Chris Dodd: “I would be the last person to suggest as a coauthor of the bill that we have crafted the perfect piece of legislation.…”

“I would be the last person to suggest as a coauthor of the bill that we have crafted the perfect piece of legislation. As he points out, these are highly complicated areas. One of the reasons we tried not to write a series of regulations far beyond the competency of those of us in this Chamber is because it is complicated. Obviously, we have delegated the ultimate responsibility that we now have, which is to watch, the oversight, to the regulatory community, to make sure they do this right. I pointed out yesterday, and he has pointed out again today, when we get into a situation such as this crisis, certain words become pejorative, and 'derivatives' unfortunately has become that, and it shouldn't. These are very critical components for capital formation, job growth, and wealth in our country. Hedging against risk is absolutely essential. So they are vitally important elements in our economy. I hope people, when they hear the word 'derivative' being spoken won't assume this is somehow a bad idea.”