Tag: Taxpayers

Consumer watchdog must crack down on payday lending

Maryann Olson’s monthly Social Security check wasn’t enough to cover the cost of orthopedic shoes that she desperately needed so she turned to a payday lender.  However, her $150 loan quickly turned into $1,900 in debt. I heard many stories from people like Maryann when I was fighting to end

We Must Improve the Safety of Our Nation’s Food Supply

I want to start by thanking Chairman Harkin, who worked with me to include provisions to help small farms and processors and organic farms so that they have before them in this bill provisions that support them and will help make them successful.  The last thing we want to see

It’s time to pass Wall Street reform and put middle class families first

Mr. President, I rise to address the Dodd-Frank financial reform bill and to share the reasons it makes a great deal of sense to restore the lane markers and traffic signals to our financial system–lane markers and traffic signals that were ripped away carelessly, thoughtlessly over the course of a

Wall Street: A Story in Millions, Billions and Trillions

Mr. President, tonight we had a vote in which 57 Members of this body said we should proceed to have a fully public debate and votes on issues related to Wall Street and Main Street; 57, far more than a majority, said it is time for us to come to

Chairman of the Fed Must Protect Consumers

Mr.  President, I rise today to oppose the nomination of Ben Bernanke as Chairman of the Fed.  I do so as a member of the Banking Committee who voted against his nomination in that committee, because I researched his record, and on that record I believe that Ben Bernanke is

Rebuilding the Financial Foundation for Our Families

Mr.  President, I rise today to oppose the nomination of Ben Bernanke as Chairman of the Fed.  I do so as a member of the Banking Committee who voted against his nomination in that committee, because I researched his record, and on that record I believe that Ben Bernanke is

We Need a Strong Consumer Financial Protection Agency

Mr. Merkley: I rise to give voice to my strong support for President Obama’s proposal to create a consumer financial protection agency separate from our prudential banking regulators. I believe establishing this new independent agency is critical to protecting the economic security of the American middle class and ensuring the

Transparency for Homeowners Act and Promoting Mortgage Responsibility Act

Mr. Merkley: Mr. President, I am introducing two pieces of legislation to address the very heart of our economic crisis–the housing market and the deceptive lending practices that have placed millions of homes at risk of foreclosure. In the last few years, millions of families were led into unsustainable home

Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act

Mr. Merkley: Mr. President, I rise to speak in strong support of the underlying bill, the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009, and in particular about its impact on detecting fraud in the housing industry. First, however, let me offer my appreciation to the senior Senator from Vermont for

en_USEnglish