Monthly Archives: February 2012

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AFR in the News: The Volcker Rule’s Unusual Critics

“What does Goldman Sachs have in common with Red Lobster and Macy’s? They all loathe the Volcker Rule. …An array of supporters of the proposed rule, including Mr. Volcker himself, pushed back against the escalating rhetoric. ‘This criticism is deeply misguided,’ Americans for Financial Reform, a nonprofit group that favors Wall Street regulation, said in a comment letter. The group said that too much of a good thing, or ‘excessive market liquidity,’ drove the financial system to the brink of collapse in 2008.”

Tell Your Members of Congress – A Wall Street Speculation Tax Makes Sense

Support for a Wall Street Speculation Tax has been spreading across the nation with more grassroots groups calling for a tax on reckless Wall Street speculation than ever before. To move forward on winning this policy change, we need members of Congress to step up and support Wall Street speculation taxes. Write your Senators and Representatives and ask them to support a Wall Street Speculation tax.

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AFR in the News: 14,479 letters supporting the Volcker Rule

“This public support for Volcker is the outgrowth of a letter-writing campaign by Americans for Financial Reform, Public Citizen, and other advocacy groups that have lobbied to defend and strengthen Dodd-Frank. Since Dodd-Frank was passed, regulators have invited the public to weigh in on the new rules before turning the blueprints into final law.”

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AFR Press Release: Organizations Call for Strong “Volcker Rule” to Reform Wall Street Speculation

Americans for Financial Reform, Public Citizen, and Occupy the SEC hosted a conference call with reporters and bloggers Tuesday, February 14th at 2:00 PM EST to discuss the importance of the “Volcker Rule” and calling on the regulators to draft an effective final rule, and to resist industry’s efforts to defend a status quo that serves Wall Street special interests and puts the public at risk.

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AFR in the News: Industry Opponents Slam Volcker Rule as Volcker Defends It

“The controversial Volcker rule that regulates proprietary trading came in for a final round of comment as frustrated bankers, anti-Wall Street activists and Paul Volcker himself flooded government regulators with last-minute statements before the deadline Monday at midnight. …Backing up Volcker were a number of Democrat senators as well as a coalition group comprising Americans for Financial Reform, Public Citizen, and Occupy the SEC, a sub-group associated with New York’s Occupy Wall Street movement.”

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AFR in the News: AFR on Volcker: Not Tough Enough

“Americans for Financial Reform letter on the rule: ‘There are significant positive elements in this proposed rule. But it still falls well short of fully implementing the statute. It is clear from both the legislative history and the text of the statute that in passing the Volcker Rule Congress sought fundamental change in the American financial system by restoring basic firewalls between the banking system and the capital markets.'”

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AFR Press Statement: President Obama’s FY 2013 Budget

“President Obama’s FY 2013 budget request would increase the CFTC budget to $308 million…also increases funding for the SEC to $1.566 billion…AFR strongly supports the increased funding levels, and believes that adequate funding for these regulators is vital to holding Wall Street accountable, and preventing another financial crisis. Huge volumes of hidden and un-backed derivatives trades were a key cause of the financial crisis. …With millions of Americans still out of work, more than $8 trillion lost in home values and retirement savings, and millions of foreclosures it could not be clearer that Wall Street must not be allowed to gamble in the shadows.”