Three thousand marchers at a May 17 “Showdown on K Street” included a cross-section of union members, community activists and allies from across the country–with some traveling from as far away as Minnesota to take the battle to K Street, where Wall Street’s highly paid lobbyists scheme to stop Wall Street reform.
But the following day, Senate Republicans gave Wall Street highrollers a big boost when they blocked a vote on three amendments to a major financial reform bill.
Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, the top-ranking Republican on the Banking Committee, objected to a vote on an amendment would ban commercial banks from trading for their own benefit with taxpayer-backed money.
Shelby also objected to an amendment that would rein in predatory practices of payday lenders and one that would have banned naked credit default swaps, which were at the heart of the financial crisis.
“If this isn’t a sign of the Republicans having the backs of the big banks on Wall Street over the American people, I don’t know what is,” said Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon, a sponsor of the ban on commercial banks from trading for their own benefit with taxpayer-backed funds.
At the Monday rally on K Street, Emily Parish said she was participating because of her two children, ages nine and 12:
The banks have taken our country and sinking all our money into taking care of Wall Street and not taking care of the people. It’s time to stop it,” she said.
AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler made it clear at the event that Wall Street needs to pay for the jobs its reckless practices destroyed.
“Americans are fed up. $700 million in bank bailouts. We have $1.4 million being spent every day to kill this legislation,” she said.
“We stand for holding Wall Street and K Street accountable. We stand for rebuilding our economy with good jobs, and we want Wall Street to pay its fair share. The 11 million jobs lost in this crisis were stolen. You might say that these jobs were collateral damage. The casualties of K Street and Wall Street,” Shuler said.