“no one made them do it.”
No one made Congress pass Dodd/Frank.
As you point out, they would not have gotten away with this but for the fact that all of the banks are adding this fee. If they are all adding this fee, that just proves it’s not BOA’s fault. It’s Congress’s.
I don’t want to beat a dead horse, but this event is not a surprise. The critics of Dodd/Frank have been saying this was going to happen since before it was passed. It’s basic economics. You are more likely to get what you want if you place the blame where it belongs, on Congress where the mistake was made. Blaming it on BOA is what Congress wants you to do. That way, they don’t need to take the heat. Indeed, many of them will say “Hey, this is fun. Let’s do it again.”
While I agree that Congress spends too much time on bad legislation, this is simply a money grab by the banks. Flush with cash and used to screwing us over 100 ways to sundown, they lost out on one source of money and simply added a new source.
I still say no one made them do this and there is no need for it except that they can do it and greed. Blaming our bought and paid for Congress, is getting a little old. We are being run by the banks and their never ending search for more cash and fees. Break up these monster “too big to fail” and end this madness.