Just because Wall Street has bounced back (via government handouts that became near record bonuses) doesn't mean the victims of their practices have. This is a classic example of time (and easy money) killing a deal. Wall Street rallied the troops - also known as lobbyists with deep pockets - and now the reform that would benefit everyone outside of Wall Street is on life support. Does anyone really trust the financial industry to do the right thing more than government regulators?
President Obama's focus, we're now told, is on jobs, jobs, jobs. That's nifty, but it doesn't bode well for other big-ticket policy goals, such as creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency to safeguard us from abusive bank practices.
That idea, which Obama championed and leading Democratic lawmakers embraced, is now expected to be a long shot thanks to ferocious opposition by the banking industry, which says no additional regulatory oversight is needed.
