Financial Regulation

The Republican Retreat From Market-Based Regulation

By Mark Thoma

During the debate over the repeal of Obamacare, Republicans made frequent reference to their desire for a “free market” for health care. This is consistent with the GOP’s long-standing support of...
Who’s Watching Wall Street? The Feds Turn a Blind Eye to Goldman’s Game

By David Dayen

Why are House Republicans working so hard to repeal Wall Street reform when regulators have shown so much willingness to neglect tougher laws?
You Get What You Pay For: Banks Spent Billions on Lobbying During the Election

By Pete Schroeder, Reuters

Banks and other financial companies expecting big benefits from Republican-led deregulation spent record amounts on lobbying in the last election cycle, according to an advocacy group report released...
The One Way Trump’s Administration Really Is a Fine-Tuned Machine

By David Dayen

The government-by-mood-ring fluctuations of the Trump presidency have corrected the myth that politicians conjure up devious plans to manipulate the public years in advance. It’s beyond clear that...
Trump the Populist Is Trying to Hobble a Champion of the Little Guy

By Ciro Scotti

After being bested by Hillary Clinton in a primary contest that saw the deck stacked against him by the Clinton Machine, Bernie is back in the Senate doing what he has always done for the past 30-odd...

Overhauling Dodd-Frank May Not Succeed, but Also May Not Matter

By Liz Peek

Nancy Pelosi says President Trump’s call to reshape Dodd-Frank is a “massive con” and that he is putting #WallStreetFirst. Sadly, she has set the tone for Congressional Democrats, siding with...
Populist on the Trail, Trump Pivots Toward the Banking Industry

By Rob Garver

After a campaign spent railing against his opponent’s connections to Wall Street banks and promising to stand up for ordinary Americans against the moneyed interests holding them back, President...
In the Trump Administration, Credibility May be a Problem

By Mark Thoma

As a department chair at a university, you learn that a promise from the Dean or anyone else in the administration is good for about five years. That’s approximately how long Deans last, on average,...
Here’s Who Wins With Trump’s Order to Slash Regulations

By Rob Garver

Trump on Monday morning signed an executive order on Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs. The order is unquestionably a gift to the business community, which constantly complains of...
How the GOP Could Wipe Out Federal Regulations in One Easy Step

By Rob Garver

A new interpretation of an old law may allow Republicans to wipe out decades of federal regulations. Congressional Republicans have been eager to dismantle many of former president Barack Obama’s...

A Close Eye on the Fed for the Path of Interest Rates

By Philip Blenkinsop, Reuters

American policymakers have the chance this week to give clearer guidance on the future path of interest rates and settle markets that are uncertain over how and when a hike would occur. Global...
The Woman Who Brought Down a Massive Tax Fraud Ring

By Rob Garver

Two years ago, a branch manager at Widget Financial, a federal credit union in Erie, Pennsylvania, began to get suspicious. He had been processing several account opening requests and thought it...
Little Credit Union Uncovers Massive Tax Fraud

By Rob Garver

An alert employee at a tiny credit union in Western Pennsylvania helped tip the FBI to a tax fraud ring draining tens of millions from the U.S. Treasury. The indictment shows that the Internal...
Taxpayers Hit Twice by Fast-Food Pay Practices: Report

By Suzanne McGee, The Fiscal Times

When McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD) becomes the first of the major publicly traded restaurant chains to deliver up its first-quarter earnings Tuesday morning, investors hope that it will give the sector a...
Crackdown on Flash Trading Gathers Momentum

By Suzanne McGee, The Fiscal Times

Instead of waiting for a complex computer monitoring system to cough up evidence that something might be amiss, New York’s attorney general has fired off a set of subpoenas to half a dozen firms,...

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