Financial Regulations

President Obama on Wednesday called for greater efforts by foreign governments to stimulate their economies in the fight against the global recession. But he also pledged an equal commitment to toughen regulation of financial institutions, a priority in Europe and elsewhere. Elaborating on the president's comments, Treasury Secretary Timothy F.

It's a common mantra among free-market-loving conservatives that government regulations hinder business growth and cost workers jobs. That may be true for some regulations, and it never hurts to go back and rethink old rules. But it's also clear that many regulations are undeniably necessary to protect consumers from unfair, unsafe or downright reckless business practices. One example was the overhaul of financial regulations after leading banks trashed the global economy with their irresponsible dealings.

The Senate on Thursday approved the most sweeping rewrite of financial rules since the Great Depression, a milestone in President Obama's drive to expand government oversight and safeguard against another crisis like the Wall Street meltdown of 2008. The 59-39 vote was mostly along party lines: Four Republicans joined all but two Democrats in supporting the legislation. Obama applauded as the Senate neared the end of its three-week debate on a top administration priority.

WASHINGTON - Republicans have stepped up their pressure to limit the wide-ranging powers of the nation's watchdog over consumers' money matters. The head of a key House committee overseeing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said he would no longer accept the testimony of Richard Cordray, the bureau's director, before his panel because he doesn't believe Cordray was legally appointed to his post. Cordray, who delivered his semi-annual report to the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday, was set to do the same in coming weeks in the House, as required by law. But Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas)

Unexpectedly good news about the government's auto industry bailout has bolstered the case for comprehensive federal regulations for the financial system, President Obama said in his weekly address Saturday. Obama, facing public unease over unprecedented government interventions in the economy, noted that the Treasury Department found that the bailout of General Motors Corp. and Chrysler Group "will end up costing taxpayers a fraction of what was originally feared," because those companies have performed far better than expected after getting federal help.

WASHINGTON - The financial crisis and the Great Recession have taken a heavy toll on the U.S., and now one public interest group said it has calculated that cost: at least $12.8 trillion. The estimate from Better Markets, which supports tougher financial regulations, came in a 72-page report released Wednesday, just days before the four-year anniversary of the collapse of Lehman Bros. That failure triggered the crisis, which dramatically exacerbated the recession that began in late 2007.

WASHINGTON - Republicans have stepped up their pressure to limit the wide-ranging powers of the nation's watchdog over consumers' money matters. The head of a key House committee overseeing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said he would no longer accept the testimony of Richard Cordray, the bureau's director, before his panel because he doesn't believe Cordray was legally appointed to his post. Cordray, who delivered his semi-annual report to the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday, was set to do the same in coming weeks in the House, as required by law. But Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas)

Regulatory reform: An article in Business on Wednesday said that under President Obama's proposal to revamp financial regulations, the Federal Reserve would gain new authority to seize and dismantle large firms in danger of failing. In fact, that power would rest with several agencies working together, including the Fed, Treasury Department and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

WASHINGTON -- A House committee will question JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Jamie Dimon next month on the bank's large trading loss. The House Financial Services Committee will hold its hearing on June 19, a committee spokeswoman said Thursday. The session will take place less than a week after Dimon is set to testify before the Senate Banking Committee on June 13. Lawmakers on both sides of Capitol Hill are looking at JPMorgan's trading loss of more than $2 billion to determine if it should affect the drafting of new financial regulations or if additional legislation is needed to prevent future incidents.

WASHINGTON - President Obama will nominate Mary Jo White, a former prosecutor and one-time director of the Nasdaq stock exchange, to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission, a White House official said Thursday.   Obama plans to make the announcement Thursday afternoon at the White House.   The president also will renominate Richard Cordray to continue leading the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the official said.   The agencies are two of the country's top watchdogs for the financial industry.

WASHINGTON - President Obama will nominate Mary Jo White, a former prosecutor and one-time director of the Nasdaq stock exchange, to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission, a White House official said Thursday.   Obama plans to make the announcement Thursday afternoon at the White House.   The president also will renominate Richard Cordray to continue leading the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the official said.   The agencies are two of the country's top watchdogs for the financial industry.

WASHINGTON - In nominating former federal prosecutor Mary Jo White to head the Securities and Exchange Commission, President Obama aimed a strong message at potential Wall Street miscreants: Watch out. Obama amplified that decision Thursday by renominating Richard Cordray, a former state attorney general, as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Cordray's controversial recess appointment to the 2-year-old agency expires at the end of the year. Obama said that White and Cordray were key to implementing the 2010 overhaul of financial regulations and protecting consumers and the financial system from the "kinds of abuse that nearly brought the economy to its knees.

WASHINGTON -- Democrat Elizabeth Warren was projected to win the U.S. Senate race in Massachusetts on Tuesday night, vaulting one of Wall Street's most outspoken critics into a position of power in the nation's capital. Warren defeated incumbent Sen. Scott Brown, a moderate Republican, in one of the most expensive and hotly contested Senate campaigns in the nation. Wall Street and the rest of the financial industry had pumped about $6.2 million into the race in hopes of keeping Warren out of the Senate.

WASHINGTON - If Republican Mitt Romney wins the presidency next week, enough Democrats probably would be left in Congress to block his promise to roll back the slew of Wall Street rules enacted in response to the financial crisis. But when it comes to regulations, a president doesn't have to change the laws. He can simply change the people enforcing them. "If you don't like the regulations, just cut the head off the beast," said Paul C. Light, a New York University professor and expert on presidential transitions.

MELROSE, Mass. - Wall Street's philosophy in one of the nation's most hotly contested Senate campaigns could be boiled down to an old proverb: The enemy of my enemy is my friend. The financial industry has poured more than $6.2 million in contributions into the U.S. Senate race in Massachusetts between incumbent Republican Scott Brown and Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren, who has made the fight against Wall Street greed and corruption a cornerstone of her campaign. Nearly $9 of every $10 have gone to Brown, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

WASHINGTON - The financial crisis and the Great Recession have taken a heavy toll on the U.S., and now one public interest group said it has calculated that cost: at least $12.8 trillion. The estimate from Better Markets, which supports tougher financial regulations, came in a 72-page report released Wednesday, just days before the four-year anniversary of the collapse of Lehman Bros. That failure triggered the crisis, which dramatically exacerbated the recession that began in late 2007.

It's a common mantra among free-market-loving conservatives that government regulations hinder business growth and cost workers jobs. That may be true for some regulations, and it never hurts to go back and rethink old rules. But it's also clear that many regulations are undeniably necessary to protect consumers from unfair, unsafe or downright reckless business practices. One example was the overhaul of financial regulations after leading banks trashed the global economy with their irresponsible dealings.

JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s losses from risky derivatives bets widened to $4.4 billion in the second quarter, the bank announced. Originally pegged at $2 billion when the bank disclosed the blunder in May, the bad bets have renewed debates over financial regulations four years after the financial crisis, when risky trading on Wall Street helped bring the system to the brink. At an analysts meeting Friday morning, JPMorgan's chief financial officer added that year-to-date losses from the bad trades have reached $5.8 billion.