Following the passage of financial reform legislation earlier this week, Montana’s U.S. delegation quickly sent out their prepared statements responding to it. And while one would expect Republican Rep. Denny Rehberg and Democratic Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester to disagree on the merits of the regulatory bill, they also differ wildly on whether it will prevent future “bank bailouts.”
According to Rehberg, it won’t: “Instead of addressing the root cause of the collapse of America’s banking system, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, this disastrous bill saddles taxpayers with permanent bank bailouts and further perpetuates the idea that some industries are ‘too big to fail.'”
Tester disagrees: “This reform finally gets rid of the notion that any private company can somehow be ‘too big to fail.’ I don’t believe in bailouts. But I do believe in making sure folks are playing by the same rules.”
So does Baucus: “This bill will put an end to taxpayer bailouts, it will bring more transparency and accountability to help end risky financial transactions, and it will help keep hard-working folks from losing their homes, pensions, or jobs.”
What is agreed upon is that the 2,300-page bill is incredibly complicated. The Boston Herald has simplified it a bit with this list of winners and losers.