Banks Condemn Credit Card Restrictions While They Receive Taxpayer Bailout

LA Times:

You've got to love the banking industry.

As our friends in the financial sector were passing the hat among taxpayers last week for $700 billion in bailouts to cover their crappy mortgage investments, they were simultaneously condemning the House of Representatives' passage of a "Credit Cardholders' Bill of Rights," which aims to crack down on some of the industry's more troublesome practices.

Read the whole story: LA Times

Comments

[Mahi Joe]

Seriously people, stop charging on your credit cards and get rid of all the plastic you do not need. Screw these greedy hypocrites. It's about time we took back our lives and reminded them that these banks are using our hard earned money and WE should be the ones benefiting from our labor, not them. I am soooo against bailing these private institutions out with taxpayer's money. I would suggest that before the government gives them any money they take all the money from the CEO's, CFO's, and Board Members first and then maybe we taxpayers might consider a loan with safeguards and restrictions so these idiots can't screw us again.

[kells1001]

The Banking industry has accomplished its mission to well. Most fine print for credit cards or debit cards, that probably few normal people read basically takes away all your rights regarding any dispute with the bank. The creative ways and number of ways they overcharge customers results in many people being forced into credit counseling or to eventually pay up. Banks then tried to secure their unsecured debt through the bankruptcy law, which they lobbied heavily to get for many years. Senators like Ted Kennedy heavily opposed the bill, but the GOP were afraid people might get away with to many assets and homes in tact. The new bill finally became law in January 06. It used to be that people could refinance all the credit card debt, but those days have ended. The Biggest Banks now look like they are in trouble, which is why they now will pad their books with massive overcharges for all the credit they were once giving and are taking away at the last minute. Hopefully this is just bad behavior, but its more a description of our moral decline reaching new lows in the industry.

[Gary47]

Any executive who complains gets fired on the spot. Then sent out to meet 1,000 middle class taxpayers.

[Crewzzer]

"fired" sounds like such a quiet slap on the hand. Any other ideas?

[dolphy]

Put in jail for ten yours to life minimum.

[Hdaryl01]

It's time for revolution folks. We only need credit cards if we spend/live on credit. There are two ways to win against the credit card/financial services industry: 1) reasonable consumer protection regulations and restrictions which create a level playing field, 2) individuals refusing to use credit cards. We are very unlikely, as many comments have observed, to receive #1. The Bankruptcy re-write, the $700 Billion bailout given to the banks/institutions instead of the people, probably well founded indignation over the Credit Card reforms-well founded because the banks/credit card/financial "services" firms know they have protection in all requisite parts of government. #2 is the only option. I have personally elected to do this, and have for many months.....just say no to credit......then it doesn't matter what the charge......

[timberdoodle]

Having in the house rental business for a while I found it prudent to keep rents lower for good tenants who looked after the property and paid their rent. To me it was just good practice to keep these tenants as any gain made on a rent increase could easily be over shadowed with either losing a tenant for a month or two or getting a tenant who didn't look after the property or pay their rent.

For some strange reason Banks seem to have lost all common sense and are given up completely to greed. I would think it would be in their best interest to keep a reasonable rate and get regular payments on time and have people keep using the credit cards. Remember they not only get interest but the get money from the business where you used the card.

[PT6]

"FAIR MARKETS" NOT "free markets" are WHAT MADE AMERICA GREAT!

GET BACK TO "FAIR MARKETS!"

[SailFree]

Ah, bu tI love the smell of hypocrisy in the morning...

[Justsaynodeal]

The bankruptcy law which made it nearly impossible for the little guy to declare bankruptcy was written by the bank credit card industry. It would be interesting to see how many of these big time recipients of Wall St. Bankers donations voted for that bill. I know Sen Dodd and Sen Gregg were the tops in their parties, and they are now writing the bailout bill.

[doogiedude]

If you are refering to the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, Senator Dodd voted against it while Senator Gregg voted for it.

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=1&vote=00044

[Clayton139]

The Bush/Cheney/Rove administration has ruined this country in the last 8 years with this war! Now the Banking and Mortgage crisis show up all in one week. How, Why, When, What! They should be indicted for treason against the USA for several counts over there watch during this 8 years! They have ruined this country now and for the future! God help us!

[PT6]

WHY DOESN'T THE SEC PUT BACK THE "UPTICK RULE?"

AS DOING AWAY WITH THAT BROUGHT ON THE CRASHES THIS SUMMER ALL THE WAY TO NOW????

DO IT MONDAY - YOU INCOMPETENT "COOKS."

[SailFree]

Actually, it's the Sarbanes-Oxley "mark-to-market" rule which has been part of the causation of the financial institution problems, along with the Community ReInvestment Act of 1977, under Jimmy Carter and with a Democratic congress. And Barney Frank's blocking of investigations into Fannie Mae, and the refusal of Democrats to vote for the reform of Fannie Mae in the 2005 Act.

But don't let reality spoil your dreams...

[MajorKong]

That's quite a stretch if you have to go back to 1977 to find some way to pin this on a Democrat.

[doogiedude]

I think the impact of the CRA on the sub prime crisis is arguable at best. Here is a link to an analysis supporting an opinion the CRA may have mitigated the sub prime lending crisis

http://www.traigerlaw.com/publications/traiger_hinckley_llp_cra_foreclosure_study_1-7-08.pdf


To my knowledge, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (passed in 2002) increased regulation of publicly traded companies. Since it appears the current crisis is partially a result of ineffective regulation, I fail to see how this act specifically contributed to the current crisis.

[PT6]

With crooks running wild in every industry, especially on Wall Street and Real Estate, everyone needs protection.

"FAIR MARKETS" NOT "free markets" are what MADE AMERICA GREAT!

[fcsakes]

Voluntary oversight? Yeah, yeah, that will work...

I can hear them laughing their asses off in the back room - ..."put another one over on those idiots that pay the bills and pad our big fat Swiss accounts." Speaking of numbered accounts, how many of the CEOs that we will be bailing out also have tons of money stashed away that no one knows about and which, of course, they haven't paid taxes on - assuming they pay taxes at all.

Feeling ripped off America?

[doogiedude]

Since the bailout plan appears to be focusing on the "liquidity of the credit markets", it will be the commercial banks who most directly benefit from the bailout. Why do you think Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley recently transformed from investment banks into commercial banks?

The ultimate hypocracy is how these same banks successfully lobbied to have personal bankruptcy laws changed with the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005. This law essentially prevented consumers from being bailed out of credit card debt by the banks.

It might be worth finding out if your Congressman voted for this law. If they did and are supporting the bailout, it would beg the question why is it not right to have banks bailout the taxpayer but right to the taxpayer bailout the banks?

For what it's worth, the villian is not the "Credit Card Companies," it is the banks that issue them. Visa and MasterCard for example, are essentially payment processors. They do not loan any money or set credit card terms. The bank issuing the credit card sets the terms which is why you can get different terms on a Visa card at different banks.

American Express is an exception. They do lend money and set card terms. However, they have sued Visa and MasterCard for essentially locking American Express out of the credit franchising model, indicating American Express would like to get out of the credit business but stay in the processing business.

Just sayin

[doogiedude]

For the record...

Senator McCain voted for the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, Senator Obama voted against it.

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=1&vote=00044

Just sayin

[restoreamerica]

Biden is from Delaware... One of the states that allow usury interest to be applied to credit cards and personal loans. Some time in the ninetys, the republican congress allowed these companies to charge the max interest rate allowed in the state of their corporate offices. Suddenly these companies flocked to Wilmington, DE, Las Vegas, NV and SD where these practices are allowed. Bill Clinton signed the bill, so the "new" democrats are ALSO responsible. You're local state usury laws do not apply anymore.

The reason Biden supports this crap is that this bring many jobs to his home state where people will vote to keep their jobs no matter how evil the CC companies are.

[doogiedude]

Also for the record...

Senator Biden voted for the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, one of I think 16 Democrats.

Just sayin

[BushSunkOurShip]

It didn't take an expert to realize that with no over site that a corporation will do anything to make a quick buck for themself and the h... with the citizens.
Is this another reason Bush wants a quick bailout for the financial institutions because his daddy is in this mess up to his neck, with his Global Carlyle Group.
***
They have know about this crisis for years this was an article in March of 2008
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2008/mar2008/econ-m14.shtml
Gold and oil prices soar, dollar slumps, Carlyle Group fund collapses
The Carlyle debacle was accompanied by other developments pointing to both recession and rising inflation. Crude oil prices hit a new record of $111, gold futures breached the $1,000-an-ounce mark, and the dollar fell to record lows versus the Japanese yen, the euro and the Swiss franc.

“It’s very strongly the deterioration in the dollar, which is a function of the credit crisis,” said Jim Steel, senior vice president and metals analyst with HSBC. “The dollar is under siege right now.”


***

[mrJJ]

The Republican $700 Billion Corporate welfare assistance check is good....but

(Clark County, Nev.) Republican GOP official fired for remarks

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- The spokeswoman for the Republican Party in Nevada's most populous county was fired Saturday, after she said the Democratic Party made black people "dependent on the government."

snip

"We don't want (Hispanics) to become the new African-American community," Lima told The Associated Press. "And that's what the Democratic Party is going to do to them, create more programs and give them handouts, food stamps and checks for this and checks for that. We don't want that."

"I'm very much afraid that the Democratic Party is going to do the same thing that they did with the African-American culture and make them all dependent on the government and we don't want that," she said.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/09/27/politics/p172030D91.DTL&tsp=1

BTW there is $596 trillion in derivatives debt (Thank You, Sen Gramm), over $2.5 trillion in credit card debt, and $58 trillion in credit default swaps

http://www.wallstreetdigest.com/hotline.php