could be a thorny issue for Hillary Clinton on the Democratic primary campaign trail. The post-Great Recession era is not the go-go 90s. Senate liberals are fighting to keep the country from repeating the economic mistakes of the recent past.