Posted on 06/29/2010 9:23:41 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) said Tuesday that he would oppose the Wall Street overhaul bill as it stands because of the $19 billion in fees it would place on big financial firms.
In a letter to Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), Brown expressed "strong opposition" to the fees that were added in the conference process between House and Senate lawmakers last week.
"If the final version of the bill contains these higher taxes, I will not support it," he said.
The letter is the strongest indication yet that Brown will vote against the Wall Street overhaul bill. Brown had voted for the Senate's original version of the legislation before the fee was added.
The conference bill cannot be amended on the House and Senate floor. House and Senate lawmakers were planning to pass the overhaul bill this week.
Sen. Robert Byrd's (D-W.Va.) death on Monday has sent Senate Democrats scrambling to shore up votes for the financial overhaul.
Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) said Monday he would oppose the bill. That is putting pressure on Senate Democrats to win over the votes of Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and at least one other Republican.
It's possible that Byrd's appointed successor, to be named by West Virginia's Democratic governor, would vote with Democats, which would put off a vote on the conference report until he is seated.
But Brown's defection may create a much bigger problem.
"It is wrong to impose higher taxes and ignore the impact it will have on our economy without considering other ways we might offset the costs of the measure," Brown said. "I am asking that the conference committee find a way to offset the cost of the bill by cutting unnecessary federal spending. There are hundreds of billions in unspent federal funds sitting around, some authorized years ago for long-dead initiatives. Congress needs to start to looking there first, and I stand ready to help."
“I’m Scott Brown, I’m from Wrentham, and I drive a truck!”
Good man, Mr. Brown.
This as..
MASS. POLL: Scott Brown More Popular Than Obama Or Kerry
http://www.witn.com/news/headlines/97335724.html
I haven't paid a fee to a bank in years... I do not intend to start now!
Another Stupak move?
I’m against it until you formally ask for me to vote at the Roll Call.
I have to wonder if Sen. Brown is engaging in a little schadenfreude here. Vote yes early, and just when it looks like the bill will get through, yank the football Lucy style.
Well, that’s good news. However, Messrs. Obama and Kerry are both radioactive.
There is a lot of buyer’s remorse in MA.
For example, Mr. Brown won Barney Frank’s House District by two-to-one.
Brown, like most legislators, has a "FOR SALE" sign outside his office. My money says the administration will meet his price.
This shows how infatuated America (and Massachusetts too) is with a new face. This is how we got stuck with Obimbo. This is why the tired old faces of the GOP don't stand a chance. Who will be new and untainted in 2012?
It’s a tax for the banks, and a fee for all of us slubs that will pay them when it gets passed thru the local pocketbook.
Exactly. What Brown is doing is leaving open the door for his support at the $13 billion level. Or the $9 billion level. Or, wait a minute, at the $19 billon level after all:
""It is wrong to impose higher taxes and ignore the impact it will have on our economy without considering other ways we might offset the costs of the measure," Brown said. "I am asking that the conference committee find a way to offset the cost of the bill by cutting unnecessary federal spending."So if the conference committee were to cut $19 billion somewhere, Brown would be just fine with this disaster of a bill.
Obama keeps shoving it to the ORDINARY WORKERS (under $250,000 included)...who are paying this “tax”...one way or another.
Obama forgets (plays stupid)....There are WORKING stockholders and retirees. They will not be happy with lower returns and dividends.
Obama forgets (plays stupid)....There are WORKING stockholders and retirees. They will not be happy with lower returns and dividends.
Obama forgets (plays stupid)....There are WORKING stockholders and retirees. They will not be happy with lower returns and dividends.
Only one entity pays taxes, the people. If politicians tax companies those taxes are passed on to the customers.
Yep...but not by Brown. There's no way Feingold is voting against this.
I sent him an e-mail yesterday; I’m one of his constituents. I pointed out that Barney Frank and Chris Dodd were two of the architects of the problems we have in the economy right now, through their protection of Fannie and Freddie, and the set up that made it possible for large institutions to private profits while socializing the risks from the mortgages that were being made to folks who should never have been approved for them. I told him that I wouldn’t trust Frank and Dodd to get ANYTHING right with regards to the economy or regulation of financial institutions.
Unless a legislator has ample executive experience, I am not interested in a former Senator/Congressperson as President.
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