Political Quotes

“Madam President, Congress is now on the brink of passing a landmark deal on legislation to reform Wall Street and prevent another financial crisis like the one we faced nearly 2 years ago. This legislation is an important and long overdue measure that will help to safeguard the long-term stability of our economy. In the closing months of the Bush administration, our Nation faced an economic situation so dire that many feared our financial system was on the verge of collapse. Though we were able to avert such a collapse, the impact of the crisis spread across America, leaving few untouched. Virtually all of us have been impacted by the economic meltdown in some way: businesses shed jobs, workers' hours were cut, some folks had great difficulty making their mortgage payments when their pay was cut, small businesses lost customers and revenue in the downturn. South Dakota homeowners, regardless of whether they had a mortgage or owned their home outright, saw their equity drop, and most folks with investments for retirement or other long-term goals suffered losses either through the stock market plunge, bond market turbulence, or passbook savings interest rates that hovered near zero percent. Lending at our Nation's banks contracted, spending fell, and overall consumer confidence plummeted. Americans were rightly angry that while they were losing their homes, jobs, and long-term savings, they were also expected to foot the bill for the irresponsible actions of Wall Street CEOs.…”