Today, Senate Republicans, led by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, put their cards on the table with regards to Wall Street/financial reform. While all parties on both sides can agree that new consumer protections are necessary going forward, it already seems as if Republicans are destined to rerun the partisan dynamic of the health care debate by saying no upfront to the proposed bill. Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd of Connecticut is the sponsor of the new bill, which aims to protect consumers of mortgages and credit cards by setting up a regulatory committee within the Federal Reserve that will make sure Americans are getting a fair deal, and also sets up a system to wind down failing companies to prevent bailouts from being necessary. To do the later, the wealthiest banks will pay a tax which will create a $50 billion dollar fund to be used to bring large failing banks and financial institutions down easy.
Instead of going forward on the sources of common ground that exist in the bill, McConnell did the exact opposite. He pointed out that he believes that the bill does not go far enough to prevent future bailouts, a description which does not seem to hold water given the second provisions implicit purpose. This move immediately puts the process in a familiar place. Rank and file Republicans will replicate the sentiments of the Minority Leader, while Democrats are likely to be forced to fend off myth after myth about a common sense bill that should be passed in a bi-partisan form as written. It seems way too convenient for the Republican leadership to all of a sudden become the anti-bailout party after ignoring the need for real regulation for decade after decade. Once again though, it seems that reasonable ideas of the few bi-partisan actors left in Congress are being framed into partisan talking points, which will only lead Republicans down the road to yet another defeat on a bill they should be for in principle.
If the passed and proposed reforms in both health care and finance prove to be effective, it will be a hard sell for Republicans to explain to voters why they were against reforming these two broken systems, amongst the many other reforms they have rejected. The minority party cannot accept its current status in second place, thus there is no honest desire shown by Republicans to compromise with the majority party on anything non-unanimous. This is unhealthy for a proud democracy like ours; where it is expected that we disagree on many things, but where it is also expected that we do what is right for our citizenry despite our politics. We should act to reform our weaknesses in the name of making America a better place for generations to come.
In an election year such as this, it is fairly predictable that the Republican establishment will do whatever possible to prevent President Obama from advancing his ambitious agenda. They will likely once again threaten the use of the filibuster, and even threaten to shut down the government over the funding of healthcare reform. It is then up to the voters to determine whether this is how they want their nation governed. Will we allow petty politics to impede progress? Or is it time to encourage the leadership of both parties to acknowledge the damage their partisan behavior has had on the already fragile reputation of the legislative process? As we watch the debate over financial reform and Wall Street regulation play out, it will be interesting to see who acts predictably, and who sides with common sense bi-partisan solutions to the costly banking and financial sector problems we face.
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