Op-eds
Boston Globe Op-Ed: Who is writing the TPP?
Congress is in an intense debate over trade bills that will shape the course of the US economy for decades. Much of this debate has been characterized as a fight over whether international trade itself creates or destroys American jobs. There is, however, another major concern - that modern "trade" agreements are often less about trade and more about giant multinational corporations finding new ways to rig the economic system to benefit themselves. Hillary Clinton has said that the "United … Continue Reading
February 25, 2015
Washington Post Op-Ed: The Trans-Pacific Partnership clause everyone should oppose
The United States is in the final stages of negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a massive free-trade agreement with Mexico, Canada, Japan, Singapore and seven other countries. Who will benefit from the TPP? American workers? Consumers? Small businesses? Taxpayers? Or the biggest multinational corporations in the world? One strong hint is buried in the fine print of the closely guarded draft. The provision, an increasingly common feature of trade agreements, is called … Continue Reading
January 22, 2015
Washington Post Op-Ed: Supreme Court Housing Decision Could Put our Financial Well-Being at Risk
The Supreme Court appears poised to continue its systematic assault on our core civil rights laws. After gutting the Voting Rights Act just two years ago, the court set its sights on our country's fair housing laws when it heard oral arguments today in Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs v. The Inclusive Communities Project. As with the voting rights decision, a decision limiting the scope of the housing laws would ignore the will of Congress and undermine basic principles of … Continue Reading
November 19, 2014
Huffington Post Op-Ed: Enough Is Enough: The President's Latest Wall Street Nominee
I believe President Obama deserves deference in picking his team, and I've generally tried to give him that. But enough is enough. Last Wednesday, President Obama announced his nomination of Antonio Weiss to serve as Under Secretary for Domestic Finance at the Treasury Department. This is a position that oversees Dodd-Frank implementation and a wide range of banking and economic policymaking issues, including consumer protection. So who is Antonio Weiss? He's the head of global investment … Continue Reading
November 17, 2014
Wall Street Journal Op-ed: The Fed Needs Governors Who Aren’t Wall Street Insiders
We joined the Senate Banking Committee to try to make the banking system work better for American families. That's why we're concerned that the Federal Reserve-our first line of defense against another financial crisis-seems more worried about protecting Wall Street than protecting Main Street. Fortunately, this is one problem the Obama administration can start fixing today by nominating the right people to fill the two vacancies on the Fed's Board of Governors. The Board of Governors is … Continue Reading
November 07, 2014
Washington Post Op-Ed: It’s time to work on America’s agenda
There have been terrible, horrible, no good, very bad Election Days for Democrats before - and Republicans have had a few of those, too. Such days are always followed by plenty of pronouncements about what just changed and what's going to be different going forward. But for all the talk of change in Washington and in states where one party is taking over from another, one thing has not changed: The stock market and gross domestic product keep going up, while families are getting squeezed hard … Continue Reading
August 15, 2014
Worcester Telegram & Gazette Op-Ed: Fighting for local veterans
Our men and women in uniform serve our country with honor and courage, putting themselves in harm's way to protect us. All three of my brothers served in the military, and my oldest brother was career military - he flew 288 combat missions in Vietnam. I understand how much service members and their families contribute to our country, and how important it is that we honor their service. We owe our service members the very best, and that means ensuring they always have access to high-quality … Continue Reading
August 12, 2014
Berkshire Eagle Op-Ed: We can do better than pipeline
Massachusetts has distinguished itself as a state with a strong and enduring commitment to environmental conservation, a commitment evidenced in the wetlands, forests, waters, and state and private conservation lands that run from our coastline to the Berkshires. The commonwealth is also a leader in developing clean energy and promoting energy efficiency. In fact, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy ranks Massachusetts number one in the country in its energy efficiency … Continue Reading
July 17, 2014
CNN Op-Ed: We need to rein in 'too big to fail' banks
More than five years after the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers and the beginning of the most severe economic downturn since the Great Depression, lawmakers should ask themselves whether they have done enough to reduce the risk of another financial crisis. In our view, the answer is no. The chances of another financial crisis will remain unacceptably high as long as there are financial institutions that are "too big to fail" -- entities that are deemed so important to the overall health and … Continue Reading
July 07, 2014
U.S. News Op-Ed: The Big Benefits of Postal Service Banking
More than a quarter of all American households - about 68 million people - rely at least in part on nonbank financial services like check cashing or payday lending. These unbanked and underbanked households pay more - a lot more - for the kinds of basic financial services the rest of us take for granted. In 2012, the average income for these families was about $25,500, and they spent an average of $2,412 just on interest and fees for nonbank financial services. That was just under 10 percent … Continue Reading
June 02, 2014
Salem News Op-Ed: Student debt is a national emergency
Total student loan debt across the country now stands at $1.2 trillion - and each year, students are taking on more and more and more debt. From 2004 to 2012, the average student loan balance increased by 70 percent. Millions of young people are struggling to keep up with their student loan payments. This is an emergency. Student loan debt is crushing our young people and weighing down our economy. Federal agencies like the Federal Reserve, the Treasury Department and the Consumer Financial … Continue Reading
May 01, 2014
CNN Op-Ed: What happened to the middle class?
A great crack in America's middle class came to light recently: While our country continues to lead the world as the richest nation, our middle class, once the most affluent in the world, has fallen behind. According to an analysis by The New York Times, Canada's middle class is now the wealthiest, and working families in many countries have seen their incomes rise much faster than those in the United States. The hollowing out of America's middle class has been years in the making, but it … Continue Reading
April 29, 2014
Politico Op-Ed: The Citigroup Clique
Today, I cast my vote on the Senate Banking Committee for Stanley Fischer to serve in the No. 2 position at the U.S. Federal Reserve. I asked Fischer tough questions - in person, at his nomination hearing, and in writing - and I have been impressed with the depth of his knowledge and experience. But I cast my vote reluctantly because of my growing frustration over the concentration of people with ties to the megabank Citigroup in senior government positions. In recent years, Wall Street … Continue Reading
April 17, 2014
Credit.com Op-Ed: Why Equal Pay Is Worth Fighting For
I honestly can't believe that we're still arguing over equal pay in 2014. When I started teaching elementary school after college, the public school district didn't hide the fact that it had two pay scales: one for men and one for women. Women have made incredible strides since then. But 40 years later, we're still debating equal pay for equal work. Women today still earn only 77 cents for every dollar a man earns, and they're taking a hit in nearly every occupation. Bloomberg analyzed … Continue Reading
April 01, 2014
Huffington Post Blog: Wall Street Should Disclose Its Think Tank Contributions
In December, I wrote to the heads of six of the country's biggest financial institutions with a simple request: that they voluntarily disclose the financial contributions their companies make to think tanks. This disclosure would help make sure shareholders, policymakers, and the public are aware of efforts by large Wall Street banks to indirectly influence lawmakers and regulators by supporting think tanks' research. Unfortunately, none of the six institutions -- JPMorgan Chase, Bank of … Continue Reading
March 28, 2014
Boston Globe Op-Ed: Help for homeowners
Homeowners across Massachusetts received some good news last week: President Barack Obama signed into law the bipartisan Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act, which will help protect millions of families here in the Commonwealth and across the country from huge increases in flood insurance rates. A few years ago, Congress changed the national flood program to move toward a more market-based system that more accurately reflects the true costs and risks of flood damage. This was a … Continue Reading
March 25, 2014
Credit.com Op-Ed: 17 Million Reasons to Raise the Minimum Wage
I have 17 million reasons for wanting to increase the minimum wage. Yes, 17 million-the number of children whose lives would be a little more secure if their moms and dads earned at least $10.10 an hour. When I was in junior high, my daddy had a heart attack. He was home for a while, the medical bills piled up, and we lost our family station wagon. So my mother did what she had to do: She went to work answering the phones at Sears. The job paid only minimum wage, but it was enough to make sure … Continue Reading
February 26, 2014
Bay State Banner Op-Ed: Creating a level playing field
This is a special moment in history. In August, we commemorated the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. shared his dream of equality and called for action. Later this year, we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, one of the enduring legacies of the March on Washington. The Civil Rights Act was a landmark moment in the ongoing fight for equality, enshrining in law the principle that ensure no one … Continue Reading
February 05, 2014
Huffington Post Blog: Senate Women Say: Raise The Minimum Wage!
Co-authored by:Senator Mazie HironoSenator Tammy Baldwin Last week, the Democratic women senators stood together at an amazing event where we delivered a very important message: No American woman should ever work a full-time job and still raise her children in poverty. Yet at a time when 400 American families have more wealth than 150 million, an American single mom earning minimum wage at a full-time job takes home just $15,000 a year to support her family -- below the poverty line. It's … Continue Reading
February 01, 2014
Huffington Post Blog: Coming to a Post Office Near You: Loans You Can Trust?
The poor pay more. According to a report put out this week by the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the U.S. Postal Service, about 68 million Americans -- more than a quarter of all households -- have no checking or savings account and are underserved by the banking system. Collectively, these households spent about $89 billion in 2012 on interest and fees for non-bank financial services like payday loans and check cashing, which works out to an average of $2,412 per household. That … Continue Reading
