WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell made the following statement Wednesday regarding assurances from Chairman Dodd on bailout loopholes in the Wall Street bill:

“I appreciate the efforts of Sen. Shelby to work toward a bipartisan solution on an issue that will have an impact on nearly every American. The time afforded by my Republican colleagues and Sen. Ben Nelson was instrumental in gaining assurances from the Chairman that changes will be made to end taxpayer bailouts and the dangerous notion that certain financial institutions are too big to fail.

“Unfortunately, Sen. Shelby believes that continued talks on a number of provisions affecting Main Street will not bring the negotiators any closer to an agreement. Now that those bipartisan negotiations have ended, it is my hope that the majority’s avowed interest in improving this legislation on the Senate floor is genuine and the partisan gamesmanship is over. I remain deeply troubled by a number of provisions in this bill and will work aggressively in the days ahead to ensure that the majority does not use our mutual interest in regulating Wall Street to extend the federal government’s unwanted hand into Main Street.”

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April 26, 2010–Appearing on FOX News Sunday yesterday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell stated:

“It’s my expectation that we will not go forward with this partisan bill tomorrow. That will stimulate the kind of continued discussion we have to get it right along the lines that the “Washington Post” is recommending this morning and along the lines I think is the best way to go as well.”

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WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell made the following remarks on the Senate floor Thursday regarding financial regulation reform:

“In the fall of 2008, I reluctantly voted for a bill that sent taxpayer money to Wall Street banks that should have paid for their own mistakes. We were told it was needed to avert a global calamity. So I did it. And then I went back to my constituents and vowed: ‘never again’.

“Never again should taxpayers be on the hook for recklessness on Wall Street. And no financial institution should be considered too big to fail.

“So when the financial regulatory bill the Majority was about to bring to the floor last week still contained a number of loopholes allowing for future bailouts, I raised the alarm. I wasn’t about to take Democrat assurances that this bill protected taxpayers. I wanted them to prove it. Read the rest of this entry »