On the recordMay 5, 2010
We passed a good bill that had a lot of measures. Subsequent to that, after it went over to the Senate, there has been stalling by the Republican Senators. We've had closed-door meetings by leadership of the Republicans in the House and in the Senate, both here in Washington and on Wall Street, because the financial firms on Wall Street like the status quo. We've seen their profits. They're back to the days of big bonuses. But our neighborhoods are still struggling. Our neighborhoods are still trying to get out of the foreclosure crisis that has impacted them, And it's going to be years before they come out of that crisis. It's the most important thing that we can do here is make sure that this never happens again, but our Republican colleagues in the Senate are standing in the way. At least here, the Republicans just voted 'no,' but they couldn't stop the process from moving forward. We, as a Congress, have an obligation to the people. We, as a Congress, have an obligation to the people to ensure that the crisis that we found ourselves in never happens again. We do that through strong regulatory reform. We've passed a strong measure in the House. We're waiting upon the Senate to tell the American people that we won't let this happen again. That is our responsibility, and that's what we need to impress upon people as we move forward. Enough of the closed-door meetings with Wall Street; it's time to act on behalf our constituents.
