Childers Still Relying On Populist Appeal

Last Friday, the House passed a financial overhaul bill that “creates a new Consumer Financial Protection Agency (CFPA), imposes new curbs on the multitrillion-dollar derivatives market and sets up a new system for dissolving failing financial firms.”

Simply put, this was a huge financial overhaul that the Democratic leadership hopes will increase consumer confidence and crackdown on Wall Street abuse. This bill is essentially a populist reaction to what the leadership is hoping is strong support for anything that gives consumers more rights and punishes Wall Street.

Don’t believe me? Here is the text from an e-mail released written by Barney Frank and distributed by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee as soon as the bill passed:

“I ask your financial support for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, so that members who vote in favor of tough financial regulation will know that we will stand with them when they are attacked by candidates backed by powerful defenders of the status quo.”

The bill passed by a vote of 223-202. Twenty-seven Democrats joined the entire Republican caucus in opposing the bill. Joining the opposition was Rep. Gene Taylor. However, Rep. Travis Childers supported the Democratic leadership on the bill.

Childers has bucked the party on a number of issues this year so I thought this was strange, and interesting. But voting for a bill like this makes sense for the type of Congressman Childers wants to be considered. This is very much a populist bill. Childers is going to go home and say how he voted for ‘Main Street’ and against Wall Street with this bill. I am sure he will argue that Alan Nunnelee supports the ladder at the same time. In reality, all Childers was voted for was a massive new bureaucracy (the CFPA) that gives government new power on what financial products can be offered to consumers.