The financial reform bill, with it’s Vockler rule, it’s consumer protection agency, and it’s audit the Fed amendment, is heading in for a landing.
That’s before Sen. Byrd passed and the Massachusetts Centerfold decided he doesn’t exactly like taxing banks.
And now with opposition from the left via Russ Feingold, Congressional leaders may have no choice but to give in to GOP demands to drop the bank tax, which may not even help.
First…Scott Brown
Brown, one of the original Republican yes-votes, said Friday that he was “surprised and extremely disappointed” that the bank tax had made it into the final bill.
“I’ve said repeatedly that I cannot support any bill that raises taxes,” Brown said.
Like creamer said, the American people can’t be rational with anytihng that involves the word taxes.
Democrats scurried to replace Brown’s vote, trying to secure the votes of the two Democratic noes…Wisconson’s Russ Feingold and Washington’s Maria Cantwell. Feingold is having none of it;
“As I have indicated for some time now, my test for the financial regulatory reform bill is whether it will prevent another crisis,” reads a statement from Feingold’s office. “The conference committee’s proposal fails that test and for that reason I will not vote to advance it. During debate on the bill, I supported several efforts to break up ‘too big to fail’ Wall Street banks and restore the proven safeguards established after the Great Depression separating Main Street banks from big Wall Street firms, among other issues. Unfortunately, these crucial reforms were rejected. While there are some positive provisions in the final measure, the lack of strong reforms is clear confirmation that Wall Street lobbyists and their allies in Washington continue to wield significant influence on the process.”
So those positive provisions will have to fail because Goddamn it! This bill does not meet the Russ Feingold perfection level. Feingold thinks this bill won’t prevent another crisis (he’s probably right because nothing will), and thinks it’s a sign Wall Street lobbyists continue to wield significant influence (which would probably come as a shock to them seeing as they failed to kill this bill), so his solution to the problem is…wait until AFTER the conference report comes out to make demands? Maybe Russ would feel better if we killed the filibuster so that we don’t have to placate Scott Brown to Ben Nelson and we could make the bill stronger. Oh, wait, I forgot, Feingold likes the filibuster!
Ironic- the fact that Russ Feingold, who despises Wall Street lobbyists, may actually help them deliver the defeat they’ve been paid to fight for.
Since Russ opened his mouth, both Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins have move themselves to undecided. Even with Cantwell and Byrd’s replacement, it looks like Democrats are short 2 votes.
A reader at TPM figures it out;
Coincidence that [Collins] plays Lucy hours after Feingold declares he won’t vote for financial reform? I think not. We can only hold their feet to the fire when we are united. A very selfish act from Russ, who totally misread the situation and what would happen? What are the odds that we will have the tougher bill Feingold wants in the next Congress? Exactly zero. This is real politics, not third-grade Model U.N. Feingold’s decision makes it more likely we will face another meltdown because we won’t have this majority next time around.
I’m left wondering, with the political situation so polarized, what happens when it becomes impossible to get 60 votes on ANY piece of legislation? What happens when it’s impossible to even get 50?
28 comments