Category Archives: Accountability

Representative Michele Bachmann has put out an urgent plea to stop a dangerous bill about to be voted on.

From Michele Bachmann’s site.

“Bachmann: House Preserves ACORN’s Role in TARP II

 
 
Washington, D.C., Dec 10 –

(Washington, D.C.) U.S. Representative Michele Bachmann (MN-06), member of the House Financial Services Committee, made the following statement after the Democrat Leadership denied the entire House an opportunity to vote on her amendment to prevent ACORN from participating in the Consumer Financial Protection Agency’s Oversight Board.  The Consumer Financial Protection Agency (CFPA) is an expansive new government bureaucracy with far-reaching powers to make decisions for consumers about the kinds of mortgages, small business loans, and other financial products they may access.  The Oversight Board will be tasked with advising the Agency’s director on strategies and policies.

“An organization that has repeatedly shown an inability to adhere to even the most basic standards of ethics should not have a role in overseeing our nation’s financial system,” said Bachmann.  “By rejecting consideration of my amendment, the Democrat Majority protected ACORN instead of American taxpayers and investors.”

In recent months, the IRS, U.S. Census Bureau, and Congress have taken numerous actions to sever ties with ACORN.  In fact, less than two months ago, the House Financial Services Committee accepted another amendment offered by Bachmann that would prevent ACORN from serving on a similar board established in the exact same bill under consideration this week.

“There is a clear consensus amongst the American people that ACORN is unfit to receive federal funds and partner with federal organizations.  The Democrat Leadership’s decision today robs Congress from having the opportunity to take an up-or-down vote on my amendment and keep ACORN out of our financial markets,” said Bachmann.”

“Star Tribune: Giving more power where power is not due
Wall Street and bureaucracy would benefit from pending reform.
 
Washington, D.C., Dec 11 –

The majority of Americans last fall were united against the $700 billion Wall Street bailout known as TARP. Proponents of the bill urged immediate action, claiming that a failure to act quickly would send the financial industry over the brink. They promised to examine the root cause of the crisis once financial markets were secure. One year later, the House is considering legislation that will result in the most far-reaching reforms of the financial services industry in our nation’s history.

But instead of addressing the real causes of the financial collapse and fixing bad government policies that led to the crisis, congressional Democrats want to codify the fiscally irresponsible bailout mania. Their bill would make taxpayer bailouts the permanent solution for dealing with reckless financial institutions in the future.

The 1,300-plus-page bill the House is scheduled to vote on today creates a “systemic risk regulator” tasked with determining which firms meet an undefined “too big to fail” test. It allows the government to tap a multibillion-dollar bailout fund to save troubled firms whenever it wants. This fund will be initially financed by a massive new tax on financial institutions and is expected to take $55 billion out of the hands of small businesses and job creators, leading to a loss of as many as 450,000 jobs. Should that fund run dry, taxpayers are on the hook to replenish it. And unlike TARP, this bill authorizes the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve to completely bypass congressional approval and directly provide such lifelines to flailing firms.

The moral hazard this bill creates will ripple through the entire financial marketplace. Providing banks with a bailout guarantee will perpetuate a cycle of irresponsibility, shielding creditors from taking the fall for making risky decisions and forcing taxpayers to ante up again and again.

Rather than increasing transparency within the Federal Reserve and directing it to focus on the nation’s monetary policy, this bill drastically expands the powers of the Fed to intervene in the private marketplace. But the Federal Reserve has already proven its inability to preemptively catch systemic risks as demonstrated by the financial crisis that occurred under its watch. Giving more power to government bureaucracies that have failed in the past will do nothing to stabilize our markets.

I support an alternative plan that addresses both the core problems in our financial system and promises American taxpayers that they will not be on the hook for Wall Street’s mistakes ever again. Three key principles guide this proposal: 1) It ends government bailouts of financial institutions; 2) It stops allowing the government to pick winners and losers in the financial industry; and 3) It reinstates market discipline by removing moral hazards that exist today.

Minnesotans know when Washington is trying to pull a fast one. While the government takeover of health care and total lack of job growth is at the forefront of everyone’s minds, we cannot let this permanent bailout legislation slip through Congress without a fight.”

http://bachmann.house.gov/News/

Must hear interview of Michele Bachmann

Breitbart TV

http://www.breitbart.tv/bachmann-on-the-b-cast-a-conservative-call-to-action/#

Thanks to commenter Katie.