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  • The President: Thank you very much.

  • Everybody, please have a seat.

  • Thank you very much.

  • Well, thank you.

  • It is good to be back.

  • (applause)

  • It is good to be back in New York,

  • it is good to be back in the Great Hall at Cooper Union.

  • (applause)

  • We've got some special guests here that I want to acknowledge.

  • Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney is here in the house.

  • (applause)

  • Governor David Paterson is here.

  • (applause)

  • Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.

  • (applause)

  • State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli is here.

  • (applause)

  • The Mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg.

  • (applause)

  • Dr. George Campbell, Jr., president of Cooper Union.

  • (applause)

  • And all the citywide elected officials who are here.

  • Thank you very much for your attendance.

  • It is wonderful to be back in Cooper Union,

  • where generations of leaders and citizens have come to defend

  • their ideas and contest their differences.

  • It's also good to be back in Lower Manhattan,

  • a few blocks from Wall Street.

  • (laughter)

  • It really is good to be back, because Wall Street's the heart

  • of our nation's financial sector.

  • Now, since I last spoke here two years ago,

  • our country has been through a terrible trial.

  • More than 8 million people have lost their jobs.

  • Countless small businesses have had to shut their doors.

  • Trillions of dollars in savings have been lost --

  • forcing seniors to put off retirement,

  • young people to postpone college,

  • entrepreneurs to give up on the dream of starting a company.

  • And as a nation we were forced to take unprecedented steps to

  • rescue the financial system and the broader economy.

  • And as a result of the decisions we made --

  • some of which, let's face it, were very unpopular --

  • we are seeing hopeful signs.

  • A little more than one year ago we were losing an average of

  • 750,000 jobs each month.

  • Today, America is adding jobs again.

  • One year ago the economy was shrinking rapidly.

  • Today the economy is growing.

  • In fact, we've seen the fastest turnaround in growth in nearly

  • three decades.

  • But you're here and I'm here because we've got more work to do.

  • Until this progress is felt not just on Wall Street but on Main

  • Street, we can't be satisfied.

  • Until the millions of our neighbors who are looking for

  • work can find a job, and wages are growing at a meaningful

  • pace, we may be able to claim a technical recovery --

  • but we will not have truly recovered.

  • And even as we seek to revive this economy,

  • it's also incumbent on us to rebuild it stronger than before.

  • We don't want an economy that has the same weaknesses that led

  • to this crisis.

  • And that means addressing some of the underlying problems that

  • led to this turmoil and devastation in the first place.

  • Now, one of the most significant contributors to this recession

  • was a financial crisis as dire as any we've known in

  • generations -- at least since the '30s.

  • And that crisis was born of a failure of responsibility --

  • from Wall Street all the way to Washington --

  • that brought down many of the world's largest financial firms

  • and nearly dragged our economy into a second Great Depression.

  • It was that failure of responsibility that I spoke

  • about when I came to New York more than two years ago --

  • before the worst of the crisis had unfolded.

  • It was back in 2007.

  • And I take no satisfaction in noting that my comments then

  • have largely been borne out by the events that followed.

  • But I repeat what I said then because it is essential that we

  • learn the lessons from this crisis so we don't doom

  • ourselves to repeat it.

  • And make no mistake, that is exactly what will happen if we

  • allow this moment to pass -- and that's an outcome that is

  • unacceptable to me and it's unacceptable to you,

  • the American people.

  • (applause)

  • As I said on this stage two years ago,

  • I believe in the power of the free market.

  • I believe in a strong financial sector that helps people to

  • raise capital and get loans and invest their savings.

  • That's part of what has made America what it is.

  • But a free market was never meant to be a free license to

  • take whatever you can get, however you can get it.

  • That's what happened too often in the years leading up to this crisis.

  • Some -- and let me be clear, not all --

  • but some on Wall Street forgot that behind every dollar traded

  • or leveraged, there's a family looking to buy a house,

  • or pay for an education, open a business, save for retirement.

  • What happens on Wall Street has real consequences across the

  • country, across our economy.

  • I've also spoken before about the need to build a new

  • foundation for economic growth in the 21st century.

  • And given the importance of the financial sector,

  • Wall Street reform is an absolutely essential part of

  • that foundation.

  • Without it, our house will continue to sit on shifting

  • sands, and our families, businesses,

  • and the global economy will be vulnerable to future crises.

  • That's why I feel so strongly that we need to enact a set of

  • updated, commonsense rules to ensure accountability on Wall

  • Street and to protect consumers in our financial system.

  • (applause)

  • Now, here's the good news: A comprehensive plan to achieve

  • these reforms has already passed the House of Representatives.

  • (applause)

  • A Senate version is currently being debated,

  • drawing on ideas from Democrats and Republicans.

  • Both bills represent significant improvement on the flawed rules

  • that we have in place today, despite the furious effort of

  • industry lobbyists to shape this legislation to their special interests.

  • And for those of you in the financial sector I'm sure that

  • some of these lobbyists work for you and they're doing what they

  • are being paid to do.

  • But I'm here today specifically --

  • when I speak to the titans of industry here --

  • because I want to urge you to join us,

  • instead of fighting us in this effort.

  • I am here --

  • (applause)

  • I'm here because I believe that these reforms are, in the end,

  • not only in the best interest of our country,

  • but in the best interest of the financial sector.

  • And I'm here to explain what reform will look like,

  • and why it matters.

  • Now, first, the bill being considered in the Senate would

  • create what we did not have before,

  • and that is a way to protect the financial system and the broader

  • economy and American taxpayers in the event that a large

  • financial firm begins to fail.

  • If there's a Lehmans or an AIG, how can we respond in a way that

  • doesn't force taxpayers to pick up the tab or, alternatively,

  • could bring down the whole system?

  • In an ordinary local bank when it approaches insolvency,

  • we've got a process, an orderly process through the FDIC,

  • that ensures that depositors are protected,

  • maintains confidence in the banking system, and it works.

  • Customers and taxpayers are protected and owners and

  • management lose their equity.

  • But we don't have that kind of process designed to contain the

  • failure of a Lehman Brothers or any of the largest and most

  • interconnected financial firms in our country.

  • That's why, when this crisis began,

  • crucial decisions about what would happen to some of the

  • world's biggest companies -- companies employing tens of

  • thousands of people and holding hundreds of billions of dollars

  • in assets -- had to take place in hurried discussions in the

  • middle of the night.

  • And that's why, to save the entire economy from an even

  • worse catastrophe, we had to deploy taxpayer dollars.

  • Now, much of that money has now been paid back and my

  • administration has proposed a fee to be paid by large

  • financial firms to recover all the money, every dime,

  • because the American people should never have been put in

  • that position in the first place.

  • (applause)

  • But this is why we need a system to shut these firms down with

  • the least amount of collateral damage to innocent people and

  • innocent businesses.

  • And from the start, I've insisted that the financial

  • industry, not taxpayers, shoulder the costs in the event

  • that a large financial company should falter.

  • The goal is to make certain that taxpayers are never again on the

  • hook because a firm is deemed "too big to fail."

  • Now, there's a legitimate debate taking place about how best to

  • ensure taxpayers are held harmless in this process.

  • And that's a legitimate debate, and I encourage that debate.

  • But what's not legitimate is to suggest that somehow the

  • legislation being proposed is going to encourage future

  • taxpayer bailouts, as some have claimed.

  • That makes for a good sound bite,

  • but it's not factually accurate.

  • It is not true.

  • In fact, the system as it stands --

  • (applause)

  • -- the system as it stands is what led to a series of massive,

  • costly taxpayer bailouts.

  • And it's only with reform that we can avoid a similar outcome

  • in the future.

  • In other words, a vote for reform is a vote to put a stop

  • to taxpayer-funded bailouts.

  • That's the truth.

  • End of story.

  • And nobody should be fooled in this debate.

  • (applause)

  • By the way, these changes have the added benefit of creating

  • incentives within the industry to ensure that no one company

  • can ever threaten to bring down the whole economy.

  • To that end, the bill would also enact what's known as the

  • Volcker Rule -- and there's a tall guy sitting in the front

  • row here, Paul Volcker --

  • (applause)

  • -- who we named it after.

  • And it does something very simple: It places some limits on

  • the size of banks and the kinds of risks that banking

  • institutions can take.

  • This will not only safeguard our system against crises,

  • this will also make our system stronger and more competitive by

  • instilling confidence here at home and across the globe.

  • Markets depend on that confidence.

  • Part of what led to the turmoil of the past two years was that

  • in the absence of clear rules and sound practices,

  • people didn't trust that our system was one in which it was

  • safe to invest or lend.

  • As we've seen, that harms all of us.

  • So by enacting these reforms, we'll help ensure that our

  • financial system -- and our economy --

  • continues to be the envy of the world.

  • That's the first thing, making sure that we can wind down one

  • firm if it gets into trouble without bringing the whole

  • system down or forcing taxpayers to fund a bailout.

  • Number two, reform would bring new transparency to many

  • financial markets.

  • As you know, part of what led to this crisis was firms like AIG

  • and others who were making huge and risky bets,

  • using derivatives and other complicated financial

  • instruments, in ways that defied accountability,

  • or even common sense.

  • In fact, many practices were so opaque, so confusing,

  • so complex that the people inside the firms didn't

  • understand them, much less those who were charged with overseeing them.

  • They weren't fully aware of the massive bets that were being placed.

  • That's what led Warren Buffett to describe derivatives that

  • were bought and sold with little oversight as "financial weapons

  • of mass destruction."

  • That's what he called them.

  • And that's why reform will rein in excess and help ensure that

  • these kinds of transactions take place in the light of day.

  • Now, there's been a great deal of concern about these changes.

  • So I want to reiterate: There is a legitimate role for these

  • financial instruments in our economy.

  • They can help allay risk and spur investment.

  • And there are a lot of companies that use these instruments to

  • that legitimate end -- they are managing exposure to fluctuating

  • prices or currencies, fluctuating markets.

  • For example, a business might hedge against rising oil prices

  • by buying a financial product to secure stable fuel costs,

  • so an airlines might have an interest in locking in a decent price.

  • That's how markets are supposed to work.

  • The problem is these markets operated in the shadows of our

  • economy, invisible to regulators,

  • invisible to the public.

  • So reckless practices were rampant.

  • Risks accrued until they threatened our entire financial system.

  • And that's why these reforms are designed to respect legitimate

  • activities but prevent reckless risk taking.

  • That's why we want to ensure that financial products like

  • standardized derivatives are traded out in the open,

  • in the full view of businesses, investors,

  • and those charged with oversight.

  • And I was encouraged to see a Republican senator join with

  • Democrats this week in moving forward on this issue.

  • That's a good sign.

  • (applause)

  • That's a good sign.

  • For without action, we'll continue to see what amounts to

  • highly-leveraged, loosely-monitored gambling in

  • our financial system, putting taxpayers and the economy in jeopardy.

  • And the only people who ought to fear the kind of oversight and

  • transparency that we're proposing are those whose

  • conduct will fail this scrutiny.

  • Third, this plan would enact the strongest consumer financial

  • protections ever.

  • And that's absolutely necessary because --

  • (applause)

  • -- because this financial crisis wasn't just the result of

  • decisions made in the executive suites on Wall Street;

  • it was also the result of decisions made across kitchen

  • tables across America, by folks who took on mortgages and credit

  • cards and auto loans.

  • And while it's true that many Americans took on financial

  • obligations that they knew or should have known they could not

  • have afforded, millions of others were, frankly, duped.

  • They were misled by deceptive terms and conditions,

  • buried deep in the fine print.

  • And while a few companies made out like bandits by exploiting

  • their customers, our entire economy was made more vulnerable.

  • Millions of people have now lost their homes.

  • Tens of millions more have lost value in their homes.

  • Just about every sector of our economy has felt the pain,

  • whether you're paving driveways in Arizona,

  • or selling houses in Ohio, or you're doing home repairs in

  • California, or you're using your home equity to start a small

  • business in Florida.

  • That's why we need to give consumers more protection and

  • more power in our financial system.

  • This is not about stifling competition,

  • stifling innovation; it's just the opposite.

  • With a dedicated agency setting ground rules and looking out for

  • ordinary people in our financial system,

  • we will empower consumers with clear and concise information

  • when they're making financial decisions.

  • So instead of competing to offer confusing products,

  • companies will compete the old-fashioned way,

  • by offering better products.

  • And that will mean more choices for consumers,

  • more opportunities for businesses,

  • and more stability in our financial system.

  • And unless your business model depends on bilking people,

  • there is little to fear from these new rules.

  • (applause)

  • Number four, the last key component of reform.

  • These Wall Street reforms will give shareholders new power in

  • the financial system.

  • They will get what we call a say on pay,

  • a voice with respect to the salaries and bonuses awarded to

  • top executives.

  • And the SEC will have the authority to give shareholders

  • more say in corporate elections, so that investors and pension

  • holders have a stronger role in determining who manages the

  • company in which they've placed their savings.

  • Now, Americans don't begrudge anybody for success when that

  • success is earned.

  • But when we read in the past, and sometimes in the present,

  • about enormous executive bonuses at firms --

  • even as they're relying on assistance from taxpayers or

  • they're taking huge risks that threaten the system as a whole

  • or their company is doing badly --

  • it offends our fundamental values.

  • Not only that, some of the salaries and bonuses that we've

  • seen creates perverse incentives to take reckless risks that

  • contributed to the crisis.

  • It's what helped lead to a relentless focus on a company's

  • next quarter, to the detriment of its next year or its next decade.

  • And it led to a situation in which folks with the most to

  • lose -- stock and pension holders --

  • had the least to say in the process.

  • And that has to change.

  • (applause)

  • Let me close by saying this.

  • I have laid out a set of Wall Street reforms.

  • These are reforms that would put an end to taxpayer bailouts;

  • that would bring complex financial dealings out of the

  • shadows; that would protect consumers;

  • and that would give shareholders more power in the financial system.

  • But let's face it, we also need reform in Washington.

  • And the debate over these changes --

  • (applause)

  • The debate over these changes is a perfect example.

  • I mean, we have seen battalions of financial industry lobbyists

  • descending on Capitol Hill, firms spending millions to

  • influence the outcome of this debate.

  • We've seen misleading arguments and attacks that are designed

  • not to improve the bill but to weaken or to kill it.

  • We've seen a bipartisan process buckle under the weight of these

  • withering forces, even as we've produced a proposal that by all

  • accounts is a commonsense, reasonable,

  • non-ideological approach to target the root problems that

  • led to the turmoil in our financial sector and ultimately

  • in our entire economy.

  • So we've seen business as usual in Washington,

  • but I believe we can and must put this kind of cynical

  • politics aside.

  • We've got to put an end to it.

  • That's why I'm here today.

  • (applause)

  • That's why I'm here today.

  • (applause)

  • And to those of you who are in the financial sector,

  • let me say this, we will not always see eye to eye.

  • We will not always agree.

  • But that doesn't mean that we've got to choose between two extremes.

  • We do not have to choose between markets that are unfettered by

  • even modest protections against crisis,

  • or markets that are stymied by onerous rules that suppress

  • enterprise and innovation.

  • That is a false choice.

  • We need no more proof than the crisis that we've just been through.

  • You see, there has always been a tension between the desire to

  • allow markets to function without interference and the

  • absolute necessity of rules to prevent markets from falling out

  • of kilter.

  • But managing that tension, one that we've debated since the

  • founding of this nation, is what has allowed our country to keep

  • up with a changing world.

  • For in taking up this debate, in figuring out how to apply

  • well-worn principles with each new age,

  • we ensure that we don't tip too far one way or the other --

  • that our democracy remains as dynamic and our economy remains

  • as dynamic as it has in the past.

  • So, yes, this debate can be contentious.

  • It can be heated.

  • But in the end it serves only to make our country stronger.

  • It has allowed us to adapt and to thrive.

  • And I read a report recently that I think fairly illustrates this point.

  • It's from Time Magazine.

  • I'm going to quote: "Through the great banking houses of

  • Manhattan last week ran wild-eyed alarm.

  • Big bankers stared at one another in anger and astonishment.

  • A bill just passed... would rivet upon their institutions

  • what they considered a monstrous system...such a system,

  • they felt, would not only rob them of their pride of

  • profession but would reduce all U.S. banking to its lowest level."

  • That appeared in Time Magazine in June of 1933.

  • (laughter and applause)

  • The system that caused so much consternation,

  • so much concern was the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation,

  • also known as the FDIC, an institution that has

  • successfully secured the deposits of generations of Americans.

  • In the end, our system only works --

  • our markets are only free -- when there are basic safeguards

  • that prevent abuse, that check excesses,

  • that ensure that it is more profitable to play by the rules

  • than to game the system.

  • And that is what the reforms we've been proposing are

  • designed to achieve -- no more, no less.

  • And because that is how we will ensure that our economy works

  • for consumers, that it works for investors,

  • and that it works for financial institutions --

  • in other words, that it works for all of us --

  • that's why we're working so hard to get this stuff passed.

  • This is the central lesson not only of this crisis but of our history.

  • It's what I said when I spoke here two years ago.

  • Because ultimately, there is no dividing line between Main

  • Street and Wall Street.

  • We will rise or we will fall together as one nation.

  • (applause)

  • And that is why I urge all of you to join me.

  • I urge all of you to join me, to join those who are seeking to

  • pass these commonsense reforms.

  • And for those of you in the financial industry,

  • I urge you to join me not only because it is in the interest of

  • your industry, but also because it's in the interest of your country.

  • Thank you so much.

  • God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.

  • Thank you.

  • (applause)

The President: Thank you very much.

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奧巴馬總統呼籲華爾街支持改革 (President Obama Tells Wall Street to Back Reform)

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    李经博 發佈於 2021 年 01 月 14 日
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