Political Quotes

“Madam President, I rise to speak about the issue of Wall Street reform, which I know is near and dear to the Senator from New York, who represents Wall Street. I do believe what Congress achieved last year on Wall Street reform was wise not only for our Nation but also to avoid the possibility of another recession. There are many financial institutions across the United States, including New York, but the fact is, many of their practices led us into the recession we are now experiencing. It was quite a battle last year. Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, now retired, led the battle on the floor of the Senate to try to make sure we had the necessary oversight and balance when it came to our financial institutions to avoid the likelihood of another recession. The banks fought back, but in the end we prevailed and Senator Dodd passed the measure here in the Senate, and it was passed in the House of Representatives under the leadership of Congressman Barney Frank of Massachusetts and signed by the President. It really gave us a chance to move forward with oversight, regulation and reform on Wall Street. It was signed last July by the President, but many of the most important elements of the Dodd-Frank bill will not go into effect until July 21 of this year. Several of them are very important to America and important to me as an individual because as a Senator I offered an amendment to this bill. It was a controversial amendment and, for the banks, an expensive amendment.…”