Reason Number 1,427 Why I Want Elizabeth Warren to Run for President

This is Senator Elizabeth Warren questioning banking regulators about illegal foreclosures. From the sound of things, the regulators look out for the banks, not citizens. And Sen. Warren draws that out meticulously. If Hillary Clinton won't run, get this lady to run! And Hillary does run, I want to see Clinton/Warren 2016!

After Spending $9 Million To Defeat Her, Wall Street Watches Sen-Elect Warren Join Banking Committee

I pulled the entire quote from the article excerpted below, because it made me laugh out loud. A hearty Nelson Muntz Ha-ha! to Wall Street! And a heartier you go girl! to the wonderful Elizabeth Warren!

Image from ZD-Net

[Excerpt]

After Spending $9 Million To Defeat Her, Wall Street Watches Sen-Elect Warren Join Banking Committee

Get 'em, Liz! Image from source.

The Huffington Post’s Ryan Grim reported Tuesday that Sen.-elect Elizabeth Warren, a dogged consumer advocate whose critique of Wall Street excess was a centerpiece of her campaign, will join the Senate Banking Committee. Wall Street spent boatloads of money to prevent Warren’s election, but now, as the Center for Responsive Politics noted, she will have oversight of the rules and regulations under which banks operate. . .

Read more at: Think Progress

Obama, Durbin in War of Words with Bank of America

I'm a Bank of America customer in good standing, with a decent balance, and a 17-year history. I've been a good customer. I have a no-fee checking account, do all of my bill paying electronically, and make most purchases with my debit card. I might write out one physical check every couple of months. And I rarely carry more than twenty or thirty dollars on me.

I'll be honest, even with pay and benefit cuts in this economy, a $5 per month fee is not going to break me. But $60 a year just to continue banking as I have since the Clinton Administration seems ridiculous. So, I'm contemplating switching banks. Which takes study, detailed notes undoing and redoing my electronic payments. And what's to stop my hypothetical new bank from changing their policy, and charging me for their debit card? [Story continues below]




All of this came out of a bill by Barney Frank and Chuck Dodd, which was created to protect consumers from all sorts of financial abuse by the big banks. The relevant part here cut debit card "swipe" fees at retailers in half. Supposedly, doing this would save retailers money, and they'd pass on the savings. . .which, I'll admit, is dubious. Those swipe fees were costing retailers a huge chunk of change, and the banks were getting very fat and happy from it. I don't know how much it actually costs a bank to move money around electronically, but I'm betting it is in the low pennies range.


So, Dodd-Frank stemmed the tide of mega-millions of dollars the banks were essentially getting for nothing. They're still pocketing a lot, mind you. Just not as much. So, naturally, any corporate entity that finds profits cut needs to find a way to get it back. Even if it's sort of an "ill-gotten gains" sort of situation. And so, Bank of America is sticking it to customers. Good customers.  Like me. 


Details are hard to find. But what I've found so far seems to be this: if you have a mortgage at BofA, or a $20,000 combined account balance, your $5 fee is waived. The Other Half has the mortgage, and my balance isn't that healthy. But in this economy, what percentage of BofA customers' is? So for now, I guess I pay the $5. But I'm keeping my options open in the coming months.

[Excerpt]


Banks Fire Back at President Obama Over Debit Card Fees

The American Bankers Association is firing back at President Obama for his comments in an interview about bank fees, including Bank of America's move to add a monthly fee for customers to use its debit cards. . .

Read more at: ABC News