Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd (D., Conn.) went to the Senate floor Friday to try and give a status report on the bill hes working on to overhaul financial market rules. He painted a mixed picture of the status, saying he was optimistic but also using the word fragile. He described in slightly more detail than usual one of the central issues they are struggling with — how do you protect consumers in a way that doesnt threaten the safety and soundness of banks?
Obviously you want to do this in a way that does not in any way jeopardize the safety and soundness of institutions, and I dont believe that necessarily there is any conflict here, although some suggest there may be. So we are trying to provide as well a mechanism to resolve when in fact you may have some conflict between safety and soundness and consumer protection. I understand that concern, we are trying to accommodate that, while simultaneously maintaining the independence and autonomy of this agency.