On the recordMay 4, 2010
I applaud and commend my friend, the distinguished chairman of the Banking Committee, Senator Chris Dodd, for the bill we have on the floor. I also express my appreciation for the work done by the chair of the Agriculture Committee, Senator Blanche Lincoln. The work of these committees is the bill on which we are working, offering amendments to this most important piece of legislation. The bill that is now before the Senate is a strong bill. I again express my appreciation to the two chairs for the good work they have done. This bill will hold Wall Street accountable and put consumers in control. It ends taxpayer bailouts and guarantees taxpayers will never again be forced to bail out reckless Wall Street firms by creating a way to liquidate failed firms without taxpayer money. That is going to be underlined and underscored with an amendment that is first up, the Boxer amendment, which indicates that is, in fact, the case. It ends too big to fail with strict new capital and leverage requirements to prevent firms from growing too big to fail. It brings sunlight and transparency to shadowy markets. It was really a revelation to me to read a book entitled 'The Big Short' by Michael Lewis, who wrote the book that was made into a movie and received an Academy Award, 'The Blind Side.' This book is good. It indicates to anyone who reads it the shadowy markets which are now in existence and which we are trying to stop.
