The Democratic Party can always count on CNN New Day co-host Chris Cuomo to push their talking points for them. On Wednesday, Cuomo spewed nonsense about President Trump's support for reforming Dodd-Frank and the "Consumer Protection Agency":
He's also attempting to roll back parts of the Dodd-Frank bill, passed in the wake of the financial crisis, effectively making it easier for those on Wall Street to once again gamble recklessly. He's also hobbling the Consumer Protection Agency.
First of all, Dodd-Frank is a complete disaster that doesn't protect anybody. Instead, it hinders small banks and puts a massive regulatory burden on the economy that does not prevent abuses. It was also unnecessary considering one of the main causes of the economic crash was the government essentially forcing banks to give out subprime loans. Meaning, no, it wasn't just a bunch a greedy Wall Street executives running wild. Many of them were taking their orders from Washington.
Second, the main feature of the Republican reform bill is as follows:
If they maintain a significantly higher level of capital, they would receive additional regulatory relief — the choice for which the bill is named. Higher capital means less indebtedness and more funding through ownership stakes. The idea is that requiring higher capital would reduce the likelihood of a bank collapsing and also institute more market discipline because owners have more skin in the game. No banks that had the levels of capital required by the bill failed during the crisis.
In other words, Dodd-Frank is built off of a false assumption. This GOP bill would be an improvement. The attack isn't surprising though, as this isn't the first time Cuomo has pushed this narrative.
Now, when it comes to the "Consumer Protection Agency," Cuomo probably does not have the slightest clue what he is referencing. In fact, I know he doesn't because there is no such thing as the "Consumer Protection Agency." What he means is the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), which is also a disaster. It is a bureau that is accountable to no one, yet wields serious power in its ability to enforce regulatory laws on banks including small ones and there is nothing Congress or the president can do about it. They are an agency of harassment that answers to no one. The Trump administration is arguing in court that it is unconstitutional for the head of the agency to be unfireable. But Chris would know none of this because he gets his information spoon fed to him from the Democrats.
Cuomo also stated that "Trump famously pulled out of the Paris accord, but he's also moving to roll back the clean power plants, the Waters of the United States rule, that protects smaller bodies of water and the Arctic drilling ban."
In reality, the EPA has used this rule to prosecute people for having puddles on their property, destroying lives. The Supreme Court has rebuked them many times, only to have the radicalized agency redefine what "waters" defines.
See the following reports for more details on the rule:
Final 'Waters Of The U.S.' Rule Is More Overreach By EPA
The “Waters of the United States” Rule and the Void-for-Vagueness Doctrine
