It’s official: President Obama has signed into law the most sweeping financial regulatory overhaul since the Great Depression, and in so doing declared that the new laws will foster innovation, not hamper it.
Speaking at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C., Obama noted that over the past two years the nation has faced the worst recession since the Great Depression, with millions of Americans losing their jobs and watching the value of their retirement savings decline.
“The primary cause was a breakdown in our financial system,” Obama said. For years, the U.S. financial system was governed by “antiquated” rules, he added; rules that “left abuse unchecked and taxpayers on the hook if a financial institution failed.”
“There will be no more tax-funded bailouts … period,” Obama added, and he noted that lawmakers will still need to “make adjustments” to the rules as the financial system adapts to the changes.
Obama also touted the broader economic benefits of new consumer financial protections.
“These reforms represent the strongest consumer financial protections in history,” Obama said in a prepared statement on the new financial rules.
After a burst of applause the President added: “Because of this law, the American people will never again be asked to foot the bill for Wall Street’s mistakes.”
“These protections will be enforced by a new consumer watchdog with just one job: looking out for people — not big banks, not lenders, not investment houses — in the financial system. Now, that’s not just good for consumers, that’s good for the economy,” he said.
