NYT: It's past time for President Obama to take off the gloves

[flpoljunkie]

I could not agree more. Emphasis mine.

Nearly a Year After Dodd-Frank
Published: June 13, 2011


Without strong leaders at the top of the nation’s financial regulatory agencies, the Dodd-Frank financial reform doesn’t have a chance. Whether it is protecting consumers against abusive lending, reforming the mortgage market or reining in too-big-to-fail banks, all require tough and experienced regulators.

Any potential fight pales compared to the one under way over the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau where, as ever, the Republicans are more interested in protecting bankers than consumers.

As their price for confirming a director, they want to vastly expand the power of bank regulators to veto the bureau’s decisions and put controls on the bureau’s financing that will make it more vulnerable to political pressure. They have also made clear their particular disdain for Elizabeth Warren, the Harvard law professor and prominent reformer who has been working as a presidential adviser to set up the bureau.

The White House has recently floated another possible nominee, Raj Date, a former banker who is now working with Ms. Warren. Mr. Date has an impressive résumé, but not nearly as impressive as Ms. Warren’s. Why go with a compromise candidate when Republicans have vowed to block any nominee? Mr. Obama and Senate Democrats should back Ms. Warren and expose to American voters just exactly whose interests the Republicans put first.

Mr. Obama has been criticized for not doing battle for another excellent nominee, Peter Diamond, a Nobel Prize laureate in economics who withdrew his name after Republicans vowed to block him from the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. They said his background in labor economics made him unqualified, even though full employment is one of the Fed’s mandates. Mr. Diamond clearly could have served ably, but Republicans were more interested in obstruction. It’s past time for President Obama to take off the gloves.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/14/opinion/14tue1.html?_r=1&hp

[Botany]

1. Want to win in 2012? just keep repeating the following.

Republicans are more interested in protecting bankers than consumers.

along with

Republicans are more interested in protecting oil companies than consumers.

&

Republicans are more interested in the very rich than the middle class.

or

Republicans are more interested in polluters than the environment.

[flpoljunkie]

2. That said, it's good Tester's amendment to extend banks' debit fee profits failed and is now dead

It needed 60 votes, and got 54 votes, including 19 Democrats. Someone said Dick Durbin has beat the banks twice. Really unheard of. Kudos to Dick Durbin!

I hope this means the House companion bill is also dead. It is coauthored by none other than Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

[blm]

5. You could also switch the word interested to INVESTED.

.

[bahrbearian]

3. And take off the Golf shoes,,make Boner shoot Hoops ,

That would be fun to watch.

[mazzarro]

4. Haa! It Will Probably Take Him 8 years To Take Off One Glove -- n/t

[ChiciB1]

8. DING, DING, DING!! And While Taking Off That One Glove, He's Doing

a Gypsy Rose Lee dance too! Very, very slowly...
JMHO!

[bigdarryl]

6. it's two early for that shit the election is a year in a half away JESUS!!!

[ChiciB1]

9. bigdarryl, You've Been Here For A Long Time So I Won't Play English

teacher with you. In the end it probably doesn't matter much to most because they understand what you are saying.

And yes, I AM an ass for even commenting... I'll say it first. I'm just weird on some days though.

[woolldog]

7. Obama is a wimp

Let's face it, he's had 3 years to stand up to Republican's and he hasn't. I see no reason to believe he'll suddenly start doing so now.

[indepat]

10. The time for the President to have taken off the gloves was:

January 20th, 2009! :patriot:

[ClarkUSA]

11. lol! I recall the same whiny advice to Senator Obama from the MSM peanut gallery all during 2008.

Guess what happened? :eyes:

It's amazing to me to listen to the hubris of people who have never run for office nor successfully managed a presidential election giving advice to a black man who ran the best campaign operation in modern history and won the presidency against all odds despite having the name of Barack Hussein Obama.

[Canuckistanian]

12. I'd love to see him in a PROLONGED battle about ANYTHING

He seems to be "hit and run" about most subjects. One speech, done. That's his official position on the matter.

There are ZERO classic clashes of personalities, no great debates, no grand manoeuvrings...

I don't know what I'm talking about. I just wish there was more back and forth.