John McCain: Wrong on the economy when he voted to start this mess. Wrong for the economy now: “John McCain may be trying to pretend he’s a big financial regulator fan now, but in 1999, when Phil Gramm created the legislation that started deregulation, John McCain voted FOR the bill. Joe Biden voted No. John McCain may be trying to pretend he’s a big financial regulator fan now, but in 1999, when Phil Gramm created the legislation that started deregulation, John McCain voted FOR the bill. Joe Biden voted No. Saying he’s for bank regulation is a very big McCain lie. And a big stick talking point when whipping the Republicans on the economy. In 1999, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act repealed 1930’s legislation that had separated commercial and investment banks. Commercial banks, where people deposit their paychecks and do personal banking, have regulation. Investment banks didn’t have that “fettering” as Republicans saw it. John McCain voted for Gramm-Leach-Bliley. Joe Biden voted NO. The act passed 54-44, mostly a party line vote. Yes, Clinton signed the law. But Joe Biden was against it. With the 1930’s Glass-Steagall Act repealed, the theory was competition could happen now in financial services. The evil enemy of regulation was gone, free markets would reign. Mergers happened that couldn’t before. A broader range of institutions could offer a broader range of products. Which grew to include obscure, unregulated financial products with no collateral to support them. Like sub-prime mortgages. Regulated banks couldn’t take those kinds of risks. Unregulated companies could. In March of this year, John McCain was reinforcing his “market solves everything” anti-regulation stance. “I’m always for less regulation,” he told The Wall Street Journal last March, “but I am aware of the view that there is a need for government oversight” in situations like the subprime lending crisis, the problem that has cascaded through Wall Street this year. He concluded, “but I am fundamentally a deregulator.” That same month Barack Obama gave his 21st Century Economics speech at Cooper Union not telling Wall Street what they wanted to hear. Including supporting new regulation of financial institutions: First, if you can borrow from the government, you should be subject to government oversight and supervision. The NY Times has a piece today comparing the candidate’s POV’s. (quote above from it) http://www.nytimes.com/… No matter how much McCain sounds like a Democrat today, back when it counted, when vision matter, when understanding only making rich people richer doesn’t help the economy, McCain listened to his good friend Phil Gramm. Joe Biden listened to reason. Want Phil Gramm in control of the economy? Elect John McCain.” -The Daily Kos