Thursday, January 21, 2010

Obama Speaks on Banking Reform Jan. 21 - Video

Obama says a bank tax is not enough. He's proposing the "Volcker rule."
The proposal would:

1. Limit the Scope - The President and his economic team will work with Congress to ensure that no bank or financial institution that contains a bank will own, invest in or sponsor a hedge fund or a private equity fund, or proprietary trading operations unrelated to serving customers for its own profit.

2. Limit the Size - The President also announced a new proposal to limit the consolidation of our financial sector. The President’s proposal will place broader limits on the excessive growth of the market share of liabilities at the largest financial firms, to supplement existing caps on the market share of deposits.

In the coming weeks, the President will continue to work closely with Chairman Dodd and others to craft a strong, comprehensive financial reform bill that puts in place common sense rules of the road and robust safeguards for the benefit of consumers, closes loopholes, and ends the mentality of “Too Big to Fail.” Chairman Barney Frank’s financial reform legislation, which passed the House in December, laid the groundwork for this policy by authorizing regulators to restrict or prohibit large firms from engaging in excessively risky activities.

As part of the previously announced reform program, the proposals announced today will help put an end to the risky practices that contributed significantly to the financial crisis. WH

Warren Buffett weighs in on taxing bankers, and healthcare. It's interesting that the media always considers Buffett's word gospel. At the end of the video, Robin Roberts remarks that Buffett has lived in the same home for years and years, not noting that he has at least 3 homes. Good stuff. Those on the left are cheering these proposals.