Despite promises to reign in the corruption on Wall Street, lawmakers are continuing to drag their feet allowing banks and investment agencies to continue fattening their wallets. In 2010, President Obama signed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Since the laws passing, less than half of its provisions have been implemented.
In the absence of the Volcker Rule’s provisions, along with the other 200 plus rules yet to be fully enunciated, the wealth of the nation’s 10 largest banks has grown by nearly 40%, according to the Wall Street journal.
According to this report, the reason the banks have yet to experience the full effect of the Dodd-Frank law and provisions like the Volcker rule is due to bickering and childish squabbles between the individuals negotiating.
“These men and women are entrusted with our nation’s financial well being and it is discouraging to find that they are playing with that trust,” commented Peter Mougey, an attorney with the Levin, Papantonio law firm who leads the firm’s business and corporate litigation department.
The Volcker rule specifically is designed to prevent banks from engaging in speculative investments with the banks funds that, should they be profitable, will not directly benefit those who have placed their money with the bank.
“Wild speculation, fraud and misrepresentation were largely to blame for the banking crisis we are still fighting to recover from,” Mr. Mougey continued. “Speculative investing was a particularly outlandish behavior that the banks engaged in. Everyone has heard of toxic assets and knows that trading in those commodities was largely the result of speculative practices. Of course the banks would fight reigning that practice in. Taxpayers were left to foot the bill and clean up the mess last time.”
It’s time for these lawmakers to stop sitting on their hands and finish fleshing out Dodd-Frank before these banks succeed in positioning themselves against the American people again. The Volcker rule’s passing, to borrow from Wall Street’s terminology, is too big to let fail.
Joshua is a writer and researcher with Ring of Fire. Follow him on Twitter @Joshual33.
