Political Quotes

“I rise today to discuss an issue that I and many of my colleagues are very excited about: crowdfunding, which allows startups and small businesses to harness the power of the Internet to pool investments from ordinary Americans intrigued by their ideas. These ideas can range from revolutionary new technologies to simple projects that can improve communities in need. If crowdfunding is going to take off, this new market needs to inspire confidence in both investors and small businesses. That is why in December of 2011, I introduced S. 1970 with Senators Michael Bennet and Mary Landrieu and in March of this year the bipartisan, compromise crowdfunding amendment with Senators Michael Bennet and Scott Brown. That amendment passed the Senate by a vote of 64 to 35 and was included in the JOBS Act, which passed the Senate and the House of Representatives and was signed into law by President Obama in April of this year. In putting this legislation together, I was guided by two goals: 1, enabling this market to work for startups and small businesses and 2, protecting ordinary investors from fraud and deception. Fortunately, in many cases, these goals are aligned. The long-term ability for companies to efficiently raise capital will depend on investors' confidence in the reliability of the marketplace. I believe that the legislation we produced sets the right framework for this marketplace to meet both goals.…”