ICBA Thanks Sens. Brown and Vitter for Standing Up Against Wall Street

March 12 - Camden R. Fine, president and CEO of the Independent Community Bankers of America, released this statement in support of a press release sent by Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and David Vitter, R-La., which addressed claims by the largest members of the financial services industry regarding their “too big to fail” megabank subsidy.

“ICBA thanks Sens. Brown and Vitter for their unwavering support of Main Street and their ability to see through the smoke that the Wall Street spin machine is creating as a desperate move to protect the nation’s megabanks—the same group that caused, and nearly brought down, our entire financial system during the greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression.

“We agree with Sens. Brown and Vitter that it comes as no great surprise that the megabanks’ trade associations think the too-big-to-fail problem is behind us. Further, despite the claims made by the paid cheerleaders of the megabanks, too-big-to fail is alive and well, and the banks receive taxpayer subsidies. As Vitter said, ‘Chairman Bernanke knows it, the market knows it, and the taxpayers know it.’

“In fact, last week’s remarks from Attorney General Eric Holder confirm that too-big-to-fail financial institutions operate above the law. Holder’s statement that federal law-enforcement officials have hesitated to prosecute Wall Street firms because of their size and interconnectedness shows that these institutions receive favorable treatment, not only economically but in our justice system as well.

“It’s time to expose the Wall Street spin machine for what it really is, and I look forward to seeing the results of the Government Accountability Office study, which was spearheaded by Sens. Brown and Vitter to evaluate the potential market distortions caused by too-big-to-fail financial institutions.”

For more information, visit www.icba.org.