Press Call at 5pm: Senator Jeff Merkley Joins Barney Frank and Public-Interest Advocates in Decrying Attempted Rollback of Dodd-Frank
WASHINGTON – At 5 pm today (Weds. Dec. 10), Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and former Representative Barney Frank, co-author of the landmark 2010 financial reform law, will outline the dangers of a House spending-bill provision that would repeal an important piece of the Dodd-Frank Act.
If the deal goes through, the biggest Wall Street banks would once again be allowed to make highly risky gambles in the derivatives markets – a form of activity that was one of the drivers of the 2008 financial crisis and of the economic devastation that followed – knowing they will be bailed out by taxpayers if things go drastically wrong
Under the terms of Dodd-Frank, bank holding companies must segregate, and independently fund, their riskiest and most exotic derivatives trading so that taxpayers no longer need fear being left on the hook for bad bets. But now, in a backroom deal buried deep in a stopgap government-funding measure, influential lawmakers seem prepared to do Wall Street’s bidding by including a measure – originally authored by lobbyists for Citigroup, the New York Times reports – that would undo this reform.
WHEN: TODAY, Wednesday, December 10th and 5:00pm EST
WHO:
- Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
- Congressman Barney Frank, former Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee and co-author of the Dodd-Frank financial reform law
- Damon A. Silvers, director of policy and special counsel for the AFL-CIO
- Nancy Zirkin, executive vice president of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
- Lisa Donner, executive director of Americans for Financial Reform
DIAL-IN INFORMATION: Please RSVP to [email protected]. Dial-in: 866.952.1907 Verbal Passcode: “Press”