Senate Proceeding on Sep 25th, 2008 :: 1:26:05 to 1:49:28
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1:16:08 to 1:26:05( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Christopher S. Bond

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Christopher S. Bond: or car loans. employers will not get the day-to-day operating funds they need to make payroll. the possibility of new jobs will grind to a halt. spending in investment stops. to fail to act is not an

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Russell Feingold: option. we must act now. we must act responsibly. any rescue plan that congress approves to stable use our financial system must also increase accountability so that we do not reward those who put us

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Speech By: Russell Feingold

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Russell Feingold: in this situation. any rescue plan that congress approves must increase oversight so that taxpayer dollars are protected and mistakes are not repeated. and any rescue plan that congress approves must increase

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Russell Feingold: transparency so that americans can know their money is safe. i've heard from folks in my whom state of missouri and they want their government to act now to keep the crisis from spreading from wall

1:26:43 to 1:26:57( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: street to main street but the folks in missouri also want to know what their government is doing to protect their tax dollars. i've heard from hundreds of missourians, probably thousands, calling

1:26:57 to 1:27:11( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: my office in washington, d.c., st. louis, kansas city, columbia, springfield, and jefferson city. all of these people want accountability. they want to know their tax dollars are not going to be used to

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Russell Feingold: bailout irresponsible executives who got us into this mess to begin with. these missourians know that when they lose a lot of money at their jobs, they lose their job. they don't get bonuses for doing

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Russell Feingold: it. which is why from the start i've been calling on the administration to eliminate golden parachutes, no tax dollars for fat severance packages for failed executives. the president now agrees this is

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Russell Feingold: an important step in crafting a responsible plan. i've also stressed there must be independent oversight of how the treasury handles these investments, this loan -- the loan issue -- the credit that

1:27:42 to 1:27:49( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: we extend. i will agree to -- won't agree to hand over a black check. i'm pleased the president now agrees there must be oversight. that's another important step in crafting a responsible plan. we also need

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Russell Feingold: to get taxpayer equity in participating firms. taxpayers should get something for their money. accountability and oversight, protecting taxpayer dollars -- these are main street values that were absent

1:27:59 to 1:28:13( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: on wall street when excessive greed and use of regulatory loopholes led to this crisis. these are values that were absent when investors entered into investments they did not understand and some private

1:28:13 to 1:28:26( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: citizens took on debt they could not afford. we must restore the main street values in government on wall street and in our private lives. we must also restore bipartisanship. i have come to the floor

1:28:26 to 1:28:40( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: a number of times to urge my colleagues to work together across the aisle to solve this crisis for our nation. now is not the time for bipartisan fingerpointing or partisan games. i have been disappointed

1:28:40 to 1:28:51( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: to hear many speeches on the floor with political talking points and in the press. now is the time for quick and responsible ban -- bipartisan action to stabilize the economy, protect taxpayers,

1:28:51 to 1:29:05( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: restore accountability, and increase oversight to prevent another emergency in thehe future. while it's critical we act now to address the financial crisis, we also must look to long-term reforms to

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Russell Feingold: prevent another crisis from -- in the future. i've long been an advocate for stronger oversight of fannie mae and freddie mac and a critic of those moving too slow to propose reforms, i say there

1:29:19 to 1:29:35( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: must be more effective oversight of g.s.e.'s but there's will another problem we need to address. and i mentioned that, along with other things, in the remarks i made last week saying what changes need

1:29:35 to 1:29:48( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: to be made by legislation and by administrative and regulatory action. today i am introducing a bill that goes to the heart of one of the major problems in our loan operations. we have had a system develop

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where no longer are loans just made available by the state-regulated banks and thrifts. too many loan offers come over the internet or by fax. i haven't been able to develop a good enough screening program

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Russell Feingold: on my computer to keep them out. i know what kind of solicitations are being made. they're being made by unregulated entities, people not subject to any regulation. as we say back home "we regulate

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Russell Feingold: the bricks but not the clicks." "we regulate the banks and savings and loans but not the people who offer you loans too good to be true by fax or internet." now, congress has already taken some steps

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Russell Feingold: to address the mortgage origination problem by developing a mortgage licensing and registry system through the secure and fair enforcement for mortgage licensing act of 2008. and protecting consumers by

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Russell Feingold: requiring greater mortgage loan disclosure requirements. in addition, i have worked with senator dodd, last year and this year, to include more housing counseling funding to assist homeowners. i strongly

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Russell Feingold: believe that the mortgage origination commission proposed by the secretary of the treasury is an important element to complement thesests. as many -- the efforts. the root cause of the crisis is

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Russell Feingold: traitsed to the breakdown in the motor market led by the high pressure of subprime mortgage due to many reasons, but one major reason was a loophole the government's oversight and regulatory system for

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Russell Feingold: morage origination. specifically, many mortgage brokers with no or uneven regulatory oversight originated a substantial number of all housing mortgages and over half of all subprime mortgages. to

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Russell Feingold: help close the regulatory loopholes and mortgage regulation my bill contains the key components recommended by the treasury. first the legislation creates a new federal oversight entity called the mortgage

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Russell Feingold: only nation commission -- origination commission led by a presidentally-appointed director by a seven member board comprised of key financial regulators: federal reserve, office of comptroller of the currency, office of

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Russell Feingold: thrift supervision, federal deposit insurance corporation, national credit union administration, and the state and bank examiners. the commission would be empowered to produce licensing qualification

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Russell Feingold: standards for state mortgage participants. as laid out in the bill the standards would include personal conduct, disciplinary history, minimum educational requirements, testing criteria procedures and

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Russell Feingold: appropriate license revocation standards. the commission also would evaluate, rate, and support on the adequacy of each state's system for licensing and regulation. the bill retains state-level regulation

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Russell Feingold: of the mortgage origination process but the new federal mortgage origination commission would ensure that the states have adequate protections in place and improve transparency in the mortgage original

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Russell Feingold: nation process -- origination process by providing information on the strength of each states' standards and the commission will also provide transparency in the security markets by providing evaluations

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Russell Feingold: and rating mortgages and the bill clarifies the federal government's enforcement and examination responsibilities over mortgage origination company. specifically, the federal reserve and the office of thrift

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Russell Feingold: supervision would have clear authority over mortgage originators that are affiliates of depository institutions with a federally-regulated holding companies. states would have clear authority to enforce

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Russell Feingold: federal mortgage laws governing motor transactions involving mortgage originators. formulating this legislation, the goal was to develop a proposal to provide more effective regulation, transparency and

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Russell Feingold: oversight in a streamlined manner. this bill enhances the country structure without creating a major new federal entity. if enacted, the comssion could be up and running in a relatively short time.

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Russell Feingold: as i said, the legislation mirrors the secretary of the treasury's proposal that is to be part of the over all response. i look forward to working with my colleagues to achieve this. i know time is running

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Russell Feingold: short. i hope they will carefully consider this proposal. and perhaps include it in the bill coming to us or in separate legislation. mr. president, i send the bill to the desk and i ask it be referred

1:34:51 to 1:35:04( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: to the appropriate committee. the presiding officer: the bill will be received and promptly referred. appropriately referred. mr. boernd: i thank the chair and i yield the floor and i appreciate

1:35:04 to 1:35:16( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: the forbearance of my senator from wisconsin. mr. feingold: i ask unanimous consent two legal interns in my office, yarzo yaz and current beth be granted floor privileges. the presiding officer:

1:35:16 to 1:35:32( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: without objection, so ordered. mr. feingold: last week we celebrated 221st day when 39 members of the constitutional convention signed the document. it is sad that as we consider the anniversary for

1:35:32 to 1:35:44( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: 7 1/2 years, and especially since 9/11, the bush administration has treated the constitution and the rule of law with the disrespect never before seen in the history of this country. by now the public

1:35:44 to 1:36:00( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: can be excused for being almost numb to new revelations of government wrongdoing and overreaching. catalog is breathtaking, even when immensely complicated and far-reaching programs and events are reduced

1:36:00 to 1:36:10( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: to simple catch phrases: torture, guantanamo, ignoring the geneva convention, warrantless wiretapping, data mining, destruction of e-mails, u.s. attorney firings, stonewalling congressional oversight,

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Russell Feingold: abuse of the state secrets doctrine and executive privilege; concrete an bre gaition of -- secret abrogation of executive orders. this is a shameful legacy. and that is why i believe so strongly the

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Russell Feingold: next president of the united states, whoever that may be, must pledge his commitment to restoring the rule of law in this country and then take the necessary steps to demonstrate that commitment. that

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Russell Feingold: is why also i held a hearing last week in the constitution subcommittee of the senate judiciary committee asking a range of legal and historical experts exactly what the new president and the new conditioning

1:36:48 to 1:37:00( Edit History Discussion )

Russell Feingold: must did to -- must do to repair the damage done by the current administration to the rule of law. there is in dispute the rule of law is central to our democracy and our system of government.

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Russell Feingold: but what does the rule of law really mean? well as thomas paiye said in 1776, in america the law is king. that, of course, was a truly revolutionary concept at a time when in many places the kings

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Russell Feingold: were the law. but more than 200 years later we still must struggle to fulfill his simply stated vision. it is not always easy or something that, witness done, need not be carefully maintained. in fact, justice

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frankfurt wrote that law is an enveloping ritual of behavior on the part of those entrusted with power in reconciling the pressures of conflicting interest. when we concede the rule of law as embracing

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Russell Feingold: a whole range of presuppositions on which government is conducted, the relevant question is not, has it been achieved? but, is it conscientiously and systematically pursued? the post-9/11 period is not the first

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Russell Feingold: time that the checks and balances of our system of government have been placed under great strain. as berkeley law professors wrote in testimony submitted for the hearing on this topic -- quote --

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Russell Feingold: "the greatest constitutional crisis in our history came with the civil war which tested the nature of the union, the scope of presidential power and the extent of liberty that can survive in wartime." but

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Russell Feingold: as local scholar fisher of the library of congress described in his testimony, president lincoln actually pursued a much different approach than our current president when he believed he needed to

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Russell Feingold: act in an extra constitional manner to save the union. he acted openly. and he sought congress' participation and ultimately approval of his actions. according to dr. fisher, lincoln took actions we

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Russell Feingold: are all familiar with, including withdrawing funds from the treasury without an appropriation, calling up the troops, placing a blockade on the south, and suspending the writ of habeas corpus. in ordering

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Russell Feingold: those actions, lincoln never claimed -- he never claimed to be acting legally and constitutionally, and never argued that article 2 somehow allowed him to do what he did. instead, lincoln admitted -- admitted

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Russell Feingold: to exceeding the constitutional boundaries of his office and, therefore, needed the sanction of congress. he'd recognize ed that the superior law making body was congress, not the president. of course, each

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Russell Feingold: year brings its own challenges to the conscientious and systematic pursuit of the rule of law. how the leaders of our government respond to those challenges at the time they occur is of course critical.

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Russell Feingold: but recognize ing the leaders do not alway perform perfectly, that not every president is an abraham lincoln, the years that follow a crisis are perhaps even more important. as yale law school dean

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Russell Feingold: harold coe testified at our hearing, "as difficult as the last seven years have been, they loom far less important in the grand scheme of things than the next eight, which will determine whether the

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Russell Feingold: pendulum of u.s. policy swings back from the treme place to which it has been pushed or stays stuck in a 'new, normal position' under which our policy toward national security, and human rights." the

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Russell Feingold: of course question is where do we go dpr here? one of the most important things the president must do is take concrete steps to restore the rule of law in this cufnlt he must make sure that the excesses of

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Russell Feingold: this administration don't become so engrained in you are a system that they change the very notion of what the law is. and he must recognize that we can protect our national security -- in fact,

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Russell Feingold: we can do it more effectively -- without trample ing on the rights of the american people or the rule of law. that of course is much easier said than done. but there is one immediate step, while it

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Russell Feingold: may be viewed as symbol symbolic, is critically important to the next president to take. state ing clearly and un unequivocally in the inaugural address that he renounces the current administration's

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Russell Feingold: abuses of executive power and that his administration will uphold the rule of law. to be sure this isn't the 0 only subject the new president should address, but it is among the most urgent. where

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Russell Feingold: he stands on executive power goes beyond policy and politics and speaks to his respect for the constitution itself. and a willingness to raise this issue in the inaugural address will send a message

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Russell Feingold: loud and clear to the american public, to congress, and to every level of government that the days of law lawlessness and excess are over. thomas jefferson said this in his first inaugural address.

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Russell Feingold: "the essential principles of our government form the bright constellation which has gone before us and guided our steps through an age of revolution and reformation. should we wander from them in movement

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Russell Feingold: moments of error let us hasten to retrace our steps and to re regain the road which alone leads to peace, liberty, and safety." i hope our next president will echo that sentiment in his inaugural address.

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Russell Feingold: indeed, demonstrate ing that commitment on day one will go a long way to restang what ohio state law professor peter shane called a rule of law culture in government. as snrained in his hearing

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Russell Feingold: testimony, the written documents of law have to be buttressed by a set of norm and routine behaviors that lead officials to believe they were accountable to the public interest and to legitimate sources

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Russell Feingold: of legal authority at all times even when the written rules are ambiguous and even when they could probably get awhich with merely self-serving behavior. now, mr. president, this curts to the core

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Russell Feingold: of the problem that the president president will face. after eight years of disregard for the rule of law at the highest level of government, how can we instill new norms and expectations throughout the federal

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Russell Feingold: government? state ing that commitment in the in inaugural address will go a long way in that direction. but it is not only a matter of a new president saying okay, i won't do that anymore. this president's

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Russell Feingold: transgressions are so deep and damage to our system of government so extensive that a concerted effort from the executive and legislative branches will be needed and that means that the new president will

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Russell Feingold: insome respects have to go against his snug interests, a challenge that we cannot underestimate. that's why i called the hearing last week on this topic to hear from legal and historical experts on

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Russell Feingold: how the next president should go about tackling the wreckage that this president will leave behind. i asked what -- i ask us to be forward-looking not simply to review what has gone wrong in the

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Russell Feingold: past seven or eight years but to address what needs to be set right starting next year and how to go about doing it. the witnesses at the hearing -- i solicited written testimony from other experts

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Russell Feingold: and historians. i was pleased that we received nearly 30 written submissions from a host of national groups and distinguished individuals. and at the hearing we heard testimony about just how far outside

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Russell Feingold: mainstream legal thought the current administration went from one of the foremost legal scholars in the country. we heard comparisons to the events leading up to the church committee's investigation

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Russell Feingold: of the 1970's from the man who actually served as chief counsel to that committee. we heard from a former republican member of congress about congress's failure to a assert itself as a coequal branch

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of govment we mered from the former head of the justice department's office of legal counsel about the perversion of the law that was allowed to occur in that important office. we heard from a former

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white house chief of staff about the dangers of the executive secrecy that permeate ed the government under this administration. we heard from a leading national security lawyer about the harm that post-9/11

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domestic surveillance policy ies have done to our national security. and we heard from the head of one of the leading human rights orgaganizations about the damage our interrogation and detention policy ies have

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done to our reputation abroad. but, most importantly, mr. president, we heard from every one these individuals their prescriptions for moving beyond these mistakes, for take the steps that are necessary

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to restore our core american principles. indeed, between the hearing, witnesses, and the written testimony that was submitted, the subcommittee received an enormous number of recommendations including many provocative

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and important ideas. they ranged from the general to the very specific. they covered a variety of subject matters, from government secrecy to detention and interrogation policy, to surveillance, to separation

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of powers, and i'll very pleased that so many experts took the time to offer these proposals. let me just take you -- take a couple of minutes to share the recommendations that the witnesses provided,

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Russell Feingold: both those who testified at the hearing and those who submitted i think weren't testimony. several suggestions reinforce my belief that the new administration would set a clear tone of adherence

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Russell Feingold: to the rule of law from the start. art gabrest from the central of progress action funds suggest -- suggests that the president should convene a white house conference on the rule of law and pledge

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Russell Feingold: to work with congress to give priority to measures to restore public confidence in the rule of law. and former solicitor general walter dellinger argues that the next president should affirmatively adopt

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Russell Feingold: the view of presidential power that recognizes the reels and authorities of all three coequal branches of government and takes account of settled jicial precedent. many of our witnesses are concerned about

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Russell Feingold: the impact of the last eight years and the separation of powers. and specifically about congress congress's congress's failure to stand up to t the president. several strongly suggest over oversight

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Russell Feingold: and investigative hearings to determine exactly what happened. frederick swartz of the brennan center suggests an independent, bipartisan investigative commission to assess what has gone wrong and right

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Russell Feingold: with the nation's policies concerning terrorism. such a commission would allow the public to get the full story of the abuses of the bush bush, providing accountability and a mechanism for developing

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Russell Feingold: protections against future abuse that can be implemented by the executive and legislative branches p. the aclu suggests more narrowly focused hearings in congress to reveal illegal, improper executive

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Russell Feingold: branch activity and argues that congress must deny -- deny funding for programs that it believes are abusive or illegal. now, former congressman rickey edwards, a republican from oklahoma, also argues

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Russell Feingold: that congress must use the power of the purse -- the power of the purse to assert its will in interbranch disagreements. he believes that congress should utilize its subpoena power to get the information

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Russell Feingold: it needs. being able to enforce congressional subpoenas is an important component of oversight and several witnesses had suggest suggestions on that topic. common cause believes that the next president should

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Russell Feingold: issue an executive order mandating federal agency ies complete cooperation with congressional investigations. university of pennsylvania law professor seth kramer argues that officials who ignore legitimate

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Russell Feingold: congressional subpoenas should be prosecuted. the center for responsibility and ethics in washington suggestions that congress enact legislation granting jurisdiction to the federal courts over cases seeking en

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enforcement of congressional subpoenas. and bruce pine fine, a former ronald reagan official beliefs a court should be create ed to enforce contempt findings against the executive branch. many