Dorgan THREATENS Filibuster

[Segami]

HOPEFULLY, More will follow his lead. Why aren't we doing this right from the get-go?


North Dakota's Byron Dorgan is retiring after this year. He doesn't have much to lose. Financial reform has been one of his pet projects for years. He's not shy about pointing out that he predicted the financial crisis in a 1994 Washington Monthly cover story warning of the hazards of derivatives.


Still, Dorgan had been relatively muted in his criticism of the financial reform bill cobbled together by Sen. Christopher Dodd, who is also retiring this year and who sees financial reform as his crowning achievement. But things had been bubbling behind the scenes. Dorgan was especially upset that his proposed amendment to the financial reform bill wouldn't even get a vote. His amendment would prohibit naked credit default swaps, which Dorgan views as little more than pure gambling by the big banks, not a way to hedge their financial risks, but merely placing bets on other people's bets.


Dorgan took to the Senate floor yesterday with a floor speech that ripped the financial reform bill as not real reform (video).

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmKsaxZ_Hjg&feature=player_embedded>



In the Senate Democratic Caucus meeting today, Dorgan and other progressive senators pressed the leadership to allow their amendments to strengthen the bill to come to a vote. According to Dorgan, the leadership relented and said his amendment would be one of the ones to come to a vote.

But tonight, as Brian Beutler reports, when the list of amendments to be voted on was released, Dorgan's was not among them. A frustrated Dorgan approached Dodd and Majority Leader Harry Reid on the floor this evening and told them he would filibuster financial reform if his amendment doesn't get a vote. "I understand everybody thinks their amendment's important, but the question of the unbelievable speculation in credit default swaps that have no insurable interest -- if we can't vote on something like that, given what we've seen in recent years, then it's not really financial reform," Dorgan told us.

In truth, most of the progressives' amendments stand little chance of passing. But they're staking their claim on at least getting a vote on them. Now Dorgan has upped the ante with a filibuster threat.


<http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2010/05/dorgan_threatens_filibuster.php?ref=fpblg>

[RC]

1. That's my Senator!

:yourock:

[femrap]

28. Is there a good progressive

running for his spot in the Senate?

Naked CDS are total gambling. Hell, you can bet on a nation collapsing now! It's sick. I swear I'm living in a nightmare.

[snappyturtle]

35. I was SO looking forward to having Dorgan for a Senator....moving to

ND within a month. He would have been in such contrast to Cornyn or my rep. Lamar Smith.

However, I am glad he's not just coasting out of office. YES! He rocks!

[Better Believe It]

2. Does Senator Reid decide what amendments get voted on and how many votes to pass are required?

Some amendments require 60 votes and others require only 51 votes to be passed according to news reports.

Anyone who has details on the above with credible links please respond.

Thanks.

[EFerrari]

3. If he can get this done before he leaves, that would really be something.

[aquart]

4. Do TIIC think we can retake Congress without it?

Stupidity and greed are a horrid combination.

[pansypoo53219]

5. FINE.MAKE HIM!

no more play acting. MAKE THEM. we can break it. IF YOU MAKE THEM.

[mdmc]

27. I hope he does

Dodd is all set to go lobby for wall street. Someone needs to stand for the working people. Dodd and Reid are sad ass folk..

[laughingliberal]

6. Good for him!

Is he not one of the few who voted against Rubin's wet dream bill in 1998 and warned us we would regret it in 10 years? And was he not proven 100% correct? It would behoove leadership to pay attention.

[Enthusiast]

7. When Dorgan retires we all lose.

And naked credit default swaps should be completely illegal under all circumstances. Why should tax payers be put at risk, ever.

[mmonk]

8. +1

[Captain Hilts]

19. +1. Big Time. nt

[grantcart]

23. yep a big big loss

[mmonk]

9. I have a book by Senator Dorgan called, "Reckless"

How Debt, Deregulation, and Dark Money Nearly Bankrupted America (And How We Can Fix It)

Progressive lawmakers exist in the Democratic Party only for their numbers now. They are not allowed real chances at real power or real reform because the Democratic Party is a conservative party under the DLC power structure. I for one, would like to see him filibuster until real reform amendments are allowed so that the politicians can show their real colors (green) and people can readily identify where they stand.

Thanks for listening

[Segami]

10. Its time progressives push back against fake politicians who claim to represent the People's best

interest.

[blue97keet]

29. I have the same book by Dorgan

Also "Take this job and ship it."

Naked swaps should go to China.

[mmonk]

33. Yep.

:thumbsup:

[malaise]

11. Dorgan has more credibility on matters financial

than most of them.

[Skidmore]

12. OK. Let's get on the horn and support him.

Call for support of the Dorgan amendment.

[Segami]

13. Thats a start. What bothers me the most is how they DELAYED the voting timetable

in order to give ( an observation by many ) Blanche Lincoln cover till after the May 18 Democratic primary. It also allows her to continue bellowing out her empty reform drivel knowing full well if a vote was called today, she would vote NAY and claim some other amendment as the culprit. Its all financial smoke & mirrors to tame & appease us sleepy folk into believing they are implementing REAL financial reform on behalf of the people's business.



" One of the most far-reaching pieces of the Senate's Wall Street reform bill has powerful enemies. The White House doesn't like it. FDIC chief Sheila Bair doesn't like it. Obama adviser Paul Volcker--the patron saint of financial reform--doesn't like it. And neither do a number of key Democrats, including Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd. All of them say that a controversial proposal to force financial firms to spin off their derivative-trading desks into separate entities goes too far.

But they may have gotten themselves stuck with it--at least for now. With their assent, the plan was authored by Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), who designed it to guard her left flank against a somewhat formidable primary challenge, and has been boasting of it on populist grounds for weeks. And that according to Republican and Democratic Senate sources, has led Democrats to quietly agree to postpone any changes they decide to make to her proposal until after this Tuesday's election has passed, to avoid embarrassing her in front of voters.



<http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/05/sources-dems-seek-to-protect-lincoln-by-delaying-action-on-wall-street-reform.php>

[Skidmore]

14. Then we need to demand it NOW!

Which means calls to Reid's office too.

[ProSense]

15. "One of the most far-reaching pieces of the Senate's Wall Street reform bill has powerful enemies. "

The problem is that the amendments by Dorgan, Lincoln and Merkley address the same problem.

Merkley-Levin is basically the Volcker rule, which bans such trades and limits the scope of banks.

[Segami]

16. Is Dorgan grandstanding or are there real distinct differences between the Volcker Rule & Dorgan's

proposed amendments.



But the Volcker Rule seems to have usurped attempts to bring back Glass-Steagall. The president’s proposal, announced Thursday, would ban bank holding companies from owning, investing in or sponsoring hedge funds or private equity funds and from engaging in proprietary trading, or trading on their own accounts, as opposed to the money of their customers.

Mr. Obama has called the ban the Volcker Rule, in recognition of his outside adviser, Paul A. Volcker, the former Federal Reserve chairman, who has championed the proposal.

In light of Mr. Obama’s proposal, Ms. Cantwell applauded the president for his efforts, but she stood by her bill.

“I still support our legislation because I think it is a cleaner, simpler way to get at the problem, so that would be my preference,” Ms. Cantwell told DealBook. “We’ll see what the president’s language is in specific, because I think the details matter here.”

Under the Volcker Rule, for example, Bank of America would still be able to keep Merrill Lynch’s brokerage services and investment banking units. But if Glass-Steagall were to return, Bank of America would need to sell virtually all of Merrill Lynch and return to being just a retail bank.

That major change is too much for some lawmakers to swallow, especially after the government helped orchestrate Bank of America’s acquisition of Merrill Lynch in the first place in 2009 — not to mention JPMorgan Chase’s takeover of Bear Stearns earlier in the year.


-----------

But debate in the House and Senate committees could water down the bill’s impact on the banks, but it could also toughen the bill up to look a bit more like Glass-Steagall. Senator Byron Dorgan, Democrat of North Dakota, praised the president’s proposal but said that it doesn’t go far enough in addressing the problem of banks too big to fail.

“The Volcker Rule is important to do, but that is not the end point at all,” Mr. Dorgan said, “Should we do more? Absolutely. The other piece of this is that we have to recognize that putting F.D.I.C.-insured banks with investment banks in big holding companies was the wrong thing to do.”

<http://kaufman.senate.gov/press/in_the_news/news/?id=6704eb2d-5056-9502-5d57-b45c1139bef7>

[ProSense]

17. I don't know, but I do know

that Senators are going to stand up for their amendments as the best of the bunch.

The Cantwell-McCain amendment calls for the reinstatement of Glass-Steagall firewall. Still, wouldn't this make Cantell-McCain the most important amendment? Would it address the scope of the problem? Likely not since there were further erosions of regulations under the Commodities Modernization Act.

[defendandprotect]

32. Yes on Glass-Steagall even if McCain . . . but wasn't Doran going to do the same?

I thought he was trying to introduce legislation on returning to Glass-Steagall?

And was rebuffed -- then was leaving -- connected?

Thought that's what it all was . . . I could be wrong.

[bobbolink]

24. Toll-free Capitol Hill Numbers

Toll-free Capitol Hill Numbers:


1-800-828-0498 1-866-388-1015 1-866-220-0044 1-877-851-6437

[Captain Hilts]

18. Dorgan rocks. Always has. He's just not 'cool' enough for most folks. nt

[slipslidingaway]

20. knr nt

[pundaint]

21. Nice link - it's refreshing to hear a good idea from congress every now and again.

[pleah]

22. K&R

[bertman]

25. He must have a pretty good retirement fund already set up; otherwise, he'd be doing like

Dodd and Reid and kissing the Banksters' asses.

Hear! hear! for Byron Dorgan, my new hero.

Rec.

[mdmc]

26. DORGAN!

I stand with Dorgan!

[Hubert Flottz]

30. I hate to see Byron Dorgan go.

He's been telling the repubs how it really is for a long time. I usually agreed with him on most things. I can't blame the guy for wanting out of that side show.

[defendandprotect]

31. I like Dorgan and a 6th grader could have pegged derivatives as gambling/risk . . .

not investment.

Personally, I think we've been skirting a depression . . .

Obama said that in a statement a few weeks ago, quickly scrubbed --

Dorgan also came close to saying it ... and switched at last moment.

Someone else on the floor of the Senate the other day was calling it a "Great Recession."

BP hides oil flow figures --

Government also hides info from citizens.

[pmorlan1]

34. Good for you, Senator Dorgan!

I wish he would filibuster. The question is would our corporate media even cover it?

[moondust]

36. Kick for Senator Dorgan.

Filibuster as necessary, Senator.