Democratic presidential candidate and socialist Bernie Sanders will pledge to break up the country’s largest financial institutions within the first year of his administration should he win the White House next November. He plans to make that pledge in a speech in New York on Tuesday afternoon.
In a rare policy address detailing his financial regulation plans, Sanders will vow to create a “too-big-to-fail” list of companies within the first 100 days of his administration whose failure would pose a grave risk to the U.S. economy without a taxpayer bailout, according to aides familiar with his plans. He would force those banks and insurance companies to reorganize within a year.
“Greed is not good,” Sanders plans to say, according to excerpts of his remarks. “And, here is a New Year’s Resolution that we will keep: If you do not end your greed, we will end it for you.”
Sanders has made regulating Wall Street a focus of his insurgent primary bid, questioning whether front-runner Hillary Clinton would crack down on what he sees as financial sector excesses. Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, have made tens of millions in speaking fees from addresses to Wall Street banks, insurance companies and other financial firms.
She also opposes reinstating the Depression-era Glass-Steagall Act, which effectively limited the size of financial companies by prohibiting commercial banks from engaging in investment banking activities. Sanders would re-establish the law, initially repealed during the Clinton administration.
Clinton’s campaign tried to pre-empt Sanders speech on Monday afternoon, putting out a statement from a top aide arguing that Clinton’s financial regulation proposals would do more to crack down on industry abuses.
“In his speech tomorrow, Sen. Sanders should go beyond his existing plans for reforming Wall Street and endorse Hillary Clinton’s tough, comprehensive proposals to rein in risky behavior within the shadow banking sector,” said the statement from Gary Gensler, a top campaign finance official and former chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The only countries where Socialism works (Sweden) are those that a well
educated populace with a strong work ethic (full employment). Certainly
not the case in the USA presently.
Alluha Akbar. Akavit soon to be banned in Sweden.
Socialism works until other people’s money runs out, and it runs out quickly when government gives to nonproductive undereducated people.
Will our banks be replaced by socialist “Credit Unions”?
When Glass-Steagall was enacted in 1933, the regulations ended the bomb bust cycle of the banking system. Let’s face it, the banking system has been a main benefactor of the government handouts and regulations that benefit the banks and harms the average American family. What Sanders is trying to do is increase competition in the current banking oligopoly. After the collapse of 2008, the banks have increased in size and political power! Does America need this?
The headline doesn’t match the story. The modern banking system is taking risks which could wipe everyone out. Thanks to their adventures in the derivatives market a house of cards has been created that would destroy a lot of the world’s economic system if it collapsed.
With the FDIC on the hook to protect the first $200,000 of each person’s deposits the government has a vested interest in seeing that a high-rolling banker doesn’t wipe everyone out when his bets fail. I suspect most Americans would support such a move if the presidential candidates’ names and party affiliations were withheld and the voters were told what the law was attempting to prevent.
SANDERS AND CLINTON SOUND LIKE STALIN AND MAO TALKING ABOUT WHO CAN DESTROY A COUNTRY FASTER.
Think the 2008 “crash” was bad?
Those big out of control banks are 10X worse than they were then.
The next time is going to rock this country, and probably the world, to its knees.
Our HOLY FATHER GOD, the ALMIGHTY, YOU said in YOUR Holy Scriptures: “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” 2 Thessalonians 3:10b, NIV. Thank YOU for stating clearly that we should work for our food. Clearly, YOU told us not to depend on anyone else for food provided that we can work. If a man cannot work, then YOU told us to help that man in every way we can including to give him food and clothing and shelter. Please help us HOLY FATHER to heed YOUR Words and not anything else. YOURS is the KINGDOM, the POWER and all the GLORY now and forever! MARANATHA! AMEN!
Odd not seeing political ads by Wall St to tear down Sanders yet.
wonder why???
Sweden and other nordic countries are not quite the same.they don’t have a large defense budget,are very disciplined,and are not wasteful in welfare programs