Warren Blasts GOP Over Obstruction

This lady is fast becoming one of my favorite senators. She wanted to become the head of the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), so she could protect American consumers from being taken advantage of by the giant banks. The Republicans blocked that to protect the Wall Street moguls they worship. So she went back to Massachusetts and defeated Republican Senator Scott Brown. Now she's back in Washington in a much more powerful position -- and still determined to do what's best for American citizens.

And believe it or not, the Republicans are still blocking the appointment of anyone to be the head of the CFPB. This time it's Richard Cordray (who was nominated by President Obama after it became clear that Professor Warren could not be approved). It's been over a year now, and the GOP is treating Cordray just like they did Warren. They are blocking his nomination, and they say they will continue to block it until the CFPB is weakened by rewriting the law that created it. They are still trying to protect the giant banks instead of the citizens they were elected to protect.

But this time there's something different. Senator Elizabeth Warren is not only in the Senate, she's on the Senate Banking Committee (a nightmare for the Wall Street moguls). And that committee is the one where the Republicans are trying to hold up Cordray's nomination to head the CFPB. This week that committee is once again questioning Mr. Cordray for the umpteenth time -- and Senator Warren has had enough of it. When it was her turn, she didn't bother to question Cordray. Instead, she aimed her remarks at the Republican senators trying to weaken the CFPB protections by delaying Cordray's nomination. Here is some of what she had to say:

"I see nothing here but a filibuster threat against Director Cordray as an attempt to weaken the consumer agency. I think the delay in getting him confirmed is bad for consumers, it's bad for small banks, bad for credit unions, for anyone trying to offer an honest product in an honest market."

"The American people deserve a Congress that worries less about helping big banks, and more about helping regular people who have been cheated on mortgages, on credit cards, on student loans and on credit reports."

"What I want to know is why, since the 1800s, have there been agencies all over Washington with a single director, including the [Office of the Comptroller of the Currency], but unlike the consumer agency, no one in the U.S. Senate has held up confirmation of their directors demanding that the agency be redesigned."

"What I want to know, is why every banking regulator since the Civil War has been funded outside the appropriations process -- but unlike the consumer agency, no one in the U.S. Senate has held up confirmation of their directors demanding that that agency or those agencies be redesigned."

"And what I want to know is why there are agencies all over Washington whose rules are final subject to ordinary reviews and oversight, while the CFPB is the only agency in government subject to a veto by other agencies -- but unlike the CFPB, no one in the U.S. Senate holds up confirmation of their directors demanding that those agencies be redesigned."

Thank you Massachusetts, for sending this wonderful woman to Washington! Ted Kennedy would be very proud to have Elizabeth Warren holding the senate seat that he had held for many illustrious years.

Why ?

I have often wondered this same thing. Why do the Republicans hate American workers so much? Common sense would tell anyone that when working men and women are doing good and have money to spend, then everyone benefits (including large and small businesses and the economy in general). It also increases government revenues, since the mass of Americans would be paying taxes.

Instead the Republicans support policies designed to protect only the rich. They have killed the president's jobs programs, opposed regulations on financial institutions that would benefit most Americans, and fought to weaken unions (which has resulted in a shrinking middle class). Why do they do this? It makes no sense.

A Portrait In Courage

It was just a couple of months ago that Ted Kennedy was diagnosed with brain cancer. Since then, he has undergone brain surgery, and is currently receiving radiation and chemotherapy treatments. These treatments can be very debilitating, but they didn't stop the irrepressible senator from returning to the Senate today to help his colleagues kill a Republican filibuster.

The Republicans were trying to kill a bill that would restore the 10% cuts in Medicare payments that became effective on July 1st. Before the holiday break, Democrats had fallen short by one vote to end the filibuster. Kennedy determined that he would not allow that to happen again.

As he returned, his comrades in the Senate gave Senator Kennedy a standing ovation. Kennedy said, "I return to the Senate today to keep a promise to our senior citizens -- and that's to protect Medicare. Win, lose or draw, I wanted to be here. I wasn't going to take the chance that my vote could make the difference."

It turned out that his vote wasn't needed. The filibuster was ended and the bill was passed on a 69 to 30 vote. But needed or not, Kennedy was there to stand up and be counted. We could use a few more Democrats with his courage and stature.