President Obama said the financial reform compromise struck in the wee hours this morning is the “toughest” overhaul in decades, praising the measure’s transparency and consumer protections as he left for the G-20 gathering of the world’s 20 largest nations in Canada.
Obama told reporters from the White House South Lawn the bill contains “90 percent” of what he wanted, including a new consumer protection agency, “whose sole job will be to look out for you.”
He lauded rules to require credit card and mortgage companies to “play by the rules,” use “easy to understand forms” and limit fine print.
He added that, “No longer will we have companies that are quote, unquote, ‘Too big too fail.’”
Obama said he’d make the case to world leaders that their economies are linked and that smart reform can prevent a financial crisis and “protect all nations.”
The House and Senate reached a deal early this morning in conference committee negotiations. In the end, bank-friendly Democrats and progressives reached something of a draw on the bill. Wall Street won some battles — like getting to continue investing a significant amount of equity in hedge funds — but for the most part, the final bill is pretty close to the version passed by the Senate this spring.
Check out TPMDC’s full coverage of financial reform here.
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