Consumers Be Damned: Trump Open to Deregulation Giveaway for Even Larger Banks
Trump Says He’s Open to Rolling Back Dodd-Frank Regulations That Protect Consumers and the Economy from Larger Banks
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, during a signing ceremony for a massive bank giveaway bill passed by Congress yesterday, President Trump said he was open to “rolling back Dodd-Frank regulations for larger banks.”The Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act established important consumer and economic safeguards following the 2008 economic collapse that cost millions of Americans their homes, jobs, and retirement savings. Trump’s comments come just two days after U.S. banks reported record profits.
“Donald Trump’s comments today should worry us all. Dodd-Frank is as vital today as it was after the 2008 economic collapse. The president is systematically stacking the deck in favor of powerful Wall Street special interests and mega banks. He promised American workers he’d ‘drain the swamp’ and protect them – he lied,” said Karl Frisch, executive director of Allied Progress.
He continued, “Large banks are making record profits and don’t need help from the D.C. politicians they’ve showered with millions of dollars in campaign cash. You know who does need help? People who are still putting their lives back together after losing everything when huge banks and financial institutions plunged our country into the Great Recession.”
What You Need To Know
- Today, Donald Trump admitted he was open to rolling back Dodd-Frank regulations for larger banks. On May 24, 2018, President Donald Trump said “‘maybe we’ll have to take a look’ at rolling back Dodd-Frank regulations for larger banks,” during remarks at the bill signing for S.2155, the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act. [Kasia Kilmasinska and Toluse Olorunnipa, “Trump Suggests Possible Dodd-Frank Rollback for Larger Banks,” Bloomberg Government, 05/24/18]
- This comes two days after US banks reported record first quarter profits. Just two days prior, the Wall Street Journalreported that U.S. banks earned “$56 billion in net income in the first quarter, up 27.5% from the prior year’s quarter” figured the Journalsaid were “a strong indication that banks have managed to adapt their businesses to new regulations put in place following the 2008 financial crisis.” [Ryan Tracy and Telis Demos, “U.S. Banks Reported Record First-Quarter Profit,” Wall Street Journal, 05/22/18]
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